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June 25, 2010
GREETINGS AND SAL-UTATIONS!
Dear NJGCA Member:
SAFETY INSPECTIONS: THE BATTLE WAS HARD FOUGHT, BUT THE WAR RAGES ON
For those paying attention to the news this week, it seems New Jersey will avoid a state government shut down. As has been widely reported, the Governor and the Democratic Majority in Trenton have agreed to a budget and it is likely to be passed and signed into law well before the constitutional deadline of midnight on June 30th.
So what does that mean for our battle to save Safety Inspections?
I know I said I wasn't going to give up until the budget was signed, but with the budget’s anticipated enactment next Monday (two days ahead of schedule), it appears our battle to save Safety Inspections will come to a close.
After weeks of wrangling and backroom negotiations, key Legislators have informed me that Governor Christie will not back off of his push to eliminate Safety Inspections and has rejected our compromise proposal.
With that, I have already begun to hear conflicting accounts as to why the Governor did not adopt my proposal and what his motivation was. I’ve been told that this included three different scenarios, none of which I am prepared to discuss right now since THE WAR IS NOT OVER and only the battle has been lost!!
Remember, when we began this campaign to save Safety Inspections, I told you that the ultimate goal was to close all CIFs and have all inspections (both initial and re-inspections) performed at PIF locations. So while the battle to save Safety Inspections maybe over, the war to transition to an all PIF motor vehicle inspection system is still very much alive!
As you recall, our neighbors in Pennsylvania, New York, and 15 other states utilize PIFs to perform ALL inspections – why shouldn’t New Jersey follow suit? Why should our residents be burdened with supporting the current system?
The groundwork has already been laid to kill CIFs, but it will take a huge collective effort to convince legislators and Trenton to pull the trigger. Still that doesn’t mean that we’re done for the moment. It would be incredibly helpful --- no matter how disappointed or angry you may be --- to call the Governor’s Office and POLITELY express your disappointment (and possibly your POLITE anger) about the current situation. THEN, tell staffers that it is your sincerest hope that the Governor will work with NJGCA to close the CIFs and transfer to an all PIF system in the near future!
To all of you who wrote letters, sent faxes, and made phone calls – I sincerely THANK YOU for all your efforts. We may have a lot further to go before the war is won, but it is important that you know how appreciative we are for your hard work. To those who did not contribute at all, you will have an opportunity to redeem yourself as we push for privatization – and a host of other pressing issues – in the near future.
I mentioned it in a recent Road Warrior, but let me repeat that we DID get some very good news during this budget cycle: Should the budget pass on Monday, I expect it to contain a provision which will change the way diesel taxes are collected. Once adopted, you should NOT have to file a return each month to remit your diesel taxes. Instead, the taxes will be included on your invoice and finally end the burdensome scheme which has plagued all diesel retailers.
I’ve already heard from some of you asking where the June edition of our On The Road communication is. Let me assure you we have not forgotten. Instead, the next installment of On The Road should be in your mailbox by mid-July. I purposefully held up the presses so that we could properly recap the inspection situation to better inform you. I thought it was too important a topic to wait to fill you in on everything in the September edition and I’m sure you agree.
Thanks for reading and see you next week!
Regards,
Sal Risalvato
Executive Director
IN THIS WEEK’S NJGCA ROAD WARRIOR
UPDATE: NEW PIF CLASSES ADDED!!
•Added All PIF and Diesel classes below!!
POLITICAL PARTICIPATON: THE NJGCA PAC
•Participate in the NJGCA PAC today and help us keep our Agenda rolling in Trenton!
NEWS AROUND THE STATE
•Governor pushes for shared sacrifices and property tax cap
•NJ Motorists: Roads are in the worst condition
•Budget Watch: How much will NJ save?
•Override of ‘Millionaire’s Tax’ fails to pass
ON THE NJGCA HOMEPAGE
MEMBER SAVINGS PAGE
Check out all of our MBPs and Programs designed to SAVE YOU MONEY!
HELPFUL LINKS
Looking for something? Take a look at our list of useful links!
NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
Find all our communications and search for old e-newsletters. Take a look!
NEWS AROUND THE STATE ARCHIVE
Need to catch up on events? Want to see what's going on? Find out here!
KNOW YOUR TERRITORY MANAGER!
Henry Darden: Territory Manager for Middlesex, Union, Part of Essex (Southern Half)
Cell: 973-477-0057
Email: henry@njgca.org
Jack Leli: Territory Manager for Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Ocean, Salem
Cell: 732-995-1637
Email: jack@njgca.org
Bob Quirk: Territory Manager for Bergen, Hudson, Part of Essex (Northern Half)
Cell: 201-214-8836
E-mail: bob@njgca.org
Frank Stewart: Territory Manager for Morris, Sussex, Warren, Hunterdon, Passaic
Cell: 973-234-7403
Email: frank@njgca.org
Don Stohrer: Territory Manager for Monmouth, Mercer, Somerset
Cell: 732-539-2955
Email: don@njgca.org
UPDATE: NEW PIF CLASSES ADDED!!
