Peter Schorsch
A bill aimed at making changes to car dealership regulations stalled out in its second House committee Thursday over objections it was tailored to hand a single industry association a monopoly on dealer training.
HB 595 by Naples Republican Rep. Bob Rommel would make changes to various legal definitions relating to car dealers, but a strike all amendment filed by Rommel would have required new car dealers to take a 4-hour course each year to keep their license, which would put them in line with requirements set for used car dealers.
That training could only be offered by “a Florida-based, nonprofit, dealer-owned, statewide industry association of franchised motor vehicle dealers.” Only one group (probably not coincidentally) in the state qualifies under that definition: the Florida Automobile Dealers Association.
“Currently my understanding and that of the staff analysis is that a new car dealer that wants to obtain a license would have to go through some type or form of training, that’s right, that’s current statute,” said Deltona Republican Rep. David Santiago, adding that chopping that number down to one would be picking “winners and losers.”
Lawmakers on the House Government Accountability Committee also took issue with a $500 cap on how much could be charged for the new training, as the current going rate for initial training is $140.
FADA spokesperson John Forehand testified that the cap isn’t necessarily indicative of the charge the group would levy but was there as a protection since the language would make it the sole source for the training.
“Why not $200? $300?” said St. Petersburg Democratic Rep. Wengay Newton.
Forehand also said there’s nothing stopping a group of dealers getting together and starting a new statewide organization, and relented that as far as he knows there is no reason training would be subpar for the 13 other groups that don’t fit the narrow scope of the amendment.
The bill was temporarily postponed by the committee.
