Your Stories Q&A: Can businesses refuse to take $100 bills?
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — You ask, we answer!The short answer is yes, here in Central New York, businesses can set their own policies when it comes to cash.
The Your Stories Team answered a similar question last year about businesses refusing to take cash, no matter the size of the bill.
Those who ask the questions on this topic, often wonder how a company can refuse cash when it says on the bill, 'This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private.'
Let's start by answering: What is legal tender?
Cornell's Legal Information Institute describes it this way:
'Legal Tender refers to all U.S. coins and currency that issued by the government. U.S. Cash dollars are also a valid form of legal tender.'
The purpose and function of legal tender is for courts to determine whether it is a satisfactory payment for monetary debt.
But just because cash is a form of legal tender, it doesn't mean businesses must accept it as a form of payment.
'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,' the Federal Reserve states on its website.
According to the New York Department of State, New York does not have a law that prohibits cashless establishments.
There was a bill making its way through the State Capitol to change the law, but it never made it out of committee.
While there's no state law, just know, if you find yourself in New York City, that region does prohibit cashless businesses, according to the Department of State.
Submit a form.
Your Stories Q&A: Can businesses refuse to take $100 bills?
Your Stories Q&A: What's the latest on Manlius getting an upscale Taco Bell?
Your Stories Q&A: When will construction begin on broken Hanover Square fountain?
Your Stories Q&A: New plans for The Inn Between Restaurant in Camillus
Your Stories Q&A: New restaurant to open in closed Daniel's Grill in Marcellus
Your Stories Q&A: A new hotel proposed to be built on former Clay Golfers Dome site
Your Stories Q&A: How do school districts decide when to take a snow day?
Your Stories Q&A: Closed Cicero Rite Aid to become Ace Hardware
Your Stories Q&A: Pickleball center to open this week in former DeWitt Sky Zone location
Your Stories Q&A: Former DeWitt Friendly's demolished to make way for popular burger chain
Humana members and Medicare changes: What you need to know about St. Joseph's health coverage after Excellus deal
Your Stories Q&A: Whose job is it to fix the large potholes on what appears to be a forgotten stretch of road?
Your Stories Q&A: Cannabis dispensary moving into old gas station in Chittenango
Your Stories Q&A: Hotel slated to be built behind the closed Outback Steakhouse in Clay
Your Stories Q&A: Are work zone speed limits enforced on weekends and off-hours?
Your Stories Q&A: Popular Cicero restaurant moving to new LeMoyne Manor development
Your Stories Q&A: When will SYR Airport once again allow passengers to reserve parking online?
Your Stories Q&A: Niagara Mohawk building gets new lights just in time for the holidays
Band in Syracuse has $10,000 worth of bass guitars stolen from van, police continue to investigate
Your Stories Q&A: New $4 million bridge in Oneida set to open this week
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
16 hours ago
- Forbes
Time For Medicare Advantage Leaders—Including Me—To Eat Our Own Cooking
Dr. Oz just turned 65 and became a Medicare beneficiary. Everyone who operates a Medicare plan ... More should be required to be one as well. In every industry, the best leaders live the experience of the customer. Car executives drive their own vehicles. Airline leaders occasionally fly coach. Restauranteurs eat from their own kitchen. But in healthcare—and specifically in Medicare Advantage (MA), which now serves more than 30 million Americans—the leaders designing these plans rarely, if ever, use them themselves. This disconnect breeds an empathy gap between decision-makers and the seniors whose lives and well-being depend on these products. It's time to close that gap. As Dr. Mehmet Oz turns 65 and qualifies for Medicare, he is in a unique position to lead the charge in fixing this blind spot. But I'm not letting myself off the hook either. As a current CEO of company that sells Medicare Advantage plans, I am proposing a standard that would apply to me and every other leader in this space: if you run a Medicare Advantage plan—or sit on its executive team that runs these plans—you should be required to enroll in that plan. No carve-outs. No executive-only exemptions. No platinum side-door coverage. For those of us under 65, the proposal would also require a structural change: expanding Medicare eligibility to allow MA plan executives early, voluntary enrollment in their own plans. We should not be allowed to claim ignorance or detachment simply because of our age. I want to be clear: if such an early-enrollment window existed, I would enroll myself. I should have to live under the same benefit design, customer service, and network constraints as every other member. Leaders like me—and my peers across the industry—must eat our own cooking.A Modest But Necessary Reform The proposal is simple but powerful: 1. All managed care CEOs and executive teams must enroll in their own MA plan. 2. Congress and CMS should create a new category of Medicare eligibility that allows executives under 65 to voluntarily enroll in their own MA plans in a 'test user' capacity. This is the only way for leadership to truly understand the member experience. 