Bartmann Ethical Debt Collection Act Passes Oklahoma Senate

Fresh from the wire is this press release regarding the latest development in the Bill Bartmann-flavored Bartmann Ethical Debt Collection Act.

That latest development? It passed, 40 to 2.

The Bartmann Ethical Debt Collection Act is also known as Senate Bill 1430 in Oklahoma, where this recent mini-victory for Bartmann and his (essentially) new spin on the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act occured. You can read the full text here:

Oklahoma-2012-SB1430-Introduced

The press release is full of the usual Sturm und Drang that Bartmann revels in: “The overwhelming support of this bill sends a clear message to criminal debt collectors that they are not welcome in Oklahoma.” Of course, as Bartmann sees it, any collection agency that isn’t CFS II (because CFS I was closed down over some ethics violations and someone was jailed but it’s too early for this level of irony, no?) is a criminal debt collector.

Bartmann’s Ethical Debt Collection Act continues to bewilder us here at insideARM.com. Bartmann makes sure to tout the fact that there is a provision prohibiting the use of threatening or harassing language and techniques — which is already covered by the currently existing FDCPA. However, not already included in the FDCPA is Bartmann’s own name. Perhaps he sees this as some sort of legacy and he wasn’t interested in adopting a highway.

Money quote from the press release: “I built my career around the debt collection business and I know there is a right way and a wrong way to collect debt.” [Links to the Forbes article “The Return of the Billionaire Huckster.”]

Indeed he does.

The next step for the BEDCA is a trip to Oklahoma’s House of Representatives.