ATM industry urges Congress to take action on Safe Access to Cash bill

Crime is an ever present struggle for the ATM industry, as criminals continually come up with different techniques to steal from the machines or the service workers replenishing the machines with cash. At times, this can become incredibly dangerous or deadly, such as the murder of Kenny Gerstley, who was shot in January 2021 while working on an ATM in west Baltimore.

The family of Gerstley recently appeared before Congress to speak about a bill that aims to address current issues with ATM crime called the Safe Access to Cash Act. This act aims to fix a loophole when it comes to both enforcement and investigation into ATM crime: independent ATMs and drive-thru ATMs.

Current federal bank robbery law typically only covers robberies that take place within the bank. These statues in turn do not cover independently owned ATMs.

"If you look at the federal statute, it addresses 'bank robbery.' Which technically is one person taking something that belongs to the bank, from another person, inside the bank," David Tente, president of the ATM Security Association and executive director of the USA and Americas of the ATMIA, said in an email interview. "ATMs inside the bank almost never get attacked. Drive-thrus, for example, get attacked all the time — and they are not covered by the bank robbery statute."

Bruce Renard, executive director of the National ATM Council, which introduced the bill in 2022, said the original bank robbery statute was written back in 1934 and written narrowly.

He said in a phone interview that when federal enforcement agents told him they didn't have the jurisdiction for independent ATMs, he initially thought it was a cop out.

"The longer I read the statute, I saw their point," he said. " It was written very narrowly only considering bank robberies, only banks qualified."

In particular, ATM crimes are typically covered under property crimes, which do not include as long of a sentence as bank robberies, but often net far more cash, Tente said.

"Unless the perpetrators are crossing state lines or part of an organized crime group, ATM attacks typically fall into the property crime category at the state level, which is usually a misdemeanor," Tente said. "Add into that the leniency of some prosecutors these days and most of these criminals are back on the street quickly, and repeating their crimes."

The Safe Access to Cash Act aims to address this issue by making all ATM crimes a felony at the federal level, which would include higher fines and jail time. It would also bring in more law enforcement to investigate the crimes.

"This [bill] would put judication in the federal court system and allow the FBI to get involved in most cases," Tente said.

The bill also aims to address not just crimes against property, but also crimes against the technicians who service the machines and people who withdraw money from them.

"It's about protecting people not just things," Renard said.

Despite common issues of dreadlock within Congress, the bill has received interest and support from Democrats and Republicans. The current version was introduced by Republican Rep. John Rose of Tennessee and Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey of Maryland.

"Independent ATMs serve as a lifeline to the underbanked and those lacking access to traditional financial services. I'm proud to introduce this common-sense bill which gives independent ATMs the same federal legal protections under the Bank Robbery Act as other ATMs," Rose said in a press release.

"ATM entrepreneurs and small convenient stores have experienced hundreds of robberies across the country over the course of the last few years. These businesses offer an important service to the community," Ivey said in the release. "After brick-and-mortar banks leave a community as they have over the last decade, ATMs in mom-and-pop shops often become the only way many residents can access their VA, social security, social services, and unemployment benefits. When ATMs are stolen or destroyed, the communities who have little or no credit are affected adversely as they use these machines for a lot of their financial transactions and access to money. The Safe Access to Cash Act will strengthen enforcement to protect small businesses and individuals and deter these kinds of crimes. This bipartisan bill is an important step forward in our fight to protect public safety,"

Tente said that when ATM Industry Association members visited Capitol Hill they received good input from members of both parties.

"When we were on Capitol Hill April 20, we met with Rep. Rose and discussed the bill. At that time, he was still seeking a Dem co-sponsor on the Judiciary Committee. Not everyone we met with was familiar with the previous bill or Rose's efforts on the new one. But all felt that it made perfect sense and would probably support it, if it was introduced," Tente said. "This included [Democratic] Sen. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico."

The bill has also received interest from the American Banker's Association, and Renard said they have not suggested any changes to the language of the bill.

Renard encourages readers of ATM Marketplace to reach out to their Congressperson to ask them to become a cosponsor on this bill. The National ATM Council is also working on getting senators to sponsor the bill.