Warranty reimbursement assurance passes Md. Legislature
Phased-in minimum wage increase approved for the state
Another dealer specific measure that passed was legislation empowering Charles Countyês commissioners to adopt an ordinance exempting the locality from the dealers-closed-on-Sunday law. Relegating the matt er of dealers-closed-on-Sunday to the locality itself is unprecedented for the state and hopefully one that will be helpful for a longstanding controversial matter. Currently, dealers in Howard, Montgomery and Prince Georgeês counties are exempt from the stateês Sunday closing law.
From an earlier session of the General Assembly is the law which increases the maximum a dealer can charge vehicle buyers on document processing, which, effective July 1 of this year, will go from $200 to $300. The various disclosures and protocols that go into a dealer determining the optional processing fee are still in effect for dealers charging it and will be reviewed for Maryland dealers in subsequent WANADA Bulletins as the July 1effective date on the new maximum limit draws near.
General business related legislation of note was Marylandês minimum wage being increased from $7.25/hr. to $10.10/hr. over the next three years — $8, Jan., 2015; $8.25 Jul., 2015; $8.75, Jul., 2016; $9.05, Jul., 2017; and $10.10, Jul. 2018. Localities, like Montgomery and Prince Georgeês counties, which have already adopted higher minimum wages, will not be preempted by the lower statewide increase. There is also a training wage of 85% of the minimum available for employers to pay employees 19 or younger.
With the Maryland General Assembly concluding its 2014 legislative session this week, dealers statewide gained helpful warranty reimbursement protection from automaker franchisors which skirt the existing requirement to pay retail for warranty repairs dealers perform for them. The legislation — which passed in The General Assembly thanks to MADA with WANADAês support — establishes a definitive time allowance on labor and a parts markup based upon a retail repair order history designed to compel all automakers to fully comply with the law on reimbursement to dealers. The legislation also includes provisions prohibiting automakers from requiring dealers to use the automakers vendors and contractors when dealers are striving to come into line with automaker facility upgrades and program implementation, such as website design. This second generation warranty reimbursement law will take effect October 1 when the governor signs the legislation in the next few weeks.
WANADA similarly worked with MADA on putting forward enabling legislation on the implementation of a motor vehicle dealer board like the one that operates successfully in Virginia and other states which will need sorting out with the state Department of Transportation and the Motor Vehicle Administration over the next few months. A dealer group strategy is in the works to set course on a successful dealer board bill in the next General Assembly session that should be embraced by all interested parties in the good government measure that it is.
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