NEWSLETTERS - House bill co-sponsorship reaches 89

Rep. Bachmann, center, with RTO dealers Mark Windsor, Jeff Lebakken, Aaron Windsor and Bob Freitag at the APRO Legislative Conference.

Three additional members of the U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday joined a growing list of co-sponsors in support of H.R. 1767 --  the Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act -- bringing total co-sponsorship of the legislation to 89. APRO members are encouraged to continue to communicate and follow up with their congressional offices to generate even more co-sponsors.  The number of co-sponsors is important to show support for legislative movement.

"Typically when a bill has 50 or more co-sponsors that represent both Democrats and Republicans then it shows to congressional leaders and members of Congress that the bill has popular appeal to it," comments Richard May, APRO Public Affairs Director in charge of grassroots advocacy. "After 75 co-sponsors, it shows the support is truly grassroots-supported. 100 co-sponsors is considered a true marker of national grassroots support. We're getting closer so we need dealers to continue to be vigilant in their grassroots communication. The timing is crucial."

Co-sponsorship of a bill is not just a public statement that the member of Congress will vote yes on the bill but a public statement to the rest of Congress that the bill needs to be addressed and passed into law. So typically the higher number of co-sponsors represents the higher priority a bill should receive from the U.S. Congress.

The bill currently sits in the Financial Institutions and Consumers Credit Subcommittee where H.R. 1767 sponsor Rep. William Lacy Clay is an active member. Any legislative movement on the House side would begin at the subcommittee.

Freshman Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota (6th), Democrat  Danny Davis (7th) and Republican Tim Johnson (15), both of Illinois, officially signed on to the bill in the Congressional Record and represent the diverse bipartisan support the the legislation continues to gain in the House.

Rep. Bachmann, who represents Minnesota's 6th Congressional District, is the first Republican woman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota, is also a member of the House Financial Services Committee -- the committee of jurisdiction for H.R. 1767.

Congressman Davis, who represents Illinois' 7th Congressional District -- Chicago's west side -- is serving his sixth term in the House is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus and serves on the Education and Labor and Oversight and Government Reform Committees.

Davis voted against the rent-to-own friendly legislation in 2002.

Rep. Johnson, who represents Illinois 15th Congressional District, is serving his 4th term in the House and is a member of the Agriculture, Transportation and Infrastructure Committees.

The addition of the new co-sponsors brings to 27 the number of new House supporters recruited since the conclusion of the APRO Legislative Conference in February and is a direct result of the grass roots activism undertaken by rent-to-own dealers and industry supporters in their home districts.

Co-sponsorship for the Senate version of the bill, S. 1012, remains at 21.

mevans@rtohq.org