“Surpassing 200 House Co-Sponsors for the CERTS Act, is a formidable accomplishment thanks to the grassroots advocacy of our unified motorcoach industry,” United Motorcoach Association President & CEO Larry Killingsworth said today. “On behalf of our hardworking industry and its 3,000 mostly family-owned business, I want to convey our sincere gratitude to every Representative who has joined us on this bill that is so essential to our companies’ survival.”
The Coronavirus Economic Relief for Transportation Services (CERTS) Act, H.R 7642, is a companion measure to a Senate bill that would provide $10 billion in economic relief for the motorcoach, school bus and passenger vessel transportation industries. The bill has the support of
202 U.S. Representatives as of today. The Senate bill, S. 4150 has more than half the Senate co-sponsoring the bill.
Motorcoach companies have virtually ceased to operate due to the economic shutdown caused by the pandemic and the industry will be slow to recover. Many have already closed their doors forever, and without economic relief soon, many more will be forced to shut their doors soon.
“Our members are motivated to get Congress to act and they’ve managed to mobilize an impressive number of elected officials on both sides of the aisle in Congress,” Killingsworth said. “It’s a pretty big accomplishment considering politics today. The CERTS Act has the highest level of bipartisan support among any relief bill on the Hill right now.”
Rep. Ray LaHood (R-IL), joined by Reps. Albio Sires (D-NJ), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA.) and Don Young (R-AK) in introducing the bill in the House. The Senate bill was introduced by Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Susan Collins (R-ME) on July 7.
