May 8, 2014
Benz "Trouble in Missouri"
Link: http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/trouble-missouri�
May 8, 2014
dsm363 Trouble in Missouri blog post
Trouble in Missouri | Blog | Tesla Motors
Looks like yet another effort by auto dealers to limit Tesla sales.�
May 8, 2014
Lloyd Mods, Merge with thread of same title�
May 8, 2014
ggies07 These lawmakers are not learning eh?�
May 8, 2014
bluefuego I am readying a letter to my local rep here in Missouri, but I can't make heads or tails of the actual bill. That said, can anyone point me to a good response letter (I have been searching the forums as well) that would read a tad better than... "wah... that's not fair you big meanie!"?
�
May 8, 2014
dsm363 We are working on that. Were posted at basically the same time.
�
May 8, 2014
Doug_G Merged. Demanding crowd here... two identical posts one minute apart, and within five minutes someone is asking for a merge.
Somehow I think the slimy dealer lobby is going to try and pull this stunt in every state in the union...�
May 8, 2014
dsm363 A more helpful way for us is to report the post and then include the link of the other thread you want merged�
May 8, 2014
Liz G Ok,
If I am reading this site correctly http://openstates.org/mo/bills/2014/HB1124/
the bill passed the Missouri Senate yesterday. So we need to focus all our efforts on the Governor to keep him from signing this into legislation.
Correction looks like it has to go back to the House for approval first. Wow! Love the workings of government.�
May 8, 2014
wiztecy Feel free to leave Representative Glen Kolkmeyer of Missouri comments about how you feel:
https://www.facebook.com/RepresentativeGlenKolkmeyer
Also its interesting to see that the National Auto Dealers Association has spent $3,111,000 lobbying your weak and corrupt politicians and given over 1,000,000 in contributions:
National Auto Dealers Assn: Summary | OpenSecrets�
May 8, 2014
bluefuego hmmm... I have pictures of Gov. Nixon making an announcement in front of my and Morrie's Tesla's in Columbia at that renewable energies conference...
�
May 8, 2014
Liz G Digging thru the bill.
Change here
3. For purposes of this section, "franchisor" shall be deemed to include any manufacturer of new motor vehicles which establishes any business location or facility within the state of Missouri, when such facilities are used by the manufacturer to inform, entice, or otherwise market to potential customers, or where customer orders for the manufacturer's new motor vehicles are placed, received, or processed, whether or not any sales of such vehicles are finally consummated, and whether or not any such vehicles are actually delivered to the retail customer, at such business location or facility. Accordingly, for purposes of this section, "new motor vehicle dealership" shall be deemed to include any business location or facility as described in this subsection.
4. In enacting subsection 3 of this section, it is the express intent of the legislature to prevent any manufacturer of new motor vehicles from circumventing the public policy as stated in section 407.811, by engaging in methods of retailing new motor vehicles which are designed to avoid the provisions of sections 407.810 to 407.835.
Wow!!!. I tried to get the exact verbiage for 810 and 835 but got lost in all the sections. Talk about protecting your business. You would not believe the types of things that are set up to protect existing franchises in Missouri.
example
In determining whether good cause exists for establishing an additional franchise, reopening a previously existing franchise, or relocating [an additional new motor vehicle dealer] a franchise for the same line-make, the [court] administrative hearing commission shall take into consideration [the existing] all relevant circumstances, including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) The size and permanency of the investment and obligations incurred by the existing franchisees of the same line-make in the relevant market area; and any damage that such existing franchisees may suffer from the establishment, reopening, or relocation of a franchise into the relevant market area;
(2) The effect on the retail motor vehicle business and the consuming public in the relevant market area;
(3) Whether it is injurious or beneficial to the public welfare;
(4) Whether the [new motor vehicle dealers] existing franchisees of the same line-make in that relevant market area are providing adequate competition and convenient consumer care for the motor vehicles of that line-make in the relevant market area, including the adequacy of motor vehicle sales and qualified service personnel;
(5) Whether the establishment, reopening, or relocation of [the new motor vehicle dealer] a franchise would promote competition; and whether the benefits to the public and the franchisor from any such increased competition outweigh the harm to the existing franchisees in the relevant market area;
(6) Growth or decline of the population and the number of new motor vehicle registrations in the relevant market area; and
(7) The effect on the reopening or relocating [dealer] franchisee of a denial of its relocation into the relevant market area.
