Debt Collection Industry Invests in Capitol Hill Campaign

Typically described as a disparate and highly-segmented industry, collection agencies and the trade groups that cater to them are pooling money and hiring outside help to ensure their side of the story is heard in the press and on Capitol Hill.

The debt collection industry, like most other industries, has never been shy about spending money to push its position to lawmakers on the state and federal levels (“Collectors Spent $1.9 million to Lobby Congress,” April 1). But with some professional help, the industry is looking for more bang for its buck.

ACA International, the accounts receivable management industry’s largest trade group, recently opened its first permanent presence in Washington, D.C. The office is headed up by Adam Peterman, a long-time staffer with U.S. Representative Jim Ramstad of Minnesota, who is retiring. Peterman began working for ACA last month. 

Peterman told insideARM that he will be focusing on the Federal Trade Commission’s as yet unreleased response to the collection industry stemming from its debt collection workshop last fall (“Inconclusive Close for FTC Workshop,” Oct. 12, 2007). ACA is also working on lobbying efforts surrounding the recent Congressional push to eliminate the IRS private debt collection program. “The IRS program is getting a lot of attention in Congress right now,” explained Peterman, “so we have to focus on it in the near term.”

Peterman will function as an in-house lobbyist for ACA in his new role. The association has long had an extensive government affairs division at its headquarters in Minnesota. Last year, ACA spent $460,000 on lobbying in Washington using a third-party lobbyist. But to change the perception and image of the industry, it felt it needed direct access to members of Congress and their staffs from a full time employee.

Image control was at the top of the list when the National Association of Retail Collection Attorneys (NARCA) decided to hire public relations super-firm Waggoner Edstrom Worldwide to craft a new public identity for collection attorneys. Waggoner may be best known as Microsoft’s longtime PR firm. NARCA President Bob Markoff confirmed a report in the trade magazine PRWeek that NARCA signed a six-figure deal with WE.

NARCA is hoping that a concerted PR effort will help consumers understand what exactly collectors contribute to the American economy, according to Markoff. The organization is looking to supplant much of the negative press coverage debt collectors are accustomed to receiving.

While public image was an important factor in NARCA’s decision to hire Waggoner, concerns similar to those at ACA over the FTC’s recommendations on the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act also played a major role, said Markoff.

“When the FTC issues those recommendations, we want a place at the table,” Markoff told insideARM. He explained that ACA does a great job lobbying on behalf of the entire industry, and that many of the recommendations would impact members of both groups. But Markoff also believes that there are “some issues that the FTC could address that don’t affect the full membership of the ACA the way they affect our membership.”

In addition to aligning NARCA for the FTC response, Waggoner has been going over basic PR tactics with the group. “They’re teaching us how to respond to media requests and how to get our message out there,” said Markoff. The message: most collection professionals try to collect the right way every time.

The relationship has already paid dividends for NARCA with the group’s message filtering into the mainstream media with a couple of high-profile pieces in the past month which Markoff said were the direct result of Waggoner’s efforts. In mid-March, The New York Times ran an article on its front page detailing the debt collection industry’s attempt to put a nicer face on its image (“The New York Times Praises Collectors on Front Page,” March 14). Last week, USA Today ran a letter to the editor from Markoff imploring debt collectors to treat consumers with respect when attempting to collect money.