On The Money — Biden goes after ‘junk fees’

Welcome to On The Money, your guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line. For The Hill, we’re Sylvan Lane, Aris Folley and Karl Evers-Hillstrom.

President Biden is rolling out a ban on so-called “junk fees” and noncompete agreements, but it’s unclear whether his proposals will survive. We’ll also look at the rise of sports betting, as well as Yahoo’s layoffs.

And if you haven’t seen yet, there’s something the former president wants you to know about Rihanna.

But first, a programming note…

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Can Biden enact his big plans for junk fees?

President Joe Biden is pursuing an aggressive economic agenda aimed at boosting worker power, taxing the rich, reducing fees and taking on dominant corporations. 

But with Republicans in control of the House — and eager to block the president’s wishlist — Biden doesn’t have a pathway to enact many of the economic reforms announced at his State of the Union address, including a 4 percent tax on stock buybacks, a wealth tax on billionaires and expanded paid leave for workers. 

That’s why the Biden administration is shifting its focus to regulations in an effort to secure economic wins without the help of Congress. The administration’s recent proposals include a ban on all noncompete agreements and a high-profile campaign against so-called junk fees. 

• One of the proposed rules would cap credit card late fees at $8, which the Biden administration says would save consumers $9 billion annually.  
  
• But corporate lobbying groups are already gearing up to challenge that rule in court.  
  
• The administration’s ban on noncompete agreements could face legal trouble, too. 

Karl has the story here. 

RISKY BET

Sports betting has risen tenfold in three years. Addiction experts fear a new crisis is on the horizon.

The sports betting market has multiplied tenfold in three years and may have reached $7 billion in 2022. More than half of the nation can now legally gamble on sports. Fifty million Americans are expected to bet on the upcoming Super Bowl.   

Five years ago, betting on live games was illegal in most of the United States. A Supreme Court ruling in 2018 removed the ban and transformed the industry. Now, 33 states and the District of Columbia allow wagers on games.   

Addiction experts fear a coming national epidemic to rival the opioid crisis.  

• “Gambling is a very different addiction from drugs or alcohol,” said Lia Nower, a professor and director of the Center for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University.
  
• “If I’m drunk or high, at some point my family is going to figure it out. With gambling, I can be sitting with my kids, watching cartoons, and gambling away my house, my car, everything I own, on my mobile phone. How would you know?”  

The Hill’s Daniel de Visé explains here. 

MORE TECH LAYOFFS

Yahoo announces layoffs of 20 percent of staff by end of 2023 

Yahoo has announced plans to lay off more than 20 percent of its staff by the end of the year as it conducts a restructuring of its ad tech unit, multiple outlets reported.

A Yahoo spokesperson confirmed the layoffs to The Hill. Yahoo CEO Jim Lanzone told Axios, which first reported the news, that the layoffs are not a result of financial difficulties but instead strategic changes to the advertising unit, which has not been profitable.  

The layoffs will affect more than 1,600 employees in advertising technology, Axios reported. 

Yahoo told The Hill that the figure is equal to almost half of the unit. 

The Hill’s Jared Gans explains here. 

SPEND UP

Corporate America donated $36M to election objectors in 2022 election: analysis 

Corporate PACs affiliated with Fortune 500 companies and their trade associations donated $36.3 million to lawmakers who voted against certifying President Biden’s victory after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. 

That’s the total figure for the 2022 election cycle, which began in January 2021, according to an analysis of year-end campaign finance filings by liberal advocacy group Accountable.US. 

• AT&T was the top company donor to the 147 Republicans in the 2022 election cycle, giving roughly $630,000, according to the analysis. The telecom giant briefly suspended donations to the election objectors in response to the Capitol attack. 
  
• It’s followed by Home Depot ($478,000), Lockheed Martin ($440,000), UPS ($411,000) and Boeing ($392,000). Comcast, which previously paused donations to the election objectors to review its “political giving policies and practices,” donated $382,000. 

Karl has more here. 

Good to Know

President Biden’s private-sector liaison, Zach Butterworth, is leaving his post at the White House. Butterworth has served as the director of private sector engagement since the beginning of the administration.  

He was the point person at the White House for the business community who coordinated with CEOs and built coalitions around support for the American Rescue Plan, the CHIPs and Science Act, the Inflation Reduction Act and the bipartisan infrastructure law, according to a White House official.  

Other items we’re keeping an eye on: 

• Russia plans to cut its oil production by about 5 percent next month in response to sanctions it has received from Western countries over the war in Ukraine, which is sending prices higher.  
  
• The Energy Department on Friday proposed to require new household refrigerators and clothes washers to meet a more stringent set of energy efficiency standards.

That’s it for today. Thanks for reading and check out The Hill’s Finance page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you next week when we debut our brand new look! 

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