2023 Illinois Compiled Statutes › Chapter 205 - FINANCIAL REGULATION › 205 ILCS 616/ - Electronic Fund Transfer Act.

(205 ILCS 616/1)
Sec. 1. 
		This Act may be cited as the Electronic Fund Transfer Act.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/5)
Sec. 5. 
		Findings and purpose.
(a) The General Assembly finds:
(1) that communications networks linking financial     institutions and their customers, through which transfers of funds are effected electronically, provide the people of this State with substantial benefits;
(2) that it is essential that the rights of the     people of this State be adequately protected by encouraging the establishment of communications networks that will be economically viable and technologically reliable;
(3) that the opportunity for competition among     suppliers of electronic fund transfer communications services must be preserved, thus assuring to customers of financial institutions and to financial institutions the benefits of a competitive environment;
(4) that it is essential that the benefits of     electronic fund transfers be readily available to all customers of financial institutions, all financial institutions, and all sellers of goods and services that choose to participate in such a system of electronic fund transfers; and
(5) that it is essential that the competitive     environment in the electronic payment systems industry in this State be preserved and enhanced.
(b) It is the purpose of this Act to enable electronic fund transfer
communications networks and financial institutions to meet the needs of
commerce in a competitive environment and to provide reliable communications
services to the people of this State.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/10)
Sec. 10. Definitions. For purposes of this Act, the words and phrases
defined in
this Section shall have the meanings ascribed to them unless the context
requires otherwise.  Whenever the terms "network" and "switch" are used, they
shall be deemed interchangeable unless, from the context and facts, the
intention
is plain to apply only to one type of entity.
"Access device" means a card, code, or other means of access to an
account, or any combination thereof, that may be used by a customer to initiate
an electronic fund transfer at a terminal.
"Account" means a demand deposit, savings deposit, share, member, or
other customer asset account held by a financial institution.
An "affiliate" of, or a person "affiliated" with, a specified person,
means a person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries,
controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, the person
specified.
"Commissioner" means the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation or a person
authorized by the Secretary, the Division of Banking Act, or
this Act to act in the Secretary's stead.
"Division" means the Division of Banking within the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
"Electronic fund transfer" means a transfer of funds, other
than a transaction originated by check, draft, or similar paper instrument,
that is initiated through a terminal for the purpose of ordering, instructing,
or authorizing a financial institution to debit or credit an account.
"Financial institution" means a bank established under the
laws of this or any other state or established under the laws of the United
States, a savings and loan association or savings bank established under the
laws of this or any other state or established under the laws of the United
States, a credit union established under the laws of this or any other state or
established under the laws of the United States, or a licensee under the
Consumer Installment Loan Act or the Sales Finance Agency Act.
"General use reloadable card" means a card, code, or other access device that is:
(1) issued on a prepaid basis primarily for personal,     family, or household purposes to a consumer in a specified amount in exchange for payment;
(2) issued under an agreement containing terms and     conditions that permit funds to be added to the card, code, or other device after the initial purchase or issuance, including a temporary non-reloadable card issued solely in connection with a general use reloadable card, code, or other device;
(3) not marketed or labeled as a gift card or gift      certificate; and
(4) redeemable upon presentation at multiple,     unaffiliated merchants for goods or services or usable at  automated teller machines.
"Interchange transaction" means an electronic fund transfer
that results in exchange of data and settlement of funds between 2 or more
unaffiliated financial institutions.
"Issuer" means a person that issues a general use reloadable card or that person's agent with respect to the card.
"Marketed or labeled as a gift card or gift certificate" means directly or indirectly offering, advertising, or  otherwise suggesting the potential use of a card, code, or other device as a gift for another person.
"Network" means an electronic information communication and
processing system that processes interchange transactions.
"Person" means a natural person, corporation, unit of government or
governmental subdivision or agency, trust, estate, partnership, cooperative, or
association.
"Seller of goods and services" means a business entity other than a
financial institution.
"Switch" means an electronic information and communication processing
facility that processes interchange transactions on behalf of a network.  This
term does not include an electronic information and communication processing
company (1) that is owned by a
bank holding company or an affiliate of a bank holding company and used solely
for transmissions among affiliates of the bank holding company or (2) to the
extent that the facility, by virtue of a contractual relationship, is used
solely for transmissions among affiliates of a bank holding company, regardless
of whether the facility is an affiliate of the bank holding company or operates
as a switch with respect to one or more networks under an independent
contractual relationship.
