WANADA members will want to put Tuesday, June 4 on their calendar for a fun filled day of camaraderie and competition at the association’s annual golf tournament (WANADA Open) returning this year to the beautiful Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg, VA. [FULL ARTICLE]

Like Maryland, Virginia's proximity to the Chesapeake Bay draws the commonwealth into the federal government's Storm Water Management Program to protect the quality of the Chesapeake watershed. Both states specifically are charged with implementing federal storm water run-off requirements for the Chesapeake, to include funding the cost of them.
[FULL ARTICLE]

Hot on the heels of Virginia regulators last week rejecting Tesla Motors bid to open a retail outlet in Tysons Corner, Maryland regulators are moving ahead on a similar course of action. Like Virginia, where DMV Commissioner Rick Holcomb last week ruled that Tesla didn't make the case that it should be able to retail its electric cars in the commonwealth without a dealer, Maryland has well-established, strong dealer licensing laws with specific requirements for retailing new vehicles. Preliminary, but credible, indicators are that Maryland regulators will be no more inclined to approve Tesla's "design studio" retail model, with no service department or dealer operator, than Virginia. [FULL ARTICLE]

New fees on businesses to pay for cleanup of stormwater runoff are slated to be implemented in Baltimore and nine Maryland counties by July 1. Governor O’Malley signed legislation a year ago to comply with U.S. EPA standards for the maximum daily pollution allowed in the Chesapeake Bay. Other states, like Maryland, that are near large bodies of water where polluted stormwater ends up are passing similar laws. [FULL ARTICLE]

As widely reported last week, Maryland lawmaker members of the 2013 General Assembly, which ended April 8, passed the ambitious and progressive legislative package of Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) putting Maryland, in the opinion of many, out front among liberal states in the Democratic Party's Blue State network. A gun control measure -- described as far reaching-- passed, as did bills to repeal the death penalty, establish incentives for an off shore wind farm to expand renewable energy, a simplification of the process for illegal immigrants to get drivers licenses, and legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. [FULL ARTICLE]

Let's see: A gun control bill described as most sweeping; repeal of the death penalty; first gas tax hike in 21 years; incentives for an off-shore wind farm (to broaden renewable energy); a bill expanding ranks of illegal immigrants with drivers licenses; and, oh yes, marijuana for medical purposes. All this from the 90 day session of the 2013 Maryland General Assembly that ended Monday night, described in today's Washington Post as "the busiest session in years." All this, indeed, hot on the heels of successful voter referendums last fall legalizing gay marriage, gambling, and in-state college tuition for undocumented immigrants. And effective this July from an earlier legislative session, localities which will be compelled to assess property owners "charges" to ensure water quality protection on run off from paved surfaces. [FULL ARTICLE]

EPA proposed standards last week designed to reduce sulfur levels in gasoline and tailpipe emissions by 2025, saying that the move will save 2,400 lives per year by 2030. Automakers say they are on board with the plan because lower sulfur emitting vehicles are more in line with the advanced technology required for the formidable mpg mandate from the EPA for cars in the future. Automakers are also supportive of EPA’s plan because it comes with an assurance from the government of a 50 state tailpipe standard instead of the lame California states/federal states approach from days gone by. Oil companies concerned about the economic challenge they foresee in reformulating gasoline, such as overhauling refineries, believe it is significant enough to harm the overall economy and, accordingly, are opposed to the low-sulfur plan. [FULL ARTICLE]

A guidance bulletin from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) warns that dealer markup in indirect auto lending may lead to discrimination against African Americans and Hispanics.
To avoid such discrimination, the CFPB advises indirect lenders to impose controls on dealer markup of car loans in the credit arranging phase of the financed transaction, that may go so far as to curtail dealer discretion to mark up buy rates, instead using another method, such as flat fees. [FULL ARTICLE]

For many years WANADA has sent dealer group leaders to the world’s most prominent auto shows to network with high level OEM and allied industry exhibitors to further Washington's mission as the Public Policy Show on the global industry circuit. With this in mind, WAS chairman Kevin Reilly of Alexandria Hyundai earlier this month led WANADA representatives to the Geneva Motor Show's media days to be part of one of Europe's foremost annual industry events. Having produced the Auto Show in Washington for nearly 100 years, WANADA has forever recognized the inherent value of the Show in promoting the automobile business in the all-important Washington, DC (regional) market. [FULL ARTICLE]

Washington area new vehicle sales rose 9.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012 and a strong 12.3 percent for the full year, according to the WANADA area report based on R.L. Polk data. The full-year increase was just below the national figure of 13 percent, but U.S. sales had farther to climb after suffering a bigger drop during the recession than regional sales.
[FULL ARTICLE]

