LA officials push for ban on cashless businesses

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08 December 2023, Lower Saxony, Hanover: A VISA debit card is held in front of a reader at a press conference in Hanover City Hall. (Photo by Julian Stratenschulte/picture alliance via Getty Images)

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles City Council members spoke in support of a proposed ban on cashless businesses in the city Tuesday. Officials said the proposed ban is an attempt to be more inclusive by empowering residents who may not have bank accounts or those who may be denied access to credit.

During the morning press conference, Councilwoman Heather Hutt said that businesses that do not accept cash create an economy inaccessible to the city's most vulnerable populations.

Hutt's motion is expected to be taken up by the council's Trade, Travel and Tourism committee this summer.

"Especially as we end April, which is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, this is about our victims of domestic violence who need to use cash for their safety and escape," Hutt said. "Electronic forms of payment can track them when trying to flee."

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If approved, LA would join other cities like San Francisco, New York and Philadelphia – all of which have enacted cashless business bans.

Council members Hugo Soto-Martinez and Eunisses Hernandez joined Hutt to show their support – as did Alberto Retana, president of the Community Coalition, a racial-justice grassroots organization; and Leslie Belt of the Jenesse Center, a domestic-violence prevention and intervention nonprofit.

"These are everyday people," Retana said. "The Black and brown faces, the white and Asian faces, these are all the faces of Los Angeles who carry cash and want to participate in our city's economy. Going cashless is a form of economic suppression, and a form of othering that tells Angelenos they do not belong."

Belt echoed Hutt's concerns about women and families who don't have access to credit or who lack a bank account.

"When survivors are forced to rely on digital transactions, they leave digital footprints and become easily traceable by abusers who often control their bank accounts," Belt said.

City News Service contributed to this report.