Looking for the Free-Market here!!!�
May 8, 2014
scottf200 Summary type article: Missouri Auto Dealers Attempt Sneak Attack On Tesla
I posted it on the FB page mentioned above.�
May 8, 2014
ItsNotAboutTheMoney I guess Goodland got 'em skeered.�
May 8, 2014
Liz G I received confirmation from Tesla if this bill passes Tesla owners would have to have their cars serviced out of state and new customers would have to buy out of state.
This of course would result in the closing of the service center in St. Louis, costing 15 very good people their jobs and would prevent the opening of the service center in Kansas City.
Full document here
http://files.meetup.com/6175892/Tesla%20Impact.pdf�
May 8, 2014
tigerade Absolutely ridiculous. This is starting to make me mad. This people need to leave Tesla alone already.�
May 8, 2014
dsm363 Gotta love the job creators doing this. This really goes too far. It's bad enough stopping any new stores from opening up but sending 15 good people packing isn't right.�
May 8, 2014
TexasEV Send every Missouri legislator this essay by three bureau directors of the Federal Trade Commission-- the experts in competition and consumer protection-- which comes down strongly against state laws blocking direct sales of cars.
Who decides how consumers should shop? | Federal Trade Commission�
May 8, 2014
Doug_G Not to mention stranding owners in the state who would no longer be able to get their car serviced.�
May 8, 2014
lolachampcar Things are really getting F'd up.
Someone needs to point out to these people (NADA and the money behind it) what happens when you get too blatant in your tooling of normal folks. A small revisit of the French or Bolshevic Revolutions should give them an idea. Sure, the circumstances were significantly different and the scale can not be compared but there is only so much money can do to people before the people decide they have had enough.�
May 8, 2014
dsm363 I thought NJ might have been the tipping point but that simply turns them into the Texas sales model. This is far worse and agree they might have gone too far this time. It's very hard for any objective person to see this as anything other than exerting power and protecting a corrupt sales model.�
May 8, 2014
qwk This is really getting to be no different than a mob. Criminal charges need to be filed.�
May 8, 2014
beegee Already called my rep... when the going gets tough, the tough buy the laws. :cursing:�
May 8, 2014
Norbert The pattern of redefining "franchisor" to mean "manufacturer" (which to the common sense is absurd) seems as sneaky as the way it is smuggled in through backdoor deals....�
May 8, 2014
ItsNotAboutTheMoney I think they probably have gone too far. Denying the ability to offer servicing is an obvious block on out-of-state sales.�
May 8, 2014
evme
The problem is, we are going about it all wrong. We need to attach the people's names who sponsor the bill/make the changes to existing bills to include that language. What we are doing might stop the bills in their track but they are always free to try again or go at it in other states. If senators/house members know that their names are going to be attached to the outrage, they will think twice about sponsoring these things to begin with.�
May 8, 2014
tigerade And even better yet, vote them out in the next elections. I don't care what party they are or political affiliation, it is time to clean house from this blatant corruption.�
May 8, 2014
ggies07 You guys who live there need to make a public stand, get things noticed in the media that actual owners are upset about this. Also, isn't one of the dealerships' arguments about "it's family business and you don't want to take those jobs away", well, it seems like they are the ones taking them away now.....�
May 8, 2014
MikeC Wow, so their new strategy is changing the definition of words through legislation. Hope Tesla gets as much media promotion from this as it did from NJ.�
May 8, 2014
evme Ok, so I did some research and here is what I found:
HB 1124 had an assembly substitute offered as shown here in the senate:
Missouri House of Representatives
In it was proposed 4778S.04F with the franchisor nonsense:
Motor vehicles
This happened during 5/6 session:
Senator Kehoe, Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, submitted the
following reports:
Mr. President: Your Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, to which was referred HCS for
HB 1124, begs leave to report that it has considered the same and recommends that the Senate Committee
Substitute, hereto attached, do pass.
