By Brett Scott
NIADA is your voice in Washington D.C., advocating for independent dealers, the used vehicle industry and small business. Here’s a look at the latest news and NIADA efforts regarding legislative, regulatory, PAC and grass roots activities.
LEGISLATIVE
At press time the fate of President Biden’s massive social spending package was still up in the air.
The Administration and Democratic leaders were hoping to get the $1.75 trillion bill, which was passed by the House in November, through the Senate by the end of 2021, but that deadline seemed very much in jeopardy.
Senate Democrats are attempting to pass the bill with no Republican votes by using the budget reconciliation process, which requires a simple majority vote. But with the Senate split 50-50, they’ll need the support of all of their senators to allow Vice President Harris to cast the deciding vote.
The biggest roadblock to that plan is Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who has expressed concerns and outright disapproval of some of the bill’s provisions and its potential effect on inflation and the federal deficit.
Those concerns were heightened by the November report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which found prices were up 6.8 percent year-over-year – the highest inflation rate since 1982 – and a report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which showed the bill’s programs would actually cost $4.5 trillion and add $3 trillion to the federal deficit if they were extended over 10 years.
While the bill includes expiration dates for many of the programs and tax credits, Manchin contends that if passed, they will be extended – some of them permanently – calling the lower price tag “budget gimmicks” and “shell games.”
REGULATORY
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s new Debt Collection Rule became effective Nov. 30, aimed at clarifying how debt collectors can communicate with consumers.
To help consumers get a handle on what the rule is all about, the CFPB put together a blog post titled “Understand How the CFPB’s Debt Collection Rule Impacts You.”
The post explains “five key things to know” about the rule – which are key things for dealers to know as well.
The debt collection validation notice: What it is, what information it includes and why it is sent – to help consumers identify whether they owe the debt and whether the collector’s information about the debt is accurate. The notice must include a “tear-off” form for consumers to send back to dispute the debt or take other actions.
How often debt collectors can call: Collectors are presumed to be violating the law if they place a telephone call about a particular debt more than seven times in a seven-day period or within seven days after a phone conversation about a particular debt.
When debt collectors can report a debt to a credit reporting company: Only after the collector speaks to the consumer by telephone or in person about the debt, or mails a letter or sends an electronic communication about the debt and waits a reasonable amount of time – generally 14 days – for a response.
If debt collectors can contact consumers about a debt on social media: They can – if they follow certain rules, such as keeping messages private (not viewable by others), identifying themselves as debt collectors and providing a way to opt out of those communications.
“Limited-content message”: A limited-content message is a voicemail debt collectors may leave that must include certain specific information. A limited-content message is not considered a communication under the rule, meaning it’s not subject to other legal requirements.
To read the entire post, visit www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/understand-how-cfpb-debt-collection-rule-impacts-you.
PAC
The Dec. 8 Coffee With Congress with Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) went extremely well and was well attended by NIADA members.
Coffee With Congress is a series of virtual events that allows NIADA members to talk directly to the congressional representative from their district about what’s happening in Washington and ask questions about legislation and policies that could affect their businesses.
The Loudermilk event was the last Coffee With Congress for 2021, but be on the lookout for more events coming in 2022. And if you’d like to have coffee with your congressional representative, let me know at brett@niada.com and we’ll be happy to try to arrange it.
As campaigns heat up heading into the midterm congressional elections, NIADA-PAC will be very active in 2022, leading up to the return of the NIADA National Policy Conference, scheduled for Sept. 19-21 in Washington D.C. It’s your chance to meet face-to-face with members of Congress and federal regulators and make your voice heard.
GRASS ROOTS
Alabama: Executive director Randy Jones and Alabama IADA are going all out in engaging with their state legislators, with three events last month.
On Dec. 10, state House candidate Matt Woods was a guest at an AIADA chapter meeting in Jasper, Ala. The association also brought seven members of the state House and a House candidate to Dealers Auto Auction of Huntsville to meet with AIADA member dealers on Dec. 14, and worked with Shoals North Alabama Auto Auction to set up a luncheon with state Rep. Tracy Estes two days later in Winfield, Ala.
The events allowed dealers to talk directly to their state representatives about the needs of the used vehicle industry and its customers heading into 2022.
Brett Scott is NIADA vice president of government affairs.
