Around ASA

By B.J. Johnson

Customer Petitions Due

In the November issues of the ASA division newsletters, the association provided members with customer petitions for use in the support of the Motor Vehicle Owner's Right to Repair Act, H.R. 2735. The proposed legislation requires original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to provide service information, both emissions and non-emissions, to independent repairers.

ASA members were encouraged to gather consumer support in favor of the legislation by asking their customers to sign the petition. Signed petitions will be returned to the ASA office, and the association will deliver the petitions to Congress before the vote on H.R. 2735.

As a reminder, the petitions must be returned to ASA by Feb. 15, 2002. Mail petitions to ASA, Attn: Mechanical Division, P.O. Box 929, Bedford, Texas 76095-0929. If you haven't already done so, please return petitions by the due date and contact your congressional representative to ask for their support of this important legislation.

Thank you for participating in this industry-changing effort.

ASA-Ohio Announces Tradeshow, Convention

ASA-Ohio will host the Midwest Automotive Conference and Tradeshow Feb. 7-10 at the Cincinnati Marriott North Hotel at Union Centre.

The tradeshow will showcase more than 50 exhibit booths with the latest high-tech vendors and suppliers for mechanical and collision repair industry professionals. In addition, the show will offer a product demonstration area, allowing attendees the opportunity to view cutting-edge products and services.

The educational portion of the conference will offer management and technical seminars. Automotive Management Institute (AMI) instructor John Peake, AAM, will teach two AMI seminars. Jim Linder will present a technical course on ignition systems.

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Eve Stratton Lundberg will give the keynote address.

For more information on the conference and tradeshow, contact ASA-Ohio at (800) 441-6518.

10th Annual VISION Training and Expo Program Set

The ASA-Mo/Kan affiliate announced the dates, location and agenda of its 10th annual VISION Hi-Tech Training & Expo. The event will be held Feb. 22-24 at the Westin Crown Center Hotel & Exhibit Hall in Kansas City, Mo.

The lineup for training this year includes management instructors Bob O'Connor and Bob Cooper. Technical trainers include Jim Linder, Randy Dillman, Dan Marinucci, Chris Chesney and Dave Mitchell. Course topics include OBD-II evaporative emissions systems, balance and vibration issues, troubleshooting charging systems, transmission essentials and electronics overview.

In addition to the educational events, ASA-Mo/Kan has planned a special celebration to mark the show's 10th anniversary. For more information, visit the show's Web site at www.visionkc.com or contact ASA-Mo/Kan at (816) 781-5801.

ASA Affiliate Helps Oregon Drivers Prevent Mercury Pollution

Thanks to a new “switch out” program, drivers in the Portland, Ore., metro area can help prevent toxic mercury pollution by taking their vehicles to a participating auto repair shop. These shops will remove the mercury switch under the hood and in the trunk free of charge. The service is available through a cooperative effort of the Oregon Environmental Council, the ASA affiliate Northwest Automotive Trades Association, the Department of Environmental Quality, Metro and the Port of Portland.

The program's sponsors hope to replace 10,000 mercury switches in vehicles in the Portland metro area.

For a list of participating NATA member-businesses, visit the affiliate's Web site, www.aboutnata.org.

ASA Challenges Affiliates

Each year during the ASA Annual Convention, ASA recognizes the largest affiliate delegation attending. This year will be no exception. The ASA affiliate with the largest delegation attending will receive a hosted reception in their honor in the Chairman's suite.

The 2002 ASA Annual Convention will be held April 8-13 at the Marriott Crystal Gateway, Arlington, Va. Affiliates are encouraged to begin promoting the award to its members. The ASA-Washington affiliate won the award at the 2001 ASA Annual Convention in Maui, Hawaii.

ASA Announces New Affiliate

The Automotive Service Association board of directors has approved the Automotive Service Councils-California (ASC-Calif.) as the newest affiliate group in the ASA organization.

“When we put this out to our membership, they all responded that it would be a good idea to affiliate,” said Carol Bartels, ASC-Calif. president. “Our two associations need to work together, both legislatively and to build membership.”

“We are pleased to welcome ASC-California as the newest affiliate,” said Jim Keller, AAM, ASA chairman. “This group of automotive professionals is a true asset to ASA, and we look forward to expanding the membership in ASC-California to include even more of the automotive professionals in that state.” Currently, with more than 1,700 members, ASC-Calif. brings a large group of service professionals into ASA.

As the state boasting the nation's largest vehicle population, California is often on the forefront of legislative, regulatory and marketplace issues that impact the entire country. “Working together with one voice, ASA and ASC-California will be better positioned to advance the automotive service industry for the benefit of all aftermarket service professionals,” Keller said.

The Automotive Service Association is the largest not-for-profit trade association of its kind, internationally serving more than 12,000 businesses and approximately 65,000 professionals from all segments of the automotive service industry. ASA's headquarters is in Bedford, Texas.

NATIONAL NEWS

The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) released a study titled “Small Employers Continue to Face Challenges in Providing Coverage.” Small companies account for more than three-fourths of all U.S. private establishments and employ nearly three-fourths of the private sector.

The study found small employers' health care plans were slightly less generous on average, had slightly higher average cost-sharing requirements for their employees and were less likely to offer some benefits like mental health services and chiropractic care.

In addition, 20 percent to 25 percent of small employers' premiums go toward administrative costs. For large employers, that number is 10 percent. The report also revealed that small employers pay about the same for health insurance per employee as large employers, but tend to get less for their money.

The original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) announced at ASA's Congress of Automotive Repair and Service (CARS) that they will provide all emissions and non-emissions service information to independent repairers. Twenty OEMs signed a commitment letter in support of this position. This occurred at the National Automotive Service Task Force's meeting during CARS. A copy of the letter can be found on ASA's Web site, www.asashop.org.

CARS, held Nov. 1-3 in Las Vegas, is sponsored by ASA.

Consumer Reports magazine highlighted rebuilt vehicles being resold as used vehicles. They estimated 400,000 wrecks that are 5 or fewer model-years old are placed in the market each year. This represents 3 percent of the 13 million used vehicles sold each year. Since there are no federal safety standards for these vehicles, the actual number may be much higher.

Differences between U.S. Senate Commerce Committee leaders and Midwestern Senate democrats representing the automotive industry have resulted in a failure of any movement on the corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standard. The committee would like to see the standard increased substantially. The Senate majority leader is working with both sides to forge a compromise.

Reminder of the Month

Voting for the ASA national board of directors opened Jan. 14 and closes Feb. 28, 2002. To vote, call (800) 868-3272. See the list of candidates on pages 18-20 in this issue of AutoInc.

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