So I looked into the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and here are the members:
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Missouri State Senate - Ballotpedia
I think our culprit is Senator Kehoe. When I looked him up on follow the money:
Search Results | Follow The Money
Something looked very weird, so I looked it in a bit more detail:
Mikes Biography | Mike Kehoe
THE SENATOR IS AN AUTO DEALER HIMSELF!!!!!!!!!
For him to be chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure seems like conflict of interest!
Side note: Jay Wasson who also sits on the committee received money from dealer association so he might have been an accomplice.
Edit: Seems like we have some confirmation of Jay Wasson's part in this:
Missouri legislature lays potential road block for Tesla Motors sales | PoliticMo�
May 8, 2014
antochat Well well well isn't that interesting. Great research work dvme!�
May 8, 2014
ggies07 We've got one just like this here in Texas. Did dealer association place a member on the transportation committee in each state without us knowing? hahaha. would be a great thing to research.�
May 8, 2014
dhrivnak I wrote some comments on his page as did MANY others. Let's keep the pressure up! Let them know we are watching.�
May 8, 2014
evme He also served as a board member on the Missouri Automobile Dealers Association. So more accurately, did he put himself on the committee?�
May 8, 2014
Bradleybang Glen Kolkmeyer, the main sponsor of hb1124 Missouri House of Representatives
is also owner and CEO of Energy Transport Solutions, Inc. for 24 years. A Propane and refined fuels trucking company. Energy Transport Solutions - Home
No conflict here?
The democrat co sponsor Keith English, is ironically an ex-electrician.
Also, in addition to NADA, the local MISSOURI AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATION throws money around locally.
MISSOURI AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATION | Follow The Money
It infuriates me that the bills purpose is "This bill changes the laws regarding all-terrain vehicles, recreational off-highway vehicles, and utility vehicles." yet on the last 3 pages of 33 pages, this anti Tesla wording is inserted. How does this further the bills purpose?
" 4. In enacting subsection 3 of this section, it is the express intent of the legislature to prevent any manufacturer of new motor vehicles from circumventing the public policy as stated in section 407.811, by engaging in methods of retailing new motor vehicles which are designed to avoid the provisions of sections 407.810 to 407.835."
I don't know if I should laugh or cry looking at these political shenanigans.�
May 8, 2014
evme Just to clarify, they are not the ones responsible. The bill was changed in the senate, not in the house. The house bill was clean, the senate made the change when Mike Kehoe made a substitute bill. While we should press the house to be aware of this change and have it removed. Let us not attack innocent* people without evidence. (Unless this bill was intentionally set up to be later changed in the senate)
*I am aware that innocent and politician are opposite words but just for this instance.
Mike Kehoe is our guy�
May 8, 2014
Lloyd Here is an address that everyone can write to:
[email�protected]�
May 8, 2014
FlasherZ Kehoe sold his dealership in late 2011 to Joe Machens. You can bet he's still involved though.�
May 8, 2014
Bradleybang Yep.
http://www.connectmidmissouri.com/news/story.aspx?id=678705#.U2xGfZVOWUk
"Kehoe will remain a consultant for the new organization, but will increase a focus on community service and agri-business."
Nice yelp reviews of the stealership he sold.
"The worst!!!! We settled on a price. Then when we went to finance they slipped in two "warranties" we didn't ask for. We had to have them re do the paper work three times. Then when we thought everything was correct we received the payment book in the mail. It still had the higher price. Our loan ended up about $2000 more then the negotiated price. Done dealing with slime. Never will I go back or send someone there!!!
Won't even give them one star."
"I agree with K.S. Joe Machens is THE WORST!!! I bought a truck there a few years ago. The price of the truck was not bad but they hammered me on my trade in. I didn't realize at the time that my trade in was worth $9,000 to $10,000. They gave me $4000 for it. I didn't make that same mistake twice. I went in there a few days ago to buy a truck. this time I did my research and knew that my trade in was worth $13,000. When the salesman offered me ONLY $4,000 I turned around and walked out. Do not let Joe Machens do the same to you, do your research before you trade otherwise be prepared to get the shaft.
I have absolutely zero affiliation with any dealerships but I have been to Keen Ford in Fulton a few times and they are much more pleasant to deal with. I got a trade in value on a car there, then I went to Machens and Keen offered me $3000 more than Machens. It's worth the 30 minute drive to Fulton. You would probably be better off driving out of your way to any Ford dealership other than Joe Machens.