3. No waivers, no special coverage allowances. The goal is to force leadership to live the true plan reality: the prior authorizations, the formularies, the network restrictions, the call centers, the appeals It Matters—for Me, and for the Industry I don't make this proposal lightly—because it would apply to me, too. If this became law or industry standard tomorrow, I would sign up. And I believe most honest leaders would welcome the clarity and accountability it would bring. Here's why it matters:- Operational Truth: You only truly understand the friction points—customer service delays, billing errors, prescription denials—if you live them yourself.- Accountability: Plan leaders would no longer tolerate broken systems they themselves have to endure.- Culture Change: A company where the C-suite shares the same risks and frustrations as members cannot help but become more consumer-focused.- Public Trust: Medicare Advantage is under increasing scrutiny from policymakers and the public. This move would send a clear, ethical signal: we stand behind what we sell.- Policy Innovation: The best ideas for simplifying prior authorization, improving networks, and reducing out-of-pocket costs would come not from distant consultants—but from firsthand More 'Not For Me' Products Too much of healthcare is designed by people who never have to use it. Too many decisions are made in corporate conference rooms far removed from the lived experience of real patients. If Medicare Advantage is the future of healthcare for seniors—as so many believe—its architects must also live that future. That includes Dr. Oz. That includes every MA CEO. And that includes me. It's time for all of us to eat our own cooking.
Los Angeles Times
a day ago
- Los Angeles Times
Simplify your finances with fewer credit cards
Dear Liz: I have too many credit cards that I opened to get frequent flier points. I understand that closing a credit card lowers your credit scores. How long does the ding last? How long should I wait before closing another card? Do you have any other advice on this subject? You probably have discussed this in previous columns but might be worth repeating. Answer: If you have a lot of cards, closing a few is unlikely to significantly hurt your credit scores as long as you do so strategically. A big chunk of your credit scores is determined by how much of your available credit you're using. You want a large gap between the amounts you charge and your credit limits. Try to keep open the cards with the highest credit limits. If you have multiple cards with the same issuer, ask if the credit limit from a card you're closing can be transferred to one you're keeping. Even if your scores do dip because of a closure, the impact is likely to be short-lived if you continue using credit responsibly. Ideally, you would review your portfolio of credit cards every year or so to determine which cards to keep and which to close. Travel rewards cards typically have annual fees, sometimes significant ones, so you'll want to make sure every card you have is at least paying for itself in annual rewards and benefits. Also consider the mental load involved. As you age, you may find it more difficult to monitor multiple accounts and keep track of all the details. You may want to simplify your finances by winnowing your cards down to just one or two. At that point, keeping your finances manageable will be more important than maintaining the highest possible credit scores. Dear Liz: If someone inherits my retirement account, is there any way they can avoid having their Medicare premiums increased for 1 year? Answer: A large-enough retirement account could affect their Medicare premiums for up to 10 years, not just one. Normally inheritances aren't taxable, but retirement accounts are the exception. Withdrawals from inherited retirement accounts are usually taxable as income, and most non-spouse inheritors must drain a retirement account within 10 years. Withdrawals from inherited Roth accounts aren't taxable, but the accounts still must be drained by the inheritor within a decade. If the inheritor is on Medicare, taxable withdrawals could boost income enough to increase their Medicare premiums, thanks to the income-related monthly adjustment amounts (IRMAA). This surcharge starts once modified adjusted gross income exceeds certain amounts, which in 2025 is $106,000 for single filers and $212,000 for married couples filing jointly. Anyone who inherits a retirement plan should get advice from a tax pro, but that's particularly important when withdrawals might affect tax brackets and Medicare premiums. The pro can help determine how quickly or slowly the money should be withdrawn to maximize how much the inheritor gets to keep. Dear Liz: I waited until age 70 to start collecting Social Security. My wife turns 65 this year so her full retirement age is 67. Can she start collecting Social Security benefits now based on my benefit or should we wait until her full retirement age? Answer: If she applies for Social Security now, she would be 'deemed' to be applying for both her own benefit and her spousal benefit and given the larger of the two. She would not be allowed to switch to the other benefit later. Most people are better off waiting at least until their full retirement age to apply, and many will maximize their lifetime benefits by delaying until age 70. Her mileage may vary, of course, so it's worth using a Social Security claiming calculator and consider getting advice from an objective source, such as a fee-only financial advisor. Liz Weston, Certified Financial Planner®, is a personal finance columnist. Questions may be sent to her at 3940 Laurel Canyon, No. 238, Studio City, CA 91604, or by using the 'Contact' form at