"Terminal" means an electronic device through which a consumer may
initiate an interchange transaction.  This term does not include (1) a
telephone, (2) an electronic device located in a personal residence, (3) a
personal computer or other electronic device used primarily for personal,
family, or household purposes, (4) an electronic device owned or operated by a
seller of goods and services unless the device is connected either directly or
indirectly to a financial institution and is operated in a manner that provides
access to an account by means of a personal and confidential code or other
security mechanism (other than signature), (5) an electronic device that is not
accessible to persons other than employees of a financial institution or
affiliate of a financial institution, or (6) an electronic device that is
established by a financial institution on a proprietary basis that is
identified as such and that cannot be accessed by customers of other financial
institutions.  The Commissioner may issue a written rule that excludes
additional electronic devices from the definition of the term "terminal".
(Source: P.A. 98-545, eff. 1-1-14.)
(205 ILCS 616/15)
Sec. 15. 
		Exemptions and limitations.
(a) A seller of goods and services on
whose premises one
or more terminals are established is not, solely by virtue of such
establishment or solely by virtue of the
processing of interchange transactions in connection with the sale of goods and
services, a financial institution and is not subject to the laws governing, or
other requirements imposed on, financial institutions.
(b) Nothing contained in this Act shall authorize the Commissioner to
regulate the conduct of business functions or to obtain access to any business
records, data, or information of a seller of goods and services that operates a
terminal, except as may otherwise be provided by law; nor shall this Act be
construed to prohibit or to authorize the Commissioner to prohibit a seller of
goods and services from using a terminal to perform internal proprietary
functions, including extensions of credit pursuant to an open end credit plan.
(c) The provision of facilities or services by a public utility subject
to the Public Utilities Act
in connection with an electronic fund transfer system does not subject
the public utility to this Act.
(d) A financial institution is not subject to the Public Utilities Act
solely by reason of acts
undertaken in connection with an electronic fund transfer system under this Act
unless the financial institution performs acts as a public utility or a common
carrier of communications services.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/20)
Sec. 20. 
		Powers and duties of Commissioner. 
		The Commissioner shall have
the following powers and duties:
(1) to promulgate reasonable rules in accordance with the
Illinois Administrative Procedure Act for the
administration of this Act;
(2) to issue orders for the enforcement of this Act and any rule promulgated
under this Act;
(3) to appoint hearing officers to exercise any delegated
powers;
(4) to subpoena witnesses, compel their attendance, administer oaths,
examine any person under oath, and require the production of any relevant
books,
papers, accounts, and documents in the course of and pursuant to any
investigation conducted or action taken by the Commissioner; and
(5) to conduct hearings.
(Source: P.A. 92-811, eff. 8-21-02.)
(205 ILCS 616/25)
Sec. 25. 
		Examination authority. 
		The Commissioner or examiners appointed
by the
Commissioner have the authority to examine any network and any switch,
including leased equipment and services furnished by a subcontractor or other
party, as to any transaction by, with, or involving a financial institution
that has established a terminal in this State.  Information obtained in the
course of an examination shall not be disclosed, except as provided by
law.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/30)
Sec. 30. Acceptance of deposits.
(A) No terminal that accepts deposits of
funds to an
account may be established or owned in this State except by (a) a bank
established under
the laws of this or any other state or established under the laws of the United
States that (1) is authorized by law to establish a
branch in this State or (2) is permitted by rule of the Commissioner to
establish deposit-taking terminals in this State in order to maintain
parity between national banks and banks
established under the laws of this or any other state, (b) a savings and loan
association or savings bank established under the laws of this or any other
state or established under the laws of the United States, (c) a credit union
established under the laws of this or any other state or established under the
laws of the United States, or (d) a licensee under the Consumer Installment
Loan
Act or the Sales Finance Agency Act.
(B) A person other than a financial institution or an affiliate of a
financial institution may establish or own, in whole or in part, a
cash-dispensing terminal at
which an interchange transaction may be performed, provided that the terminal
does not accept deposits of funds to an account, and provided that the person
establishing or owning the terminal must post a telephone number on the terminal for consumers to
call to report problems, along with the Department's telephone number.
