CHARLESTON, W.V. - Americans for Job Security, a pro-business issue advocacy organization, today launched a new radio ad that urges Rep. Shelley Moore Capito to stand up to Wall Street banks that are imposing excessive debit card swipe fees on West Virginia's small businesses and consumers.

"West Virginians bailed out big banks as taxpayers, now these same banks are turning around and emptying our wallets at the cash register," said Stephen DeMaura, president of Americans for Job Security.  "Big banks are strong-arming small businesses into paying egregious fees every time a customer swipes their debit card.  Congress has taken measures to put big banks and small businesses on a level playing field, but these rules have yet to be implemented.  West Virginia needs Rep. Capito and her colleagues in the House of Representatives to stand on the side of Main Street during this debate, not Wall Street, and help move reform forward."

Every time a consumer swipes their debit card, small businesses pay big banks an average of 44 cents - approximately 11 times the actual cost that banks incur to process the transaction.  Because swipe fees are centrally set by Visa and MasterCard, which together represent nearly 90 percent of the debit-card market, small businesses are unable to negotiate swipe fee costs or take their business elsewhere.  In response to the broken market, the Federal Reserve has limited swipe fees to 12 cents, as instructed by the Durbin Amendment which passed in July 2010; however, Wall Street is fighting to roll back these reforms before they are implemented - a move that will cost local businesses millions of dollars every month and kill local job growth.

The one-minute ad will air across the district beginning on April 19.

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AJS is the only independent, bi-partisan, pro-business issue advocacy organization in America. Established in 1997, AJS promotes issues that strengthen the American economy.

For more information on Americans for Job Security visit our website at www.SaveJobs.org.