APRO LEGISLATIVE CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS PROVIDE CONGRESS WITH AN RTO REMINDER
Springtime in Washington, D.C., is rather lovely – and full of new life, as Spring is.
Toward the end of April, cherry-blossom season was a couple of weeks past, but the azaleas and many other beautiful flora were in-process bloom-wise as rent-to-own folks gathered in the nation’s capital for the first time in four years (thanks, pandemic) for the APRO Legislative Conference.
The Capitol building itself was also in-process, as a stone and metal preservation project had its exterior covered in scaffolding and weather-thwarting walls. And what was this? Even the Hilton Capitol Hill – the host hotel of the Legislative Conference – was undergoing some fairly extensive renovations as APRO members checked in for a day full of Congressional visits, and a couple of nights of canapés and camaraderie.
Renewing. Growing. Building. Just exactly what about 50 dedicated RTOers came to the nation’s capital to do: Renew awareness and understanding of their business among federal officials. Grow in their commitment to and support of their industry. And build their relationships with Congressional representatives.
Day One began late afternoon in the airy mezzanine-level atrium of the hotel, as Legislative Conference attendees came to claim their name badges and informational packets, and stayed to enjoy a Welcome Reception sponsored by APRO associate member Benefit Marketing Solutions. Cocktails – including a signature drink concocted especially for the event, the “APRO Blue” – and hors d’oeuvres were served, and an energetic buzz was evident as rentto- own businesspeople reacquainted and readied themselves for the Hillclimb ahead.
“A lot has changed here in D.C. since we were last here in 2019,” noted APRO President Michael Bennett as he welcomed conference attendees. “Many new legislators have come into office, and they might not even know we exist. This is our opportunity to educate them about our business, why it was deemed ‘essential’ during COVID, and how much good we do in our communities across the country. APRO is the voice of America’s rent-to-own industry, so let’s make sure we’re heard loud and clear as we climb the Hill together tomorrow!”
Indeed, industry advocacy is APRO’s primary and unique duty. Only APRO works to protect the RTO transaction by promoting APRO members’ work through legislative efforts – such as continuously monitoring federal and state legislative and regulatory activity, coordinating intervention when necessary, and hosting the annual Legislative Conference to put a face (or many) on the rent-to-own industry for Congressional members and to proactively build those positive relationships.
This is our opportunity to educate them about our business, why it was deemed ‘essential’ during COVID, and how much good we do in our communities across the country. APRO is the voice of America’s rent-to-own industry, so let’s make sure we’re heard loud and clear.
“Congress sits for two-year sessions, and every two years, the faces change,” APRO General Counsel Ed Winn III echoed. “There can be as much as a onethird turnover among elected officials, and the turnover can be even greater among legislative staff. That means there are people with the power to pass federal laws who might know nothing about rent-to-own, or worse, have heard about our industry only from critics. That’s why this event is so important.”
Day Two began bright and early – especially so for conference participants who had also contributed to the APROPAC, APRO’s Political Action Committee (see side story “What is APRO-PAC?”). Attendees who gave before they came gained some exclusive discussion time with U.S. Representative French Hill (R-AR), who sits on the House Financial Services Committee as well as the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
In his keynote address – which followed the exclusive PAC event and accompanied a breakfast buffet sponsored by Ashley Furniture Industries – Representative Hill updated APRO members on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the federal agency responsible for protecting American consumers in the financial sector and continually trying to rein in RTO.
“Next fall, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments that the CFPB is unconstitutional in the way it was conceived, a point which has been in contention for the eleven years the agency has existed,” Hill explained. “The CFPB should operate as a normal federal agency, rather than some special creation. It needs more accountability and less rulemaking by enforcement; it should be subject to the Administrative Procedure Act, the sort of ‘constitution’ for U.S. administrative law.
“We’re hoping to ultimately establish a bipartisan commission to oversee the CFPB,” he continued, “and to require its budget to go through the appropriations process and receive Congressional approval for its annual budget, as other typical government agencies do. With the Supreme Court’s favorable ruling, we’ve got legislation drafted that will put the CFPB squarely within the appropriations process.”
LegCon 2023 THE BREAKDOWN
Total number of states represented
18
LegCon veteran attendees
21
LegCon newbie participants
25
Largest team
8 (TX)
Most meetings
18 (FL)
Smallest team
2 (CO-UT)
Total Miles Walked
So. So. Many.
Selfies with celebrities
1
Representative Hill also welcomed APRO members back to Washington, and urged them to tell the rent-to-own story to his Congressional colleagues.
“RTO is a wonderful window on the daily realities of the American economy,” concluded Hill. “It’s a great snapshot of what American families are thinking about, are worried by, aspire to, and how they’re doing with their financial health. We all need to have our fingers on that national pulse.”
As conference attendees prepared to board buses to take a literal snapshot of the group at the Capitol before their Congressional meetings began, Bennett reminded them, “There’s not a lot happening at the moment that puts our business at risk, so we’re not here with an ‘ask.’ We’re here as concerned constituents and community businesspeople to build a solid foundation – positive relationships with our representatives – before a crucial issue arises.”
For the next six hours or so, APRO members climbed all over Capitol Hill, walking from meeting to meeting with U.S. representatives, senators, and their legislative staffers at various stately buildings throughout the Capitol Complex.