The Commissioner or examiners appointed by the Commissioner shall have the
authority to examine any person that has established or owns a terminal in this
State pursuant to this subsection (B) if the Commissioner has received multiple
complaints regarding one or more terminals owned by the person, and in the
event of such an examination, the person shall pay the reasonable costs and
expenses of the examination as determined by the Commissioner.  The
Commissioner may impose civil penalties of up to $100 against any person
subject to this subsection (B) for each
 failure to comply with this Act but in no event shall any person be subject to civil penalties under this subsection (B) of more than $1,000 for violations of this subsection (B).  All moneys received by the
Commissioner under this subsection (B) shall be paid into, and all expenses
incurred by the Commissioner under this subsection (B) shall be paid from, the
Bank and Trust Company Fund.
(C) A network operating in this
State shall maintain a directory of the locations of cash-dispensing terminals
at which an interchange transaction may be performed that are established or
owned in
this State by its members and shall file the directory with the Commissioner
within 60 days after the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1997 and
thereafter once per calendar year.
(Source: P.A. 100-5, eff. 6-30-17; 100-661, eff. 8-1-18.)
(205 ILCS 616/35)
Sec. 35. 
		Limit on switch connections. 
		No main office or branch of a
financial institution shall at
the same time be
directly connected to more than one switch; provided, however, that (a) no
financial institution shall be deemed to be directly connected to a switch that
is, or is owned directly or indirectly by, that financial institution, and (b)
nothing
in this Act shall preclude (1) a terminal that does not accept deposits from
being
connected to more than one switch, (2) a network from utilizing more than one
switch, or (3) a network from utilizing a single switch.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/40)
Sec. 40. 
		Transmission through a network. 
		All electronic fund transfers
that (i) are interchange
transactions and (ii) are
initiated at a terminal in connection with payment for goods and services shall
be transmitted to a financial institution through a network.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/45)
Sec. 45. 
		Nondiscriminatory access.
(a) Subject to the provisions of Section 35 of this Act,
use of a terminal through access to a switch and use of
any switch shall be available on a nondiscriminatory basis to any switch or
financial institution that has its principal place of business within this
State.  The terms and conditions of  use shall be governed by a written
agreement between the network and the financial institution or other switch
obtaining the use.  The written agreement shall specify all of the terms and
conditions under which the network may be utilized, including commercially
reasonable fees and charges.
(b) The use and operation of each terminal served by a switch shall be
governed by a written agreement between the network and the person establishing
the terminal.  The written agreement shall specify all the terms and conditions
under which the network provides service to the terminal, including
commercially reasonable fees and charges.
(c) (Blank).
(Source: P.A. 92-811, eff. 8-21-02.)
(205 ILCS 616/46)
Sec. 46. Disclosure requirements for general use reloadable cards.
(a) The issuer of a general use reloadable card shall make the disclosures required under this Section in accordance with the following standards:
(1)   The disclosures shall be clear and conspicuous.      The disclosures may contain commonly accepted or readily understandable abbreviations or symbols.
(2) The disclosures required under items (1), (2),     and (3) of subsection (b) of this Section shall be provided to the consumer in written or electronic form.  When cards are sold online, the disclosures required by item (1) of subsection (b) of this Section must be clearly and conspicuously accessible on the issuer's Internet website prior to purchase.
(3) For joint accounts, only one set of the required     disclosures shall be provided and may be given to any of the account holders.
(4) Issuers may design their own disclosure format,     provided that all fees required to be disclosed under subsection (b) of this Section are included, the amount of each fee is disclosed along with the frequency at which each fee may be assessed, and the substance and clarity of the disclosures are not affected.
(b) The issuer must make the following disclosures:
(1) Before a general use reloadable card is     purchased, the issuer shall disclose to the consumer the amount of any:
(A)  card purchase fee;
(B)  monthly maintenance fee;
(C) cash withdrawal fee at an ATM and cash         advance fee at retail locations;
(D)  reload fee;  and
(E)  balance inquiry fee, unless disclosure of         the balance is available to the consumer without cost via telephone or Internet access.
The disclosures required in this item (1) must be     made on the portion of the card packaging accessible to the consumer prior to purchase for all cards sold at retail locations.
