On the recordJuly 23, 2012
I thank my colleague. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join Mr. Harper as an original cosponsor to offer legislation to repeal an outdated mandate on auto dealerships across the country. Under current rules, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is required to distribute a hard copy information booklet on vehicle insurance costs to auto dealers. In addition, those auto dealers are then required to keep the booklet on hand and make it available to prospective customers. Before coming to Congress, I had the opportunity to represent Bill McBride and Gerry Garrand, two auto dealers located in Plattsburgh, New York. Working alongside the McBride and Garrand teams helped me better understand the automobile retail market and the pressure dealers are under to remain competitive. Today, we have a chance to remove a regulation, which we can all agree is outdated, for the benefit of taxpayers and businesses like those in my congressional district. I believe actions like this make common sense, and I urge more of it. Over the past 21 years, NHTSA has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars distributing this information, much of which is unnecessary for an average customer who is trying to make an informed decision in the showroom. Recent surveys show that few, if any, customers ask for this information in a given year. In fact, as much as 96 percent of auto dealers have never once been asked for this information at all. Putting information in the hands of consumers is sensible.…
