On July 22, 2015, H.R. 1613, “The Federal Vehicle Repair Cost Savings Act,” passed through the committee level in the U.S. House of Representations. The legislation will next be considered by the full House.
H.R. 1613, introduced to the House by Congressmen Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) and Brad Ashford (D-Neb.), requires federal agencies to encourage the use of remanufactured parts when doing so lowers costs, maintains quality and performance, and does not compromise safety.
The House bill’s companion legislation, S.565, was passed by the full Senate on June 15, 2015, after being introduced by Senators Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and James Lankford (R-Okla.).
The bipartisan, companion legislation followed a 2013 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) which confirmed the benefits of remanufactured motor vehicles parts. The federal government has more than 580,000 vehicles in its agency fleets, and spends $975 million per year on vehicle maintenance.
Next steps include gaining additional co-sponsors for H.R. 1613.
On the heels of this news, the Motor and Equipment Remanufacturers Association (MERA) is strongly encouraging its members to contact their U.S. Representatives and urge them to cosponsor H.R. 1613. For more information or to obtain contact information for your U.S. Representative(s), contact Tom Lehner at [email protected].
