MidAtlantic IADA Takes Dealer Advocacy to the Next Level at the NIADA National Policy Conference

At the end of September, Executive Director, Tom Brandis, Board Member, Melissa Rowan, and I attended the NIADA National Policy Conference in Washington, DC. This conference is organized by the NIADA to afford the opportunity to members of the used auto industry to meet with policy makers and regulatory agencies to explain the importance of the interests of YOU – the small businesses that keep our country running – and how their rulemaking has the potential to positively or negatively effect your way of life and your impact on your individual communities.

After a “Meet & Greet” reception with legislators Monday night, we got down to business on Tuesday discussing how to convey the importance of our industry and YOUR part in supporting America’s economy. You may not realize what your local, independent dealership really means in the grand scheme – neither do our legislators!

We had a great day Wednesday, explaining dealers’ point of view on three main talking points and asking legislators what they believed the reason was behind the bills.

We found that, overwhelmingly, the Congressmen, Senators and their aides had absolutely no idea the amount of preparation and work that go on behind the scenes for their small business constituents in the Used Vehicle Industry.

We touched on only three talking points where there are currently bills in the House and/or Senate that will have impact on YOUR businesses in the near future:

• The “PART Act” (H.R. 621/S. 154) to fight rising Catalytic Converter theft on a National level.
• The “REPAIR Act” (H.R. 906) and the “SMART Act” (H.R. 1707) to support a consumer’s right to repair their vehicle and reduce costs.
• The “FTC REDO Act” (H.R. 7101/S.3014) which would STOP the FTC’s finalized “Vehicle Shopping Rule” (VSR), also known as the “CARS Rule”, and require the FTC to follow regulatory safeguards and oversight should the agency choose to “redo” the bill.

The MidAtlantic IADA SUPPORTS the NIADA stand on these bipartisan supported pieces of legislation, which offers as much protection to the dealerships affected as the consumers.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT THE “PART ACT”
The “Preventing Auto Recycling Theft Act” would assist law enforcement in combatting catalytic converter thefts by:

• Would require manufacturers to stamp or etch trackable, unique identifying numbers (such as the VIN) on the catalytic converters at the time of assembly.
• Includes a $7MM grant program to aid vehicle owners by voluntarily stamping their VIN or another identifying number on the existing vehicle, at no cost to the owner.
• Increases the record keeping requirements for purchasers of detached converters.
• Would establish a Federal criminal penalty for the theft, sale, or known purchase of stolen converters of up to 5 years in jail.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT THE “REPAIR ACT”
The “Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair Act” would require manufacturers to release access to be able to diagnose and reprogram vehicle computers to a standardized platform – the manufacturers could no longer require a fee to access their servers to perform maintenance or repair functions or require a franchise dealership service department be the consumer’s only choice to provided needed services.

This bill also PROHIBITS manufacturers from mandating any specific brands of parts, tools or equipment that must be used when completing repairs (with the exception of recalls).

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT THE “SMART ACT”
The “SMART Act” is a bill closely related to the “REPAIR Act”, and also has bipartisan support.

• Over the last 20 years, the cost to repair vehicles already on the road has risen 66%
• The SMART Act will amend patent law to reduce the time a manufacturer can control design patents on parts from the current 15 years down to 2.5 years
• Consumers (dealerships and repair facilities) are protected from quality concerns by a clause the states that the alternative replacement parts must meet or exceed OEM quality standards

LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST, THE BIG ONE… WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT THE “FTC REDO ACT”
As we are all aware, the FTC “Vehicle Shopping Rule”, also known as the FTC “Combatting Auto Retail Scams Rule” (the more objectionable title, that vilifies us all out of the gate), is completely disconnected with the means that business is conducted in the Used Vehicle industry. Meetings of NIADA representatives with the FTC and CFPB officials revealed that they had no idea the true impact to dealerships or retail consumers the Rule would have.

Instead, the NIADA supports the “FTC REDO Act” – this would be an actual “ACT” voted on by our Representatives and Senators, rather than a “RULE” imposed by an agency with little to no oversight. The “FTC REDO Act” would:

• STOP the “Vehicle Shopping Rule” (or “CARS Rule”) from going into effect
• Require the FTC to follow regulatory safeguards, should the agency choose to rewrite the rule, of issuing an “Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking” (ANPR)
• Require the FTC to conduct a quantitative study on automotive retailing to assess the need for an additional rule – given that the majority of items addressed are already covered by other existing Federal and State laws
• Require consumer testing to expose the true impact to the consumer and retailers
• Require the FTC to publish a datadriven cost-benefit analysis

We appreciate your confidence in us, here at MidAtlantic IADA, to advocate on your behalf at the Federal, State and Agency levels. Please help us to help you – CONTACT US TODAY to find out about getting more involved or making a contribution to our Political Action Committee funds to further our ability to stand up for your rights!