The deadline on whether sequester of the government will happen has passed. It's happening albeit we won't know the full effect until later this month – we think. How will it affect the area economy and its dealers? No one knows, of course. The idea behind passing the bill last year mandating sequestration if no grand bargain was reached on the budget was that the spending cuts were so onerous and arbitrary that Congress would be shamed into agreeing on a budget deal. We all know the rest.
[FULL ARTICLE]

With auto sales leading the U.S. economy to a better place, the mood was upbeat at the 2013 NADA/ATD Convention that wrapped up in in Orlando, Fla. last week. Keying off the convention theme Momentum, Hyundai president and CEO John Krafcik, who spoke at the first General Session, urged dealers to take pride in their accomplishments. [FULL ARTICLE]

A successful auto show is most directly proportionate to the public turnout, and by that measure The 2013 Washington Auto Show was the most successful ever. “The public came out in droves this year resulting in the best attended Auto Show in Washington‟s history,” said Robert Fogarty, chairman of The Washington Auto Show (WAS). [FULL ARTICLE]

At the leadoff event on the first Public Policy Day of the 2013 Washington Auto Show (WAS), speakers with diverse viewpoints discussed whether consumers are willing and able to take advantage of the new technologies for better fuel economy. The panel was heard at the National Journal Policy Summit on Affordable Mobility by a standing room-only crowd in the historic Caucus Room of the Cannon House Office Building, last Thursday, Jan. 30. [FULL ARTICLE]

Was Media Day Onsite, Walter E. Washington Convention Center (WCC) starts early, Thurs., Jan. 31 with the IMPA/WAPA Newsmaker Breakfast at 8:00 am, where Scott Keogh, president and CEO of Audi of America will be the keynoter.

Following breakfast at 9:30 am, will be an Industry Stakeholder Panel consisting of eight OEM and dealer association CEOs who will present what they’re calling the 2013 Auto Industry Roadmap for U.S. Industry Policymakers. [FULL ARTICLE]

At a special reception and dinner on Industry Night, January 31, at The Washington Auto Show (WAS) before it opens to the public, Edsel B. Ford II will receive the Keith Crain/Automotive News Lifetime Achievement Award. The award will be presented by Roger Penske, winner of the 2012 AN Award. The dinner is sponsored by Robert L. Bosch, LLC. [FULL ARTICLE]

With auto show season in full swing – tangibly evidenced by the roll out this week of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit – The 2013 Washington Auto Show (WAS) is poised to launch with its Industry/Media Days the last two days of this month, January 30 and 31, setting the stage for its 10-day, two weekend, public days run at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center (WCC). [FULL ARTICLE]

The federal budget and debt problems are a long way from being resolved, but we didn’t go over the fiscal cliff. That’s due to the American Taxpayer Relief Act, the name given to the law which avoided the cliff, passed as it was on New Year’s Day, a national holiday. Significantly, there’s no sequestration, a big deal for federal civil servants who otherwise would have been faced with job furloughs commencing this month. Dealers and other small business people also avoided the cliff insofar as current estate tax provisions remain substantially preserved and indexed for inflation. And, dealers should be pleased overall with the outcome on the estate tax and the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). [FULL ARTICLE]

Agreement on a Congressional budget deal appears unlikely at this writing, and nobody knows quite what the fiscal cliff will mean for the nation, car sales or the local economy. A survey by Swapalease.com gives a hint of how car owners would react if we go over the cliff. [FULL ARTICLE]

Many observers see Speaker John Boehner's pulling of Plan B from consideration as a low point for the Republican/small business cause. The Small Business Legislative Council says it is the best deal small business is likely to get, and now we are likely to return to discussing higher taxes for those earning more than $250,000 instead of the $1 million that was in Plan B. [FULL ARTICLE]

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has decided to opt out of a state-run health care exchange in favor of a federally run program. Under the new national health care law, states had until December 14 to say whether they intend to run their own program. By the next deadline, in February2013, the governors must say whether their states plan to partner with the federal government. States that don’t take either option must let the federal Department of Health and Human Services run a state exchange. A number of Republican governors have chosen to let HHS run their program, though some conservatives say this means ceding more control to the feds – something of an anathema to the conservative philosophy. [FULL ARTICLE]

"Make no mistake," economic forecaster Knight Kiplinger told lunch attendees at WANADA's Annual Meeting last week. "Taxes are going to go up, up, and up on high-income earners."
Kiplinger, editor-in-chief of The Kiplinger Letter, Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine and Kiplinger.com, and a frequent speaker before business groups, predicts we will see more progressivity in the tax code for those earning more than $250,000. As part of the new health care law, there will be a 0.9 percent Medicare surtax for households earning more than $250,000 and a 3.8 percent surtax on unearned income (dividends and capital gains) in high-income households. [FULL ARTICLE]