Bouncing a check could get more expensive

Lawmaker seeking fee increase as retailers get penalized for bad checks

PIERRE – The last time the South Dakota Legislature increased the amount retailers can charge for a bounced check, Sen. Michael Rohl was a sophomore in high school.

That was in 2007.

“Quite obviously, the value of money has changed since then,” the Aberdeen Republican said last.

Rohl is sponsoring legislation that would allow retailers to charge up to $60 for a returned check – up from the current maximum of $40.

The advent of credit and debit cards brought a steep decline in payments made by checks. Between 2018 and 2021, check payments declined by a rate of 7.2 percent, according to the Federal Reserve. At the same time, the average payments by check increased from $1,908 to $2,430. In 2021, check payments were valued at $27.2 trillion.