Dear CATA Members,
As we move toward the end of the year, I thought it would be appropriate to deliver an update on what the CATA has been pursuing on your behalf. In September, CATA Vice Chairman Jason Roberts, CATA Co-President Jen Morand and I attended the Washington Conference, organized by the NADA, to discuss issues that impact dealers across the country.
The conference outlined the ongoing strategy NADA has legislatively. After the conference sessions concluded, each association delegation had opportunities to meet with their individual state’s Congressional representatives to discuss the most important issues. This year, the NADA has identified its top three initiatives listed below:
- FTC’s Overreaching “Vehicle Shopping Rule”: Members of Congress should cosponsor the soon-to-be-introduced “FTC REDO Act” directing the FTC to “redo” its flawed “Vehicle Shopping Rule” to prevent the agency from needlessly imposing significant burdens and costs on consumers and small business dealers.
- EPA’s EV Mandate Goes Too Far Too Fast: Members of Congress are encouraged to sign letters to congressional leadership warning that unless the EPA creates a national greenhouse gas standard that is reasonable and achievable for all 50 states and stops attempting to ban the sale of gas-powered cars, Congress will need to step in. The EPA’s proposed rule effectively mandates that 67.5% of new vehicle sales in 2032 be electric. NADA filed comments opposing the rule. A House Appropriations bill included language to prevent the EPA from spending money to finalize this mandate.
- The Technical and Non-Controversial “Supply Chain Disruptions Relief Act” (LIFO Relief, H.R. 700/ S. 443): Members of Congress should cosponsor the bipartisan “Supply Chain Disruptions Relief Act” and urge House and Senate leadership to pass this technical and noncontroversial legislation at the earliest opportunity. Under the legislation, Congress would determine that the conditions necessary to grant additional time to replace vehicle inventories under existing law due to pandemic-related foreign trade interruptions have been met.
Our meetings included Congressmen Sean Casten, Brad Schneider and Raja Krishnamoorthi, as well as Congresswoman Robin Kelly. We also met with staff from Senator Dick Durbin’s office. Each of these lawmakers seemed to understand our concerns and were outwardly interested in what we had to discuss. It’s important that we attend these conferences. It allows us to stay abreast of the issues that NADA feels are crucial and, more importantly, to lobby our state’s congressional leaders to support those initiatives.
Another more recent initiative, which the CATA produced at the end of September, was the fall version of Chicago Drives Electric. This was the second presentation of the electric vehicle ride and drive offered at our headquarters in Oakbrook Terrace. We are proud to say that we had stronger attendance, better manufacturer participation and exceptional attendee feedback regarding the outlook of EV purchases. We found that consumers are still very interested in learning about electric vehicles and how they could transition into potential ownership. We were joined by our partners from Powering Chicago, a co-op of local electricians and NECA (National Electrical Contractors Association) contractors who were on hand to help with questions regarding power availability and how a consumer would go about converting their homes to becoming more electric vehicle friendly. ComEd was also present for infrastructure questions and rebate program information. The feedback we have received from the manufacturer representatives and the consumers who attended the weekend event has been more than positive. We feel that events like this one are valuable to our members and certainly drive electric vehicle adoption.
Finally, as the CATA staff turns its focus to the 2024 Chicago Auto Show, we are curious to see what effects, if any, the UAW strike could have on the show in February. We are working with all OEMs to get them contracted and to begin to establish the 2024 floor plan.
Since March 2020, when the COVID pandemic changed all auto shows, in many instances cancelling some of them, we have persevered by continuing to produce the auto show without missing a cycle. Our attendance for the media preview, the First Look for Charity and the public show days have increased each year since we produced our first post-pandemic show. Although we are still building back, we are not quite fully back yet. We will continue to produce the best auto show in the country and will not be happy until our show is back to where it was before the pandemic appeared.
I hope that this update shows that the CATA is always working on your behalf and that you realize that when we are successful, our whole organization benefits. I wish all of you a warm and joyful holiday season.
Sincerely,
Chris Konecki
Executive Vice President
Chicago Automobile Trade Association
