Cornerstone’s Action Center garners big returns from Texas CUs

Over the last two weeks, Cornerstone League sent out two action alerts through our grassroots Action Center, powered by VoterVoice. The alerts requested that credit unions reach out to their lawmakers about pending bills in the Texas Legislature. In response, Texas credit union advocates came out in force.

1. SB 1464 by Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) addresses the captive financing tactic used by some car dealers to force consumers to finance their vehicles through the dealership. Current Texas law does not prohibit this practice, but SB 1464 would amend the Finance Code to prohibit auto dealers from increasing the price or denying the sale of a vehicle to a consumer who wants to use outside financing or cash. 
   
   After receiving Cornerstone’s call to action on Monday, nearly 1,000 Texas credit unions responded to their legislators and helped ensure the bill was passed favorably out of the Senate.

2. HB 3395 by Rep. Giovanni Capriglione (R-Southlake) requires that sales tax be excluded from the total amount on which an interchange fee is charged for a credit/debit card transaction. This is an 8% transfer of income from the card servicer to the merchant. The bill was approved by a House committee and now moves to the Calendars Committee, which determines if it will get a vote on the full House floor.
   
   Cornerstone put out the action alert on Tuesday in two parts. In part one, credit union advocates living in the district of Calendars Committee members emailed their representatives appealing for the bill to be heard on the House floor. In part two, CEOs, legislative coordinators, and staff in credit unions with 700+ members residing in the district of a member on the Calendars Committee were asked to call that committee member to oppose HB 3395. We await the results of this campaign.

If you’re not signed up for Cornerstone’s Action Center, powered by VoterVoice, simply enter your email to register online OR text CORNERSTONE to 50457.

If you have questions about the Action Center, please email April Krause. If you have questions about the bills, please email Charlotte Spencer.