I wanted to give Machens zero stars but that wasn't a option so they are getting one."�
May 8, 2014
evme Ok, more info:
Missouri legislature lays potential road block for Tesla Motors sales | PoliticMo
Seems to confirm Jay Wasson as Mike Kehoe's accomplice.
He did get contributions from MADA and serves with Kehoe in the senate committee.�
May 8, 2014
FlasherZ The good news is that St. Louis is so close to the Illinois border that Tesla could simply open its service center for St. Louis in O'Fallon, IL or Fairview Heights, IL. We'd be HAPPY to have Tesla here in the Metro East, and it would basically take the money away from Missouri. Stupid politicians.�
May 8, 2014
Doug_G Wow, this is truly sickening. I sure hope they don't get away with these shenanigans.�
May 8, 2014
Bradleybang Another laugh or cry moment. On 4/21/14 Wasson wrote this
Senator Jay Wasson
"Encouraging Growth in High-Tech Industries in Missouri
We face an ever-changing economy, fueled more and more by growth in science and technology based industries. As a state, it�s critical that we not only help existing high-tech and innovative employers expand, but bring more of these cutting edge businesses�and 21st Century jobs�to the state. The question is, and remains, how? "�
May 8, 2014
FlasherZ I believe Liz has reached out to the St. Louis news outlets already and I have as well. If you live in the St. Louis area, might be a good thing for you to reach out to their news tips line and talk about the impact on you as well.
- - - Updated - - -
Evan, looks like Wasson lives in Nixa? Any chance you can use local pressure? Might be good to contact Springfield news outlets as well.�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Everyone please take time to retweet this thread and the Tesla blog with the hash tag #SaveMOTeslas
Thanks�
May 9, 2014
GoBlue88 Done.�
May 9, 2014
Peter_M The public policy that this amendment to the bill is purportedly trying to uphold is:
Pretty ironic...
Source: http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/C400-499/4070000811.HTM
The full text of the statute being amended can be found here: http://www.moga.mo.gov/statutes/statutes.htm#T19�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Ok, planning continues on the Convergence of Teslas in Jeff City.
Watch regional thread for details. Tesla Owners to Converge on Jefferson City, MO
Event will start around 9 am with a meeting with Tesla reps.�
May 9, 2014
efusco I have received a call back from representative Elmer and he gave me his cell phone, so I will call him back later this morning. I do not know Jay Wasson personally and since this has already passed the Senate don't know that contacting him at this point would be much use, but certainly if it goes back to the Senate I will be on his ass.
The Springfield News-Leader tracked me down on this story somehow and I spent 30 minutes on the phone with that reporter and invited him to come see the car for some photos and such.
I have emails/messages out to the two largest TV stations in Springfield as well as one of the smaller ones.�
May 9, 2014
Cosmacelf Good job efusco, that's the way this is going to get resolved - press first, then the politicians will follow.�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Thanks efusco.
I have yet to hear back from any of the St. Louis stations. I know FlasherZ also sent them emails. Hopefully they will reach out to one of us. As soon as details are finalized for the Convergence on Jeff City I will be send a follow up email to each of the news stations.�
May 9, 2014
dsm363 Nice work. Maybe invite one of their reporters for a ride if they've never seen a Model S before?�
May 9, 2014
Skotty I contacted my representative about it. I might also look at joining the get together in Jeff City on Monday.�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Looks like CNBC has picked this up.
New effort to block Tesla direct sales in Missouri - CNBC�
May 9, 2014
BlueTan85 LA Times has as well.
http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-tesla-missouri-dealer-fight-20140509-story.html�
May 9, 2014
bluefuego Been emailing/FB'ing my reps and bill reps last night and this morning... funny how my words have progressed from polite to a bit more no holds barred. I am figuring the latter will get more attention.
I'm glad that some media is picking this up. I am very disappointed that the local (St. Louis) news affiliates have not been. Did see this in Bloomberg Businessweek though.�
May 9, 2014
evme
Is this the one?