(2) The issuer shall include the following     disclosures on the card:
(A)  the expiration date of the card, if any; and
(B)  a toll-free telephone number and, if one is         maintained, an Internet website that a consumer may use to obtain information about fees and to obtain a replacement card after the card expires if the underlying funds may be available thereafter.
(3) The issuer shall disclose with the card the     amount of each type of fee not disclosed in item (1) of this subsection (b) that may be imposed in connection with the card after purchase (or, if variable, an explanation of how the fee shall be determined) and the conditions under which the fee may be imposed.
(c)  A card, code, or other access device is not a general use reloadable card merely because the issuer or processor is technically able to add functionality that would otherwise enable the card, code, or other access device to be reloaded.
(d)  Compliance with the federal Electronic Fund Transfer Act and any regulations issued under that Act regarding general use reloadable card disclosures shall constitute compliance with this Section.
(e)  The requirements of this Section shall apply to any general use reloadable card sold to a consumer on or after January 1, 2015.
(f) In this Section, "card" means a general use reloadable card.
(Source: P.A. 98-545, eff. 1-1-14.)
(205 ILCS 616/50)
Sec. 50. Terminal requirements.
(a) To assure maximum safety and security against
malfunction, fraud, theft, and other accidents or abuses and to assure that all
access devices will have the capability of activating all terminals established
in this State, no terminal shall accept an access device
that does not conform to specifications that are generally accepted.  In the
case of a dispute concerning the specifications, the Commissioner, in
accordance with the provisions of Section 20 of this Act, shall have the
authority to determine the specifications.
(b) No terminal that does not accept an
access device that conforms with those specifications shall be established or
operated.
(c) A terminal shall bear a logotype or other identification
symbol designed to advise customers which access devices may activate the
terminal.
(d) When used to perform an interchange transaction, a terminal shall not
bear any form of proprietary advertising of products and services not offered
at the terminal; provided, however, that a terminal screen may bear proprietary
advertising of products or services offered by a financial institution when a
person uses an access device issued by that financial institution.
(e) No person operating a terminal in this State shall impose any
surcharge on a consumer for the usage of that terminal, whether or not the
consumer is using an access device issued by that person, unless that surcharge
is clearly disclosed to the consumer electronically on the
terminal screen.  Following presentation of the electronic disclosure on the
terminal screen, the consumer shall be provided an opportunity to cancel that
transaction without incurring any surcharge or other obligation.  If a
surcharge is imposed on a consumer using an access device not issued by the
person operating the terminal, that person shall disclose on
the terminal screen that the surcharge is in addition to any fee that may
be assessed by the consumer's own institution.  As used in this subsection,
"surcharge" means any charge imposed by the person operating the terminal
solely for the use of the terminal.
(f) A receipt given at a terminal to a person who initiates an electronic
fund transfer shall include a number or code that identifies the consumer
initiating the transfer, the consumer's account or accounts, or the access
device used to initiate the transfer.  If the number or code shown on the
receipt is a number that identifies the access device, the number must be
truncated as printed on the receipt so that fewer than all of the digits of the
number or code are printed on the receipt.  The
Commissioner may, however, modify or waive the requirements imposed by this
subsection
(f) if the Commissioner determines that the modifications or waivers are
necessary to alleviate any undue compliance burden.
(g) No terminal shall operate in this State unless, with respect to each
interchange transaction initiated at the terminal, the access code entered by
the consumer to authorize the transaction is encrypted by the device into
which the access code is manually entered by the consumer and is transmitted
from the terminal
only in encrypted form.  Any terminal that cannot meet the foregoing encryption
requirements shall immediately cease forwarding information with respect to any
interchange transaction or attempted interchange transaction.
(h) No person that directly or indirectly provides data processing support
to
any terminal in this State shall authorize or forward for authorization any
interchange transaction unless the access code intended to authorize the
interchange transaction is encrypted when received by that person and is
encrypted when forwarded to any other person.
(i) A terminal operated in this State may be designed and programmed so
that when a consumer enters his or her personal identification number in
reverse order, the terminal automatically sends an alarm to the local law
enforcement agency having jurisdiction over the terminal location. The
Commissioner
shall promulgate rules necessary for the implementation of this subsection (i). The provisions of this subsection (i) shall not be construed to require an owner or operator of a terminal to design and program the terminal to accept a personal identification number in reverse order.
