Pub. 5 Issue 2

13 Where the Rubber Meets the Road: Hundreds of New Auto Dealers Flock to Capitol Hill MORE THAN 450 NEW AUTO DEALERS AND ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVES TRAVELED TO THE NATION’S CAPITAL THIS WEEK TO TAKE PART IN NADA’S 45TH ANNUAL WASHINGTON CONFERENCE AND CONGRESSIONAL FLY-IN, STEPPING UP THEIR ADVOCACY EFFORTS TO SHAPE THE FEDERAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS THAT WILL IMPACT THEIR INDUSTRY FOR YEARS TO COME. BY SHERYLL POE, NADA CONTRIBUTOR M ore than 450 new auto dealers and associa- tion executives traveled to the nation’s capital this week to take part inNADA’s 45th annual Washington Conference and Congressional fly-in, stepping up their advocacy efforts to shape the federal laws and regulations that will impact their in- dustry for years to come. The Legislative Clock is Ticking The second day of the conference kicked off at the JWMarriott Washington D.C. with a breakfast hosted by NADA PAC before the NADA member advocates fanned out across Capitol Hill to attendmore than 200 congressional appointments to discuss trade, tariffs, recall legislation and repeal of the federal excise tax on heavy-duty trucks. “We are in the eleventh hour,” said Donovan Bertsch, president of Theel Inc. in Bottineau, North Dakota, and chairman of NADAPAC. “We cannot take today for granted. It’s up to you to push for what you want for your business.” That sense of urgency was threaded through comments made by NADA President Peter Welch, who noted that while NADA and its members have tallied up “a string of legislative victories over the last few years, we still have a full plate. There is a lot of static over the horizon.” Gilchrist: Perception Becomes Reality The 2019 NADA Chairman Charlie Gilchrist, who is presi- dent of Gilchrist Automotive in metro Dallas-Fort Worth, spoke about how dealers need to shape and sometimes even change