PRESS RELEASE

NBFAA Joins ASAE on Capitol Hill in Victory
to Oppose Anti-Association Legislation

Irving, Texas, May 29, 2007 – The National Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA) worked in concert recently with the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), which represents all of the major trade and professional associations in the United States, to oppose a section in H.R. 2316, a lobby disclosure bill which would have required associations to submit all of their membership lists if they have retained lobbyists.

Committee Chairman Rep. John Conyers(D-MI) amended the bill to exempt all trade and professional associations in a committee mark-up session May 17. The exemption language now in the House bill is a direct result of association lobbying efforts.

Working with ASAE’s Senior Vice President for Public Policy James Clarke, NBFAA Director of Government Relations John Chwat headed for Capitol Hill early on May 17 to oppose Section 206 of the bill and to get an exemption for associations on this reporting requirement.

“This bill had just been introduced 48 hours earlier,” George Gunning, president of NBFAA said, “and it was introduced without public hearings or input from the association community. We felt strongly that the type of language contained in Section 206 would have placed an unreasonable burden on our association, and more importantly, would be a violation of the first amendment rights of our membership. Imagine having to submit our membership list to Congress just because we want our views represented? What an administrative nightmare to endure.”

NBFAA was one of the few associations which swung into action by 7a.m. May 17 to support the ASAE’s position. “We worked together with ASAE to oppose these unwarranted intrusions into association operations by Congress as a knee-jerk reaction to illegal lobbying activity by a few “bad apples,” Chwat said. NBFAA retains Chwat as a lobbyist and supports all of the transparency requirements mandated by law.

“While we support the government’s efforts at lobby reform, we believed it was necessary for NBFAA to quickly and decisively act to protect the well-being of our association and our members,” added Gunning. “We are gratified to see that the provision will be amended to exempt all non-profit 501(c)associations.”

About NBFAA

NBFAA, a non-profit 501(c) 6 trade association, is the nation's oldest and largest organization dedicated to representing, promoting, and supporting the electronic life safety, security, and systems industry. Member companies specialize in a wide spectrum of services to commercial and residential consumers, including security and fire alarms, video surveillance, access control and monitoring. In cooperation with a federation of state associations, NBFAA provides government advocacy and delivers timely information, professional development tools, products and services that members use to grow and prosper their businesses. The NBFAA may be reached at (888) 447-1689 or on the Web at www.alarm.org.

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National Burglar & Fire Alarm Association (NBFAA)
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