CALL FOR FUTURE CLASS SCHEDULE INFORMATION
ETEP Re-Certification Classes
NJGCA is offering the ETEP course that your ERT’s need in order to re-certify their license.
Our Course includes:
•New Jersey State Specific Information Course
•ETEP Section 6 “OBDII Monitoring Failures”
•Section 7 “Light-Duty Diesel Vehicle Technologies and Testing”.
Everything your technician needs to Re-Certify his ERT license!!!
CALL FOR CLASS INFORMATION
PLEASE NOTE: We are always in the process of putting together additional classes. If you are interested in taking classes in this time period, please call NJGCA and let us know so we can add you to the list.
Call Debbie Hill to enroll in the classes at debbie@njgca.org or call 973-376-0066.
POLITICAL PARTICIPATON: THE NJGCA PAC
Ensuring our friends in the legislature are re-elected and advocating for our agenda in Trenton are of utmost importance to the agenda of NJGCA.
It is for this reason that your Association has established the NJGCA PAC.
For too long, the weight of funding our Political Action Committee, the arm of the Association responsible for political donations, has rested upon the shoulders of a few. This is not fair to them, and it is not fair to many of you who are relying on the benefits of good legislation being passed in Trenton.
To truly understand the importance of fundraising for our allies, let’s look back upon the overwhelming successes of the last year:
NJGCA successfully lobbied against BELOW COST SELLING. If approved, BELOW COST SELLING would have cost each of you thousands of dollars and put many of you out of businesses. NJGCA leaned on some of our friends in the Assembly and literally had the bill pulled off the floor on the day it was scheduled to be voted on. Our friends in the Legislature helped us get this accomplished.
NJGCA made history and led the charge to pass the most comprehensive protection of franchisees in decades with FIRST RIGHT OF REFUSAL legislation. FIRST RIGHT OF REFUSAL passed only because NJGCA and dealers throughout the state were able to lean on several friends in the Assembly and the Senate.
NJGCA has been rallying support for RIGHT TO REPAIR over the last two years among key legislators. This would end the practice of car manufacturers denying you the codes necessary to complete the repairs you make on your customers cars. Every state has tried to pass RIGHT TO REPAIR and no state has even been able to get the legislation out of committee. Because of our friends in the Legislature, NJGCA has been successful in getting this bill passed by the Assembly and now awaits a vote in the Senate.
I am asking some of you as individuals to make a contribution and attend a fundraising event sponsored by one of our friends in the Assembly.
However, we will not be able to host events for all of our friends, so the NJGCA PAC will have to make contributions. You will be receiving letters soon from the NJGCA PAC asking you to make contributions.
If every member contributes just $100.00 we will be able to provide the help necessary to ensure victory for our allies.
PLEASE SEND YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO:
NJGCA PAC
66 Morris Avenue
Springfield, NJ 07081
Please make your donation payable to NJGCA PAC
I understand that times are tough for all NJGCA members, but this is just as important as any battle we have fought in the past.
We have made great progress in Trenton. I hope that you will answer the call.
NEWS AROUND THE STATE
6/24/2010:
Governor pushes for shared sacrifices and property tax cap
During a series of town hall meetings, Governor Christie has been pushing his proposal to enact a constitutional property tax cap as well as continuing to call for shared sacrifices from all public sector employees. Included in these appearances were the Governor’s call to reform the school funding formula and reduce school administrator wages.
6/23/2010:
NJ Motorists: Roads are in the worst condition
According to the AAA of New Jersey, the approval rating of local state roads are at their lowest level in seven years. Over 20% of those surveyed described road conditions on local streets as poor. Harsh winters, a bad economy, and a dwindling state Transportation Trust Fund have are all seen as leading contributors to the poll results.
6/22/2010:
Budget Watch: How much will NJ save?
As the Governor and leaders in the Legislature have negotiated a $29.4 billion budget, many are now questioning what the final budget will entail. The total budget reduces overall spending by 9% and closes a nearly $11 billion budget shortfall. Click above for full details.
6/21/2010:
Override of ‘Millionaire’s Tax’ fails to pass
After being vetoed by Governor Christie in May, Democratic leaders in the Assembly attempted to override the Governor’s veto by re-passing the ‘Millionaire’s Tax”. While the measure received a simple-majority vote, the Speaker of the Assembly did not reach the needed two-thirds-majority needed to override the veto. If enacted, the measure would have affected 16,000 tax-filers, with a disproportionate number of them being small business owners.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES IN OUR “NEWS AROUND THE STATE” ARCHIVE
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