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AARP is calling for advocates opposed to the landline bill to use their 800 number below to ask the Governor to veto the bill. While some amendments were made on the House floor, the bill still falls short of protecting seniors who rely on landlines.

See messages below for more information.

Please call 1-888-232-6829 to urge Governor Snyder to VETO Senate Bill 636!

Mary M. Ablan, MA, MSW, Executive Director

Area Agencies on Aging Association of Michigan

6105 W. St. Joseph, Suite 204

Lansing, Michigan 48917

(517) 886-1029 ext 14

(517) 886-1305 (fax)

www.mi-seniors.net

Mission: Collective voice and action to promote healthy aging, dignity and independence.

From: Lisa Cooper <LCooper>
Date: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 at 5:21 PM
To: Lisa Cooper <LCooper>
Cc: Melissa Seifert <MSeifert>
Subject: Update on SB 636 – Landline Bill

FYI Melissa & I thought you might appreciate this update that we just shared with our volunteers:

As you may have heard on the news or through social media, the House of Representatives finally voted on and passed SB 636 Tuesday afternoon, after we’d managed to hold them off for the last several months. Ultimately, 39 Representatives stood with us and voted NO on SB 636. There were 71 Representatives who voted YES. There were Republicans and Democrats among both the YES and NO votes.

It would be great if you could take a moment to thank your Representative if he or she voted NO. Those 39 Representatives were:

Theresa Abed, D-Grand Ledge;

Brian Banks, D-Grosse Pointe Woods;

Vicki Barnett, D-Farmington Hills;

Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids;

Tom Cochran, D-Mason;

Kevin Cotter, R-Mt. Pleasant;

Scott Dianda, D-Calumet;

Gretchen Driskell, D-Saline;

Frank Foster, R-Pellston;

Douglas Geiss, D-Taylor;

Rudy Hobbs, D-Southfield;

Thomas Hooker, R-Byron Center;

Marcia Hovey-Wright, D-Muskegon;

Martin Howrylak, R-Troy;

John Kivela, D-Marquette;

Collene Lamonte, D-Montague;

Marilyn Lane, D-Fraser;

Bill LaVoy, D-Monroe;

Ellen Cogen Lipton, D-Huntington Woods;

Greg MacMaster, R-Kewadin;

Ed McBroom, R-Vulcan;

Sean McCann, D-Kalamazoo;

Tom McMillin, R-Rochester Hills;

Paul Muxlow, R-Brown City;

David Nathan, D-Detroit;

Stacey Erwin Oakes, D-Saginaw;

Peter Pettalia, R-Presque Isle;

Phil Potvin, R-Cadillac;

Sarah Roberts, D-St. Clair Shores;

Rose Mary Robinson, D-Detroit;

Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City;

Andy Schor, D-Lansing;

Kate Segal, D-Battle Creek;

Dian Slavens, D-Canton Twp.;

Jon Switalski, D-Warren;

Alberta Tinsley-Talabi, D-Detroit;

Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit;

Rob VerHeulen, R-Walker;

Henry Yanez, D-Sterling Heights.

You can find a list of all 110 Representatives’ votes in a new article about SB 636 on AARP Michigan’s website at: http://states.aarp.org/aarp-disappointed-in-house-passage-of-landline-elimination-bill/#sthash.3nSOC783.dpuf

FYI We expect the Senate to concur in the House-passed version of the bill without further delay, and then it will be up to the Governor to decide whether to sign or veto the bill. We have a new message on our Legislative Hotline to direct calls to the Governor’s office, and just this afternoon we sent out an “Advocacy Alert” email to begin asking AARP Michigan members to call the Governor. A copy of that email is below, in case you didn’t already see it.

Thanks again for your advocacy regarding this bill. It has been an uphill legislative battle from the beginning, but AARP made an impact that legislators won’t soon forget. And that will only serve to strengthen our advocacy efforts in the future.

Sincerely,

Lisa Dedden Cooper, Manager of Advocacy – lcooper – Twitter @ldeddencooper

Melissa Seifert, Associate State Director for Government Affairs – mseifert – 517.267.8934

From: AARP, MI
Sent: Wednesday, March 12, 2014 12:16 PM
To: Cooper, Lisa Dedden
Subject: Veto Needed on SB 636 – Landline Bill

Dear Lisa, The Michigan House of Representatives just voted to pass Senate Bill 636, AT&T’s bill to phase out landline telephone service in Michigan within three years. Our only chance to stop this new law now is to convince Governor Snyder to VETO Senate Bill 636. Please call 1-888-232-6829 to urge Governor Snyder to VETO Senate Bill 636! The Federal Communications Commission is in the process of directing studies that will provide states and consumers with important information about the reliability, access, and public safety of new telephone technologies. Rather than wait for the findings of these studies, the Michigan Legislature decided to go ahead and pass Senate Bill 636, and just hope that the technology will catch up in time. AARP, law enforcement agencies, 9-1-1 operators and others have warned the Legislature that Senate Bill 636 puts reliable phone and 9-1-1 service at risk for Michigan consumers. If a provider is allowed to withdraw from an area without a comparable phone alternative, Michigan residents risk being left with an unreliable wireless phone service that is not compatible with life alerts, medical alerts and alarm systems. AARP embraces the use of new technology. But when it comes to replacing reliable, affordable landline service, any new technology must be as good or better than the current service, and wireless service in particular does not currently meet that standard. Please call Governor Snyder and ask him to ensure that Michigan residents can continue to have reliable, affordable telephone service they can count on, especially during extreme weather and emergencies. Call 1-888-232-6829 and tell Governor Snyder to VETO Senate Bill 636. AARP.ORG | MAKE A DONATION | TELL A FRIEND | JOIN US ON: AARP 601 E Street NW, Washington, DC 20049 We are committed to protecting your privacy. We do not sell or rent your email address to any other party. See our privacy policy for additional information.Unsubscribe from AARP Advocacy or unsubscribe from all AARP e-mails.

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