March 2017 | Business View Magazine

80 81 The NADA Story of the Washington activity directed at dealers revolved around defining regulations. 1990s: A new millenium Many of these same issues continued into the 1990s. There were new rules for the Clean Air Act, including higher proposed CAFE standards. NADA sued the EPA on its ozone standards and for allowing Northeastern states to adopt Cali- fornia clean-air standards. The EPA stepped up enforcement of Superfund—passed in 1980— with its “cradle-to-grave” liability for improperly disposed used oil. On the labor front, NADA worked with Con- gress on the Americans with Disabilities Act before it became law, then informed dealers of their legal requirements.With the AIDS epi- demic in full force, NADA published guidelines to help dealers establish effective workplace policies and educational programs to help em- ployees better understand the disease. NADA also advocated for title-branding bills for salvage vehicles, because both dealers and consumers had been unwitting purchasers of these units. And NADA was successful in reduc- ing the federal excise tax on heavy-duty trucks. On the manufacturer side, fleet subsidies—or “program cars” from rental car companies—were flooding the market. NADA’s efforts led to im- portant changes in these programs. And factory relations were not so smooth on other fronts, with NADA battling mandatory binding arbitra- tion provisions and factory image campaigns. NADA also created a special task force to study the long-term consequences of automaker pro- grams that reduced dealer profitability. By the end of the decade, some of the more high-profile priorities for dealers were the pub- lic dealer groups (Republic, Lithia, United Auto Group and others), dealer consolidation, the In- ternet and the millennium madness called Y2K. 2000s: Decade of uncertainty From 9/11 to 2010, the decade was full of change and challenges. Yet the 2000s began calmly enough, with no Y2K meltdown of the world’s computers. Soon dealers faced success on many fronts. OSHA proposed sweeping new ergonomics standards, which were soon over- turned by Congress. An NADA-backed bill lower- ing the estate tax (for one year) would soon be signed into law by President George W. Bush. Ford and GM wanted to sell directly to con- sumers, but those plans—which included the OEMs selling cars online—were quashed by state legislation. NADA then created a national portal to link dealer websites.While Ford’s Blue Oval and other dealer performance programs became a concern, NADA opposed automaker efforts to impose unfair burdens on dealers. But Oldsmobile was shuttered in late 2000, following sagging sales, so NADA pushed GM for just compensation, as well as low- or no-cost loans and floorplanning assistance from GMAC. Then longtime NADA chief Frank E. McCarthy died a few months later. After a nationwide search, Phillip D. Brady became NADA president, and September 10, 2001, there was a dedica-