Complaints flare at bill that would affect Tesla sales
Edit: It seems Glen Kolkmeyer was either in on it, or is afraid the bill will get scrapped? either way he seems to be supporting the change to his bill
Also, we get final confirmation that Mike Kehoe is the one who wrote the language.�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Just got the Business Blog email from Stltoday.com (St. Louis Post Dispatch).
They've picked up the story.
Electric car maker alleges `sneak attack' in Missouri legislature by auto dealers : News
Would like to thank Jan, one of our STL members, for writing them.�
May 9, 2014
efusco Just got off of a 20 min call with Rep. Elmer, he is going to vote against the bill.
Here's the News-Leader online story:
Springfield News-Leader
They're coming over now to take photos of me with the Model S for the print (and maybe updated online) story.
Emailed Jay Wasson, but Elmer reinforced that energy needs to be focused on the House right now...if a vote can be delayed until next Friday passes it won't be voted on this session. The House can also refuse to vote on the bill with the changes and then it will go to committee and they'll have to vote on whatever the committee decides the language should be--that would be bad as that committee will have 5 Senators and 3 reps and will likely be loaded with those for the bill.
Both Tesla and the dealers' lobbies are pushing hard to get this through...call your reps, email is OK, but easier to ignore...call their office and leave a number and your feelings on this. We can stop this thing.�
May 9, 2014
FlasherZ McDermott was one of those I emailed last night. Glad to see they included the "follow-the-money" angle.�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Thanks as well.�
May 9, 2014
efusco Just FYI, I've been using the hash tag #missouritesla on my posts (at least on twitter). Others might want to follow suit to build the trend.�
May 9, 2014
bluefuego I have been using #SaveMoTeslas when retweeting all news articles I come across as well as on FB. I will add #missouritesla as well.�
May 9, 2014
Liz G Looking at all the articles out there now, I'm wondering if they really thought that they could sneak this through.
Hopefully, we can get this voted down by the MO House and it will just turn out to be more free publicity for Tesla.�
May 9, 2014
evme It seems that Glen Kolkmeyer has cleaned up his facebook page of Tesla comments.
https://www.facebook.com/RepresentativeGlenKolkmeyer�
May 9, 2014
dsm363 Yeah. Thought about posting but it would be deleted right away I'm sure. None of the posts were inappropriate but it's his FB page I guess.�
May 9, 2014
bluefuego ARRRRGHGHGHGHG!!!!!! Thanks for that heads up - I just reposted on his FB.�
May 9, 2014
AlMc Just posted to his facebook page. Surely will get deleted.�
May 9, 2014
GSP I just Kolkmeyer an email urging him to stop the ban. Hopefully if he gets enough if these he will have second thoughts.
His email address took a while to find. Here it is:
[email�protected]
GSP�
May 9, 2014
MrPinrel I am technically a Kansas resident but I went ahead and contacted two major TV stations in the KC area to see if they have an interest in running the story. Let me know what time the get together in Jeff City is in case I can make it!�
May 9, 2014
brianman Really? Aren't the majority of the "interesting" laws and regulations "snuck" through? Almost nothing gets the proper light of day in the political and legal realms. Perhaps I'm just jaded.�
May 9, 2014
Canuck You're not jaded. You're realistic. That's exactly what happens.
Tesla knows it too, which is why they said:
"This debate should be held in the full light of day with all sides being given an opportunity to make their case. Instead, the dealers are again trying to ram through a provision under the cover of darkness and without public debate. The people of Missouri deserve better from their elected officials."
A good example of something not seeing the "full light of day" is a tiny provision in the Modernization Act of 1999 � also known as the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which has permitted commercial banks to delve into any activity that is "complementary to a financial activity and does not pose a substantial risk to the safety or soundness of depository institutions or the financial system generally." Most lawmakers who voted for this bill had no idea this provision was even in there, and many have said they would never have voted for it, if they knew about it. Now, it's too late to turn back the clock and it reeking havoc on the world's economy:
The Vampire Squid Strikes Again: The Mega Banks' Most Devious Scam Yet | Politics News | Rolling Stone
Luckily, Tesla is shining the light before it gets passed in Missouri. Hopefully, it will prevent it from being passed. But as Brianman says, this is par for the course in today's politics. Sad really.�
May 9, 2014
efusco Updated News-Leader article. Some interesting quotes from the author of the substitution:
Complaints flare at bill that would affect Tesla sales
�
May 9, 2014
ggies07 forefathers!?! hahaha. I didn't know they had cars back then.....They must have been hiding them, those tricky bastards.�
May 9, 2014
dsm363 Great job and a good article too.�
May 9, 2014
evme That part was always there from the beginning. Hence why I said we got confirmation Glen Kolkmeyer is in on it too up top.
