Changes could be ahead on the political and regulatory fronts, but ACA’s work this year has set the stage to ensure members and the ARM industry are heard. Editor’s note: This article is available for members only.
9/21/2020 12:30
This year marked an unprecedented level of attention on the accounts receivable management (ARM) industry, which ACA International’s advocacy team turned into an opportunity to enhance engagement with federal lawmakers on both sides of the aisle leading up to the November election.
ACA’s advocacy is a critical component of its overarching goal of helping members succeed.
“ACA continues to engage with policymakers on behalf of members and as a result has successfully educated Congress about misguided legislation related to COVID-19 and protections for legitimate callers in the Federal Communications Commission’s ongoing rules to implement the TRACED Act,” said Leah Dempsey, ACA’s vice president and senior counsel of federal advocacy. “We also continue to engage with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in preparation for the issuance of the final debt collection rule.”
In the 116th Congress, ACA conducted hundreds of virtual meetings with members of Congress, including those held at the 2020 Washington Insights Livestream.
“Our goal every day, whether it be in our work engaging with Capitol Hill with Congress, at the federal regulatory agencies, or in the states with policymakers, is to ensure that ACA members can successfully run their businesses without facing unnecessary regulatory burdens or frivolous litigation based on unclear requirements,” Dempsey said.
ACPAC, ACA’s bipartisan political action committee, is also helping to raise the association’s profile on Capitol Hill by allowing us to engage with candidates who recognize the role the ARM industry plays in the credit ecosystem.
“ACA uses ACPAC to connect with policymakers and educate them on the enormous value members add to the financial services sector,” said Patrick Russell, ACA’s federal advocacy manager. “It gives the ARM industry a voice in the public policy arena, so members of Congress know exactly where we stand.”
State advocacy also soared in response to hundreds of COVID-19-related bills, executive actions and temporary debt collection restrictions.
ACA’s state advocacy team, 35 state units and more than 30 state lobbyists worked on behalf of members and the industry on more than 200 COVID-19- related bills in 43 states and more than 1,800 executive actions across the country including over 520 executive actions related to declarations of states of emergency, stay at home orders, business closures and size of social gatherings.
In addition to legislation and regulations coming in direct response to the pandemic, ACA’s legislative teams throughout the states continued to work on legislation such as the debt collection licensing bill in California and amendments to the Colorado Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
Advocacy through virtual meetings and phone calls has its pros and cons, but also serves to connect ACA and its members with more legislators and regulators without having to travel for in-person meetings.
The tradeoff is a lack of in-person discussions, visits to Capitol Hill and state offices and the opportunity for federal and state legislators to visit members’ businesses during the congressional recesses.
But with change comes growth, and ACA’s pivot to virtual advocacy and association meetings presents new opportunities to connect our national and international members.
ACA and the ARM industry’s ability to communicate with consumers is imperative for both consumers and ACA members. While engaging with leaders in Washington, D.C., the advocacy team’s goal remains to ensure that ACA’s members can successfully run their businesses without facing unnecessary regulatory burdens or frivolous litigation based on unclear requirements.
ACA’s advocacy team helps members succeed by maintaining a strong, consistent voice with federal regulatory agencies and lawmakers as they strive to make sure that the accounts receivable management industry’s position on policy is understood.
Visit ACA’s Advocacy Resource Center and COVID-19 Update web pages for more information and view our updated advocacy booklet for August 2020 here.
For additional information and resources for meetings with your member of Congress, ACA's Vice President and Senior Counsel, Federal Affairs Leah Dempsey may be reached at [email protected] or (202) 810-8901 and Federal Advocacy Director Patrick Russell may be reached at [email protected]. For state advocacy information, contact Andrew Madden at [email protected] or (202) 547-2681.