WI: Joint Advocacy Letter to Wisconsin Governor Evers in Support of AB 574

February 29, 2024‍

Governor Tony Evers 

Wisconsin State Capitol
Madison, Wisconsin 53707

‍Re: Request for signature - AB 574

Dear Governor Evers:

On behalf of industry leaders driving economic growth and opportunity in Wisconsin through financial inclusion and responsible innovation, we write to express our strong support for Assembly Bill 574 (“AB 574”). This bill licenses earned wage access (EWA) providers, and we ask for your support for the bill that now sits on your desk.

EWA is a new and innovative industry that empowers workers by allowing them to access the pay they have earned, on their schedule – without waiting until payday. By enabling Wisconsin workers to access their own money at little or no cost when they need to, EWA provides a valuable service that saves people from resorting to high-cost financial products and strategies that harm financial health – like payday loans, paying bills late, and incurring late fees, and taking on untenable credit card debt.

AB 574 is a bipartisan bill that passed the Assembly by voice vote on February 21, 2024 and passed the Senate (31-1) on February 20, 2024.

Our data shows that over 90,000 Wisconsin residents have used an EWA product, and over 725 employers offer EWA as a benefit to their employees. Research shows that this helps businesses greatly reduce employee turnover, employee absenteeism, and the time to fill open positions.

Importantly, AB 574 codifies existing protections that Wisconsin EWA users already receive because of how EWA services are structured. The industry supports enshrining these protections into law to guard against any future EWA company backsliding: things like requiring credit invisibility, a right to cancel at any time without penalty, and a ban on late fees, interest penalties, debt collection, selling debt to a third party, or recourse of any kind. These are in addition to several other important requirements related to price disclosures and data reporting.

We respectfully urge you to sign AB 574 and create a new license for EWA providers that will protect Wisconsin workers and help Wisconsin business owners thrive, while promoting innovation and creating regulatory clarity necessary for the EWA industry to grow.‍

Sincerely,

American Fintech Council 

Phil Goldfeder, CEO

Brigit 

Stephen Bowe, VP, Head of Legal

Chamber of Progress 

Vidushi Dyall, Director of Legal Analysis

Cleo 

Colin Jones, General Counsel

Cross River 

Joseph N. Garba, Head of External Affairs

DailyPay 

Jared DeMatteis, Chief Legal & Strategy Officer

EarnIn 

David Durant, General Counsel

Financial Technology Association

Penny Lee, President & CEO

Immediate

Michael Orme, COO

Payactiv 

Aaron Marienthal, General Counsel

WageStream

Kevin Lefton, Head of Legal & Regulatory, North America

ZayZoon 

Garth McAdam, General Counselz