Please Oppose HB 3899!

Please ask the House Calendars Committee: do not schedule HB 3899 for a vote in the Texas House.

In sum, HB 3899 targets ordinances passed by cities that are addressing important local challenges, including ordinances that are reining in payday and auto title lending abuses. These ordinances have been adopted by 45 Texas cities to establish a baseline of fair market practices for payday and auto title loans.

These ordinances:

1. were adopted with substantial input from local communities,
2. were adopted in response to harms caused to Texans and local economies, and
3. have been challenged - and upheld - by Texas courts.

HB 3899 is opposed by the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops, the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission, Texas Appleseed, AARP-Texas, Catholic Charities, United Way of Central Texas, United Way of Greater Houston, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, the Brazos Valley Affordable Housing Corp., the Metropolitan Organization (TMO), Helping Hands Ministries of Belton, the Center for Public Policy Priorities, Dallas Area Interfaith, Faith in Texas, COPS Metro, City Square, IAF Network, and RAISE Texas.

HB 3899 is exceedingly broad and has the potential to impact a wide variety of local ordinances that address important problems in our communities.