Send a text

A budget shortfall, a hostile hearing, and a tax threat big enough to sink an industry—this conversation with APRO legend Bill Keese reveals how Rent-To-Own survived and matured. We open with Bill’s unlikely path from state legislator to executive director and move straight into the fiscal triage that rebuilt APRO’s foundation: cutting costs, rethinking staff, and—crucially—resetting dues so the largest chains paid their share. That quiet, early fix powered a bold advocacy playbook when the IRS and Congress turned up the heat.

Bill walks us through the two-track strategy that changed everything: choosing a dealer with pristine records to fight in tax court while running a coordinated push for legislative clarity. The team hired a firm anchored by the former chief judge of the U.S. Tax Court and mobilized dealers for high-impact, face-to-face meetings on the Hill. The payoff was decisive—a Revenue Procedure confirming lease treatment for tax purposes, preserving cash flow, jobs, and customer access. Alongside policy, we dig into perception: how a single comment about an “image problem” sparked a PR overhaul, national-quality ads for small dealers, and smarter media choices that stopped bad narratives before they spread.

From there, we map the steady climb of state RTO laws, the tension between federal uniformity and local control, and the realities of consolidation—keeping one-store operators and national chains equally invested in the association’s mission. Bill shares candid stories about congressional skirmishes, unlikely allies, and the grassroots stamina that still anchors the industry. He closes with field-tested advice for owners and operators: reinvent every five years, stay visible in your community, and treat advocacy like essential maintenance. Subscribe, share this episode with a colleague, and leave a review with the one lesson you’ll act on this quarter.

Support the show

www.TheRTOshowPodcast.com For swag and information

Pete@thertoshowpodcast.com

Facebook - The RTO Show

Instagram - the_rto_show

Linkedin - The RTO Show

Youtube - The RTO Show Podcast