My favorite part was these two:
That entire statement by Kehoe goes against the point of the negative clause of the constitution. It also shows they were targeting Tesla even though they claimed they were not.
But my favorite one is this:
I just have no words to describe how hilarious this statement is.
Though I have to give credit to News-Leader, that is more than most publications end up going into detail on.
�
May 9, 2014
AlMc Nicely done. I suggest that everyone add to the 'comment' section of the article.�
May 9, 2014
evme Yes, and also send this article to other publications!�
May 9, 2014
FlasherZ Kolkmeyer's page went private - they removed the ability to comment and removed the ability to post to his page... There were great reasoned comments there, links to the FTC paper, etc. Looks like he's feeling the wrath, but responding like a stereotypical politician -- catering to the hand that feeds him but ignoring 90% of the voters that put him in office.
- - - Updated - - -
Looks like the political pressure is heating up - the Post-Dispatch (St. Louis paper) pulled its article, presumably it has something to do with the dealership ads that litter its front pages.�
May 9, 2014
evme hmm...can we get a statement from the Post-Dispatch why they took it down? Peessure should exist from our side as well.
A paper taking down articles because it conflicts with their sponsors does not bode well for the credibility of a newspaper
Edit:
Evan, I see you got some TV time on the issue:
Bill May Soon Ban Tesla's Direct Car Sales Model in Missouri - OzarksFirst.com�
May 9, 2014
Bradleybang Bill sponsor Rep. Glen Kolkmeyer, R-Odessa, spoke with the News-Leader, explaining some of his rationale for the new provisions.
"You can't have two sets of rules for the same type of business or industry," Kolkmeyer said.
How about he looks at his own industry?... trucking.
How many different trucking types of organizations exist? Should all trucking firms be required to use an independent broker?
As for Mike Kehoe statement of "Our question as dealers and people I know in the business: how in the world when we've worked so hard to get franchise legislation, how in the world could that be possible?" Kehoe said.
It comes across as. "Hey, we bought and paid for these laws and legislatures."�
May 9, 2014
efusco My KOLR 10 news story is up. Share & tweet to your hearts' content Bill May Soon Ban Tesla's Direct Car Sales Model in Missouri - OzarksFirst.com
#savemotesla #missouritesla�
May 9, 2014
FlasherZ I left a voicemail for the author of the article, and sent an e-mail to him and the editors. I don't really expect a response, mostly because of the huge ads for dealerships I see on the front page. :-/�
May 9, 2014
dsm363 I guess it won't appear in the print edition too or did someone capture the text of the online article?�
May 9, 2014
FlasherZ Re-posted or fixed, one of the two:
Electric car maker alleges 'sneak attack' in Missouri legislature by auto dealers : News
Author's response:
�
May 9, 2014
AlMc Nicely done. :wink: I am not a resident of MO but I posted a comment to 'The Ozark' as well.�
May 9, 2014
dsm363 They are able to buy a legislator off for only $3,300 a year. Amazing.�
May 9, 2014
evme One thing that struck me was they said English (The other sponsor of the bill), would vote based on what the UAW says? Any particular reason why? And who would the UAW side with?
Awesome! Goes to show a little push goes a long way.�
May 9, 2014
RobStark UAW members make cars sold at Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC-Buick Ford, Lincoln, Chrysler, and Dodge dealers.
UAW members don't make Teslas.�
May 9, 2014
evme Right, but they are trying to get Tesla employees to be part of the UAW. Obviously the employees are not going to bite but that would look bad for their prospects. Plus I can't imagine that UAW workers like dealers either.�
May 9, 2014
SCW-Greg You guys should stage a rally at your capital, and get the news crews to show. Offer test rides!�
May 9, 2014
Dutchie One of the arguments the dealers have is that their model is for the best intrest of the consumer. There is more competition, easier access to warranty work etc.
I read a comment which I think was spot-on.