(j) A person operating a terminal in this State may not impose a
fee upon
a
consumer for usage of the terminal if the consumer is using a Link Card or
other access device issued by a government agency for use in obtaining
financial aid under the Illinois Public Aid Code.
No person in this State may impose a fee upon a consumer for usage of a terminal if the consumer is using a general use reloadable card issued by the Illinois State Disbursement Unit for the purpose of receiving his or her child support payments.
For the purposes of this subsection (j), the term "person
operating a
terminal" means the person who has control over and is responsible for a
terminal.  The term "person operating a terminal" does not mean the person who
owns or controls the property or building in which a terminal is located,
unless he or she also has control over and is responsible for the terminal.
(Source: P.A. 98-415, eff. 8-16-13; 98-984, eff. 7-1-15.)
(205 ILCS 616/55)
Sec. 55. 
		Applicability of federal law.
(a) The provisions of the federal Electronic Fund Transfer Act
(15 U.S.C.
1693a et seq.), amendments to that Act, and any regulations issued
or that may be issued under that Act, except for those provisions, amendments,
or
regulations that establish crimes or provide for nonfinancial penalties, are
hereby adopted as part of this Act.  Compliance with federal law shall be
deemed to be compliance with this Section.
(b) A consumer may authorize an electronic fund transfer by arranging for
a debit to the consumer's account and specifying the designated payee.  In that
case, the financial institution shall execute the transfer by the end of the
next business day after entry of the debit.  For purposes of this subsection,
"consumer" means a natural person.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/60)
Sec. 60. 
		Judicial review. 
		All final administrative decisions of the
Commissioner under this Act shall be subject to judicial review pursuant to the
provisions of the Administrative Review Law and the rules adopted pursuant to
that Law.  For matters involving administrative review, venue shall be in
either Sangamon County or Cook County.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/65)
Sec. 65. 
		Inseverability and severability. 
		If any provision of this Act
or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, this Act
shall be invalid in its
entirety, provided, however, that if any provision of this Act or its
application is held invalid under
the Home Owners Loan Act of 1933, as amended, the Federal Home Loan Bank Act,
as amended, or the Federal Credit Union Act, as amended, the invalidity of that
provision or application does not affect other provisions or applications that
can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/70)
Sec. 70. (Repealed).
(Source: P.A. 90-301, eff. 8-1-97. Repealed by P.A. 97-492, eff. 1-1-12.)
(205 ILCS 616/75)
Sec. 75. (Repealed).
(Source: P.A. 90-301, eff. 8-1-97. Repealed by P.A. 97-492, eff. 1-1-12.)
(205 ILCS 616/80)
Sec. 80. 
		Continuity of regulation. 
		This Act is a successor Act to and a
continuation of the regulation of electronic fund transfers pursuant to the
Electronic Fund Transfer Transmission Facility Act.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/85)
Sec. 85. 
		Reliance on Commissioner. 
		No person shall be liable under this
Act
for any act done or omitted in good faith in conformity with any rule,
interpretation, or opinion issued by the Commissioner of Banks and Real Estate,
notwithstanding that after the act or omission has occurred, the rule,
interpretation, or opinion upon which reliance is placed is amended, rescinded,
or determined by judicial or other authority to be invalid for any reason.
(Source: P.A. 90-665, eff. 7-30-98.)
(205 ILCS 616/89)
Sec. 89. 
		
		The Electronic Fund Transfer Transmission Facility Act is
repealed.
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96.)
(205 ILCS 616/91)
Sec. 91. 
		(Amendatory provisions; text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96; text omitted.)
(205 ILCS 616/93)
Sec. 93. 
		(Amendatory provisions; text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96; text omitted.)
(205 ILCS 616/94)
Sec. 94. 
		(Amendatory provisions; text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96; text omitted.)
(205 ILCS 616/95)
Sec. 95. 
		(Amendatory provisions; text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96; text omitted.)
(205 ILCS 616/96)
Sec. 96. 
		(Amendatory provisions; text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96; text omitted.)
(205 ILCS 616/97)
Sec. 97. 
		(Amendatory provisions; text omitted).
(Source: P.A. 89-310, eff. 1-1-96; text omitted.)