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
An Open Letter to the President: Addressing our Debt
Donald J. TrumpThe Mar-a-Lago Club1100 South Ocean BoulevardPalm Beach, Florida Dear President Trump: I voted for you in all three of your presidential campaigns. The first time, I cast my vote with cautious optimism. The third time, with enthusiasm. And I contributed financially to your campaign. You have achieved what few thought possible - a triumphant return, driven by a deep-seated belief among millions of Americans that only you can effectively challenge the entrenched political establishment. Your first 100 days were extraordinary, but if your presidency is to be remembered not just as bold but also historic, one challenge must rise above all others: - the national debt. The national debt, currently $37 trillion, is the result of pervasive fiscal irresponsibility, accumulated over many decades. Our annual interest payments now exceed $1trillion - more than we spend on our national defense. This is not just a financial burden. It is a threat to the survival of our country as a democratic republic. Without immediate, decisive action, the consequences are predictable: more credit downgrades, more increases in interest rates, and crippling obligations to service the debt. What would happen to our great country if annual interest payments exceeded not just our defense budget but also Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare? Mr. President, if we are to remain a vibrant nation, this exploding national debt has to be attacked immediately and significantly. That will not happen without your leadership. Sadly, the Republican Party has shown that it is not a reliable ally. Even before Republicans regained control of the House, they held a secret vote. By a margin of 158 to 2 they brought back earmarks - the very same pork barrel spending practices that Speaker John Boehner put to bed. Since then, the Democratic Congress never dared to bring back earmarks. House Republicans did. The results were predictable, and immediate: $16 billion in earmarks. More than 7,500 pet projects. In the Senate, eight of the 12 largest earmarkers are Republicans. In the House, 48 of the top earmarkers are Republicans. Here are the largest earmarkers: Sen. Susan Collins of Maine (population 1.4 million) secured $870 million in earmarks. Sen. Lisa Murkowski grabbed $851.1 million in earmarks. Sen. Mitch McConnell took nearly $500 million in earmarks. My own congressman, Brian Mast, walked away with $437 million in earmarks. Obviously, eliminating pork barrel spending wont, by itself, address the structural problems in Washingtons budget process - or make the "big, beautiful bill" currently being debated in Congress deficit-neutral. But if members of Congress cant even control themselves, what kind of example do they set for the American people? How can politicians ask their fellow Americans to sacrifice when they wont do it themselves? Actions speak louder than words. Fiscal irresponsibility dominates the culture within Congress, within our government. That culture, obviously, will not change on its own. It can be changed. But only with your leadership. Mr. President, fortunately, today you have a tool to attack waste, fraud, duplication, and incompetence. Because of the cloud, Big Data, and the Freedom of Information Act, you can deliver every government expenditure to every citizens cell phone, iPad, and computer. You can bring a new era to government, i.e., transparency. Mr. President, you can be the launch pad for transparency. Imagine a government where every single taxpayer dollar that government spends is tracked and reported to the public. Imagine the cultural shift from secret votes, from wasteful spending to one where every government official knows their budgets will be scrutinized in detail. Mr. President, here are several all-encompassing, culture-changing, deficit-attacking actions you can announce tomorrow: Lead by example: Cut White House expenses by a defined percentage. Report the savings to the public every quarter. Challenge Congress: Ask every member to cut their office and committee budgets. Suggest at least 10%. Publish a quarterly report on every senator and representative. Eliminate pork-barrel projects: Call on Congress to abolish earmarks. Shine a light on every remaining earmarker until they fall in line. Mobilize the bureaucracy: Instruct all agencies to focus on rooting out waste, fraud, duplication, and incompetence, and report the progress quarterly. Say explicitly that you will monitor progress and report the bold and expose the complacent. Bringing transparency to government can do more than clean up wasted taxpayer dollars. It can rebuild trust. It can remind the American people that the government can still work for them. It will solidify your legacy as the chief executive who did not just talk about draining the swamp, you did it. Imagine our country if we did not have to spend $1 trillion each year on interest payments. That is the future Americans deserve. Mr. President, you have been given a historic mandate. You can leave office with a legacy as the president who did not just promise to "Make America Great Again," but who actually did it. America cannot be made great again without addressing the greatest threat to our countrys survival as a democratic republic - the exploding national debt. Respectfully, Thomas W. Smith Thomas W. Smith is the founder of Prescott Investors, Inc.
