September 2012 SDADA Column

I've just returned from my 8th NADA Washington Conference representing South Dakota dealers. While I'm always proud to represent our state's dealers, I especially enjoy the Washington Conference for several reasons. 

We always have as many dealers as any other state at the conference, which considering our numbers, is impressive enough. Our delegation is always engaged and up to speed on the issues. We have had an impressive NextGen dealer each year the program has been in place. Significantly, we always have a good time at the event!

Trace, Darrel, and Bruce kept up the tradition of a strong delegation of South Dakota dealers - they understand and communicate the issues to our Congressional delegation so well. Myron has great rapport with Noem, Thune and Johnson's offices and so many at NADA as well. Max Patnoe is a truly impressive young man. We can look forward to him being a strong voice for dealer issues.

So I was especially proud to be one of more than 400 new-car dealers and dealer association executives from across the country urging lawmakers to support NADA’s top priority issue, H.R. 5403, which rescinds the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s flawed guidance on auto lending (see below). We spoke to Senators Thune and Johnson. We were not able to see Representative Noem because she was voting (they actually take votes in the House!). We did speak to a staffer in her office.

In a nutshell, Senator Thune supports our issues but everything that could be considered "our issues" is in the 300+ bill log jam that Harry Reid has created between the House and the Senate. Representative Noem is supportive of our agenda. Senator Johnson told us that none of our issues would be discussed before his term expires.

It was a successful conference. Thanks to Trace, Darrel, Bruce, Max and Myron for doing the important job of being the "Voice of the Dealer" in our nation's Capitol.

NADA, NAMAD and AIADA Issue Statement on CFPB Proposal

In response to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s proposal to oversee larger nonbank auto finance companies, the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD) and the American International Automobile Dealers Association (AIADA) issued the following statement:

“As stated on numerous occasions, NADA, NAMAD and AIADA strongly oppose discrimination in any form and fully support the efforts of the CFPB, the Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission and other federal agencies to eliminate it from the marketplace.

“However, the CFPB has again failed to fully disclose its methodology for measuring for the presence of disparate impact. There are legitimate, market-based reasons for disparities in interest rates – from monthly budget constraints, to the presence of more competitive offers, to inventory reduction considerations – all of which are nondiscriminatory and all of which can be documented in the transaction. A better solution would be for lenders to adopt a robust retail compliance program that documents the basis of the pricing decision to effectively reduce the risk of discrimination in the purchasing process. The Department of Justice has created such a risk mitigation model, and we encourage the bureau not to overlook this common sense approach to addressing fair credit risks in the auto financing market.

“With respect to the proxy methodology report released by the CFPB, many of the questions that Congress and others have asked remain unanswered. We look forward to rigorous peer review to ensure that the tools the bureau is using to address fair credit concerns may actually accomplish its goals.”

OSHA Repeals Dealer Recordkeeping Exemptions

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently repealed a number of industry exemptions from its mandate that employers with 11 or more employees keep a workplace injury and illness log, including one for car dealers that dates back to the 1980s. Effective January 1, 2015, car dealers must use OSHA Form 300 to record workplace injuries and illnesses.  By February 1, 2016, they must also post an OSHA Form 300A summary of the workplace injury and illnesses that occurred in 2015. Dealers can access an OSHA fact sheet on the rule and an online tool to train employees on how to fill out the newly required forms. 

As a concession, the final rule contains a commitment by OSHA to review the efficacy of today’s changes in two years, the direct result of NADA’s unwavering opposition to the exemption repeal, first proposed by OSHA in 2011. Regulatory Affairs will soon issue an all-member FAQ on the topic. Questions can be directed to NADA Regulatory Affairs at 703.821.7040 or regulatoryaffairs@nada.org.