Joel Rudman files legislation to require Florida businesses to take cash

a lot of money - a million US dollars in cash

The push is on once again to keep cash as king in Florida.

Rep. Joel Rudman filed legislation (HB 67) requiring most businesses in Florida to accept cash payments for goods and services. The Navarre Republican said businesses should not be able to discriminate against those who don’t have the means or desire to only conduct business electronically.

“For many of our citizens, credit card ownership is simply not possible,” Rudman said. “Other citizens are wary of options like Google Pay and Apple Pay that can be monitored, tracked and even frozen by the government in a Big Brother fashion, as seen during COVID lockdowns.”

Rudman ran a similar bill last year, with Sen. Shevrin Jones, a Miami Gardens Democrat, carrying the Senate companion bill. The bills ultimately died before reaching the floor in either chamber.

But Rudman said it’s important that the continued evolution of financial transactions does not leave consumers behind.

“We simply cannot disenfranchise an entire segment of society that prefers to use cash money,” he said. “Cash allows offices to avoid costly billing services and enables service industries to avoid bank transaction fees, saving consumers potentially thousands in add-on costs.”

The bill last year drew some skepticism from professional businesses, including in the health care sector, where most transactions are done through bank transactions or card payments. Rudman said changes to the legislation address some of those concerns. His bill this year also takes into account security fears some businesses may have about keeping cash on premises.

“There are safeguards built into the bill as written, including protection from counterfeit money, accepting large denominations and accepting huge amounts. The denominations must be $20 or under, and total cost of the goods must be less than $5,000,” he said.

“Last year, we were also able to accommodate reasonable exceptions for certain businesses and professional services that normally do not handle cash, and I have already heard from the entertainment industry about ways they can accommodate this bill’s intent as well. The goal here is not to inconvenience anyone; rather, we do not wish to restrict someone’s liberty or pursuit of happiness simply because they do not wish to pay a credit card annual fee or give their private information to Apple.”

Rudman also voiced some concerns about what the push for a cashless society may mean on a grander scale. He said protecting the U.S. dollar is a potential national security concern.

“There is a strategy afoot to replace the American dollar as the worldwide preferred currency,” he said. “Already, there are more than eight BRICS nations (including Brazil, China, Russia, India, South Africa and Argentina) that are attempting to undermine the dominance of the U.S. dollar in favor of the Chinese yuan. If we expect other nations to respect the dollar, we must first demand that respect at home.”