If the dealers think that their model is the best for consumers, then why are they fighting Tesla? Why don't they let Tesla do their thing? if the dealers are so convinced of their superior model then their model would prevail and Tesla would suffer the consequences in choosing the inferiour model...�
May 9, 2014
bluefuego Yup - all comments are gone. :-( I have emailed him privately the same rational comment and tweeted some slightly harsher words. At least Rep. John Diehl, Jr.'s page still shows my comments (he is my local rep and represents a fairly affluent area of St. Louis County).�
May 9, 2014
evme Actually, their argument was killed immediately even before all this started, here is why.
Mike Kehoe wrote this to the Missouri Department of Revenue:
To which John R. Mollenkamp responded:
So their argument was already stuck down.�
May 10, 2014
Liz G We will be meeting in Jeff City around 9 am. Exact meeting spot not yet decided. Watch the thread under the Midwest forum for details.
UPDATE: There has been a change in plans.
We will meet in Jeff City at noon.
We will not know until Monday morning exactly where we will be meeting. Will post once we do.�
May 10, 2014
Zythryn I think a great story/tweet here is how a senator's Facebook was closed so he didn't have to hear the opinions of his constituents!.
Awesome job everyone. We had a similar fight last spring in Minnesota although with much more warning.
Good luck!�
May 10, 2014
Liz G Well, I think the reporter got the gist of what I was trying to say about how dealers can't truly sell Teslas when their also selling gas cars. Anyways, here's the updated story.
Electric car maker alleges 'sneak attack' in Missouri legislature by auto dealers : News
And another one from a blanket email I sent out to the news reporters who had done previous stories on this bill.
Tesla Motors hires brigade of lobbyists in battle with Missouri auto dealers | PoliticMo
Still need to figure out how to put some pressure on the local TV news to get them to cover this, it's at the bottom. Not a peep yet, though getting the Post Dispatch was great. But not as far reaching as getting a TV station in St. Louis. At least efusco got some TV coverage for us in Missouri.
Maybe we will get lucky and the national news will pick up on this, though Missouri politics may not be a big a draw as Cristi.�
May 10, 2014
SebastianR It's really funny (and also very very sad) to see how all these "free market capitalists" invent protectionist moves to keep one of the most hated types of business (car dealers) alive.
Why does no news outlet ask how it can be that Tesla faces no issues selling their cars directly in "communist" China or any "socialist" European country yet it gets in trouble in the US regularly... Irony much?�
May 10, 2014
Cosmacelf Both political parties favor their favored businesses or constituencies with anti market laws. The republican brand is supposed to include free market capitalism so this is rank hypocrisy. Kinda like democrats being pro education and voting against school choice.�
May 10, 2014
v12 to 12v It looks like the legislation could go beyond Tesla sales and impact the installation of Superchargers. Check out the post by Sudre_ at TM and consider how the word "entice" could be interpreted.
Dealer Sneak Attack in Missouri | Forums | Tesla Motors�
May 10, 2014
Electric700 Tesla Might Soon be Banned in Missouri
Help needed! The Missouri House of Representatives may vote early next week on HB 1124, which would ban Tesla Motors from selling its cars at Missouri Tesla locations. Either they need to change the bill and remove the anti-Tesla language, or vote the whole bill down.
More at teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/30907-Trouble-in-Missouri�
May 10, 2014
CliffG Which market? Apparently it's a free market where the legistators are free to sell their votes and support for legislation.
Keep in mind, NADA (National Auto Dealers Assn) is one of the biggest donors and lobbyists in the market and Republicans take more and appear to support them more: National Auto Dealers Assn: Total Contributions | OpenSecrets�
May 10, 2014
AlMc While one party may nationally take more than another, when it comes to NADA, both parties take donations and turn around and support NADA 'approved' legislation. I think we need to leave parties out of this and educate everyone and shine the light on any of the sponsors in individual states.�
May 10, 2014
Rebel44 If what I read about this law is correct, it would also impact Tesla ability to sell directly, which goes directly against Commerce Clause - so Tesla can sue state of Missouri and have courts kill that law (or just anti-Tesla part of the law).�
May 10, 2014
AlMc That is correct. The debate is whether TM should go for a federal suit or fight this state by state using overwhelming public opinion that supports the direct sale model. Since TM is supply constrained at this point and gets a certain amount of 'free advertising' it appears they have decided to currently fight this state by state.�
May 10, 2014
Rebel44 While it slightly increase brand awareness, its not very effective/fast at resolving core issue.
