MasterCard spent $820,000 in 1st quarter to lobby Congress on elements of financial reform

MasterCard spent $820,000 lobbying in 1st quarter

NEW YORK — MasterCard Inc. spent $820,000 in the first quarter to lobby the federal government on Wall Street reform and consumer protection legislation, according to a disclosure report.

That’s a 32 percent jump from the $620,000 that the Purchase, N.Y.-based company spent in the year-ago period, and about 15 percent less than the $960,000 it spent in the fourth quarter of 2009.

The credit and debit card payment processor lobbied members of Congress on legislation involving interchange fees, card issuer practices, consumer overdraft protection, cybersecurity, Internet gambling regulation, using payment cards for online prescription drug purchases and global market access, according to the report filed on April 20.

In the January-to-March period, the company lobbied both houses of Congress, according to the report filed with the House clerk’s office.