Texas Businesses Do Not Have To Take Cash

https://www.federalreserve.gov/faqs/currency_12772.htm#:~:text=There%20is%20no%20federal%20statute,state%20law%20that%20says%20otherwise.

The "legal tender" argument doesn't appear to hold water in Texas.

You may have seen a meme, quoting a congressman saying if a business refuses cash, you can just take the items you were intending to purchase. This has also been turned into some memes of people who have claimed to have done it. Well, you might not want to do that, because you will be arrested for theft.

Here's the word from the Federal Reserve. 

There is no federal statute mandating that a private business, a person, or an organization must accept currency or coins as payment for goods or services. Private businesses are free to develop their own policies on whether to accept cash unless there is a state law that says otherwise.

But wait, there is a twist in this story. There are around three states and a few cities that do have ordinances or laws on the books that DO require businesses to take cash.

So, do you live in Massachusets, New Jersey or Rhode Island? What about San Franciso, Philidelphia, or New York City? Chances are near 100% that if you are reading this you are in good old Lubbock, Texas.

I could find NO Texas law requiring cash (I even called in an attorney friend and she shouldn't find anything either) and am highly doubtful that Lubbock ever stepped up to the plate that way.

So there you go, it's a win-win. The dummies that think they can just take things from stores can say, "well it's kinda true" while the sensible people who'd rather not be shot by business owners are correct too. Everybody wins. Hooray!

Photos From Lubbock’s 2015 Blizzard