I generally prefer to go for "nuclear option" when dealing with a**holes... (like when dealership tried to defraud me of out of significant ammount of money....)�
May 11, 2014
djplong You notice that they carefully target Tesla with their claims of why a dealer is better - yet they don't carry it to it's logical end - that selling a USED car should NEVER be entrusted to a private sale (by their logic).
Heck, a NEW car is ALWAYS covered under some kind of warranty - not so a used car so there's even MORE risk for the buyer.
But the populace would never stand for them calling every voting citizen "untrustworthy"�
May 11, 2014
CliffG You're absolutely right - opportunists of all stripes abound and we should be addressing the source of the problem. Think if it in public health terms: if you address the symptoms of a disease it doesn't go away, if you address the vector of the disease, you have a chance of getting rid of it.�
May 11, 2014
Liz G Does anyone know anyone in the national news stations? We just can't seem to get the local news stations interested in covering this. Not overly surprised since all of them get vehicles (likely free) from dealerships around town for their traffic reporters.
Could use some help trying to get coverage.�
May 11, 2014
bonnie Have you reached out to Tesla? I'll pm you with a good contact there. They should be able to help.�
May 11, 2014
evme I see 2 more local news hubs picked it up (at least I think they are local)
http://www.joplinglobe.com/topstories/x1396844617/End-of-session-poses-pressure-even-for-wary-legislators
Telsa Motors fights proposal to ban direct car sales in Missouri - KansasCity.com
Missouri considers Tesla sales ban | Local News - Home
seMissourian.com: State News: Missouri lawmakers considers Tesla sales ban (05/12/14)
Missouri considers Tesla sales ban - KSHB.com
Though overall it is not looking too good, that representative White doesn't even know what a Tesla is...�
May 12, 2014
Lump Twitter / Lebeaucarnews: .@Teslamotors VP of Business ...
VP of Business says company has 130 #Tesla models registered in Missouri - which is considering banning direct sales.
�
May 12, 2014
chickensevil For convenience, here is the post:
NADA is certainly wising up to Tesla's tactics since they realized that killing their direct sales... didn't really kill their direct sales... So now they are taking it a step further. I am honestly surprised it took them this long to step it up a notch. This is the first REAL impacting attack on Tesla, and will completely cut Tesla out of MO if it passes... It would suck to have to drive AROUND MO...�
May 12, 2014
AlMc If the total 'ban' goes through I hope this triggers a Fed lawsuit for Interstate Commerce trade.�
May 12, 2014
dsm363 We need a national funding effort for a PAC to vote these two sponsors out of office. Only way to let these politicians know what they did was against want people actually want.�
May 12, 2014
chickensevil At the very least I would expect Tesla to actually focus a little harder on fixing this stuff... because the problem with laws... they are really hard to change once they get implemented.
This has the real potential to actually hurt Tesla's bottom line in more than just MO. And if they attempt to push this in other states? I shudder to think what would happen over here in VA and MD where we are feeding into the second largest service center by volume on the east coast should something like this get pushed through.�
May 12, 2014
dsm363 Do either of these two sponsors have credible primary challengers in the next election? Or even the general election?�
May 12, 2014
jthompson I sent the following email to all the Missouri representatives, Lt Governor, and Governor: "I understand HB 1124 contains language that prohibits citizens of Missouri from purchasing a Tesla automobile except thru a franchised dealer. As a Missouri resident and a Tesla owner, this offends me to no end that state elected representatives are doing this. You should do whatever is possible in Missouri to encourage free trade, competition, and updating of antiquated laws. I urge you to not allow this bill to be passed with anti-Tesla language."�
May 12, 2014
bluefuego Myself and a fellow owner just met with our rep (John Diehl, Jr) who is also majority floor leader. He is kicking the bill back to the senate!!!!
Apparently one of the bill's originators (English) is absolutely furious about the amendment to his bill and is trying to kill it too.�
May 12, 2014
chickensevil Great news!�
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