APRO Data and Program Specialist Eddie Flores had split participants up into nine teams according to their locations and appointed team leaders with prior Legislative Conference experience. He also scheduled all 85(!) half-hour appointments for the day; it was up to each team to decide which of their members would meet with which legislators. For example, Team 1 – representing Arkansas and Oklahoma – had six members under the leadership of Chip Guy, Vice President of Operations for Buddy Mac Holdings LLC dba Buddy’s Home Furnishings, and President of the Oklahoma Rental Dealers Association. Team 1 had eleven meetings scheduled – a couple of them at the same time – so they had to break into sub-teams to cover all their appointments for the day.
Ed Winn captained a team of APRO members from Mississippi and Ohio that visited ten different offices. While the day was long, Winn noted there have been times during APRO’s history when many more visits to the Capitol were necessary for the industry just to stay in business.
“APRO has been coming to D.C. since 1981,” Winn recalls. “At times, APRO members and staff have had to make monthly or even weekly trips to Washington to stand up to critics who sought to hurt rent-to-own. During quieter times, RTO has historically made, at minimum, an annual trip, which turned into the Legislative Conference – thwarted temporarily by the pandemic, the Capitol’s closure, and travel limitations.”
At day’s end, all Legislative Conference attendees trickled in to a celebratory happy-hour event (sponsored by TRIB Group), to eat, drink, rest their weary feet, and swap some stories.
Longtime Legislative Conference veterans Larry Carrico and Trent Agin – CEO and President respectively of SKC Enterprises Inc. dba Rent One – found Representative Jason Smith (R-MO) actively working on the House floor when they arrived for their appointment with him. One of Smith’s staffers escorted Agin and Carrico onto the floor and into an adjacent meeting room, where Representative Smith took a ten-minute break to talk with them.
RTO is a wonderful window on the daily realities of the American economy. It’s a great snapshot of what American families are thinking about, are worried by, aspire to, and how they’re doing with their financial health. We all need to have our fingers on that national pulse.
Dan Whitsell, President of Whitsell and Company PC, told of his team’s visit to Representative Jake Ellzey (R-TX), who made a point of letting them know he was a former (and satisfied!) rent-to-own customer. As a 22-year-old fighter pilot in the U.S. Navy, Ellzey had needed furniture on a budget, and turned to RTO to get it. Meanwhile, Jeremy Morton – Senior Vice President of Operations for Benefit Marketing Solutions – discovered just days before coming to D.C. that he has a niece who works in Representative Ellzey’s office, so he and the Congressman shared a chat about mutual acquaintances.
Laura Bacon and Dailey Wilson – both Partners at financially-focused law firm Hudson Cook LLP – thoroughly enjoyed their first Legislative Conference.
“Today was a lot of fun and a nice change of pace to our normal desk-sitting days,” Bacon noted. “We were really impressed with the legislative staffers we met with; they were prepared, asked good questions, and were interested in our answers.”
“For instance, they asked what typical RTO customers are like,” added Wilson. “And Senator (Dianne) Feinstein’s (D-CA) staff asked about the buy-now-pay- later option and how it’s affecting the rent-to-own industry.”
Mike Helton, shareholder at Rivero, Gordimer & Company P.A., even managed to snag a celebrity selfie with actor Alyssa Milano – of TV’s Who’s the Boss? and Charmed – who happened to be on the Hill that afternoon, too.
“What is so satisfying about trips to D.C., including the Legislative Conference, is that the rent-to-own story really resonates with most Congressional members and their staffs,” Winn affirmed. “RTO is a story that bears telling. Each dealer has his or her own twist on exactly why they do what they do, and the satisfaction they get from helping make their customers’ lives better. Sharing that story with people in power is always a lot of fun. This year was no exception.”
Candice Hill – Director of Operations for Rental Concepts West LLC dba RNR Tire Express, and President of the Arkansas Rental Dealers Association – was another Legislative Conference first-timer. Though she came to the event with some beginner’s jitters, she thoroughly enjoyed her experience, and definitely intends to return next year.
“I believe as Americans, we should be involved in what’s happening in our nation’s capital,” Hill asserted. “And as businesspeople, we should be interacting with our elected officials. We don’t need the people in D.C. telling the people in D.C. what to do – our government shouldn’t be just an echo chamber. They need to be having conversations with people from their states, from their districts.
“I was anxious because I thought these face-to-face meetings were going to be more formal,” she continued. “I thought the Congress men and women were going to expect us to be highly educated and eloquent, sort of high-tone. But it was really just normal people having good conversations. That was the best part.”
What is APRO-PAC?
APRO-PAC (Political Action Committee) is how the rent-to-own industry puts its money where its mouth is.
APRO-PAC is the voluntary, bipartisan Political Action Committee (PAC) of the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations (APRO). It is the only PAC that directly represents the whole rent-to-own industry in our nation’s political system.
Climbing Capitol Hill to tell the RTO story is one way APRO helps ensure Congressional members know all the good our industry does for our communities, customers, employees, and the economy. APRO-PAC is another way.
APRO-PAC raises personal, voluntary contributions from eligible RTO professionals to support election efforts of qualified federal candidates whose viewpoints and voting records reflect the interests of APRO and its members.
Kristen Card has been a contributing writer for RTOHQ: The Magazine for more than 15 years.
