NEWSLETTERS - Sen. Landrieu introduces RTO companion bill

Sen. Landrieu introduces RTO companion bill

U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu introduced the Senate version of the Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act today.

U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) today, introduced the Senate version of the Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act -- S. 728 -- on the floor of the Senate with five original co-sponsors who have agreed to support the bill, which would define the no-debt rent-to-own transaction as a lease, not a sale, and introduce a host of consumer protections.

Last session, in the 110th Congress, Landrieu's bill gained 21 co-sponsors complementing the 99 co-sponsors earned in the U.S. House of Representatives under the guidance of bill sponsor Rep. William Lacy Clay.

Rep. Clay re-introduced the bill -- HR 1744 -- in the House Thursday, with a record 41 original co-sponsors, setting a positive tone for reception of the legislation in the U.S. Congress.

"The timing is fantastic right now," said APRO President "Tiger" John Cleek. "We are proud as an industry that Senator Landrieu has chosen to be the lead sponsor of our legislation and that she sees the benefit of the consumer protections for her constituents that this bill offers. Through cooperation with her staff and with APRO's grassroots efforts, we look for a lot of momentum right away."

Given Congress' and the administration's interest in improving the country's financial regulatory framework combined with stifled consumer credit and rising unemployment, issues that have increased demand for alternative financing options, industry optimism over the bill's success is high.

The bill remains unchanged from last session and would not affect state statutes that have consumer protections that are more stringent than the bill proposes. The bill in fact raises consumer protections in 33 states.

Passage of a federal rent-to-own bill will provide security for the $6.3-billion industry to expand and create jobs. Federal legislation will secure the future of rent-to-own businesses—both small and large—and more than 50,000 employees who work within the industry. With industry growth, the value of rent-to-own will increase on Wall Street and provide lending confidence for small businesses nationwide.

With the introduction of the bill into both houses of Congress, the industry's legislative focus will now switch to a co-sponsor strategy through APRO's Legislative Conference and grassroots communications, according the APRO Public Affairs Director Richard May.

While co-sponsors are recruited, Rep. Clay will work to schedule a Financial Services/Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee hearing and/or "mark up".

“Mark up” means a vote on the bill with the potential of making changes through the subcommittee process.

On the Senate side, grassroots strategy will also focus on generating Senate co-sponsors while Landrieu seeks a hearing in the Senate Banking Committee.

Learn more about APRO's 2009 Legislative Conference here.

Register for the conference now. 

Read more about the history of federal rent-to-own legislation here.

Read about the Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act's benefits to consumers and job growth here.

Original Senate co-sponsors are as follows:

Sam Brownback (KS)
Pat Roberts (KS)
Kit Bond (MO)
Thad Cochran (MS)
Tim Johnson (SD)

For more information contact Richard May at 800/204-2776 ext. 104.