2020 PROVED THE VALUE OF YOUR TADA MEMBERSHIP

By Frank Notte – Government Relations Director of TADA

If there was ever a year that a TADA membership showed its value, 2020 was it. Who would ever have imagined a global pandemic hitting Ontario, mandatory business closures, and the uncertainty that came with it all wrapped together in a matter of months? From the TADA’s point of view – the pressure was on to ensure your voice was heard at Queen’s Park, and help you navigate the countless announcements, government regulations, and on-going public health directives. We knew you needed the right information immediately and the implications that they might have on your business.

As we entered unchartered waters in mid-March when the first lockdown was announced, we immediately lobbied key government Ministers and officials to make sure your voice was heard – and it was. The results speak for themselves. Throughout the entire pandemic, your parts and service departments were deemed “essential” and never forced to close. As for showrooms remaining open, they survived the first two lockdowns. Eventually, they were ordered closed in April as the pandemic worsened. One month later, the province started to re-open the economy. Their first announcement included seven types of businesses allowed to re-open – and dealer showrooms were among them.

We made the case that dealerships were key to Ontario’s economic recovery. We shared with the Government the in-depth and well-researched safety protocols to help dealers re-open safely when the time came. The COVID experience helped expose some shortcomings of the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act (MVDA). It’s no surprise – the MVDA became law in 2002 when the world was very different. We are in the process of reviewing possible MVDA amendments and will soon lobby the government for changes in order to make doing business easier for auto dealers. One issue we’ll lobby for is allowing off-site dealing. In other words, if a consumer wishes to do a deal at their home or office, that should be permissible with certain conditions.

While COVID captured the headlines, the TADA was also successful in advancing other issues to help dealers. For example, we successfully lobbied to cut red tape by:

• Allowing the use of a Dealer plate on a light-duty commercial vehicle for private use that is “loaded with goods” (i.e. pickup trucks displaying a Dealer plate that is able to carry goods of a personal nature). The implementation date yet to be announced.

• Moving the Government to propose reducing the burdens on business by clarifying that New Vehicle Information Statements (NVIS) can be used in place of valid registration when a motor vehicle with Dealer plates is driven on the road in Ontario. This would reduce the administrative burden and costs for businesses and the courts by eliminating tickets that are incorrectly issued to motor vehicle dealers driving vehicles with dealer plates prior to sale.
• Having Ontario proposes to permit people to drive motor vehicles with dealer plates without a registration permit when purchased at auction.

The Government took the TADA’s advice on freezing or lowering mandatory provincial charges like taxes and fees on businesses. Announced in November, Budget 2020 reflected the advice we presented to the all-party MPP Committee consulting on what should be included in the budget, back in August. Three key Budget measures were:

• Making permanent the Employer Health Tax (EHT) exemption increase from $490,000 to $1 million.
• Reducing hydro prices by saving medium and larger commercial employers about 16 percent on average, on their electricity bills; and
• Lowering high Business Education Tax (BET) rates for over 200,000 employers, or 94 percent of all business properties in Ontario, to a rate of 0.88 percent.

No matter what comes our way in 2021 and beyond, rest assured the TADA will be ready to respond and look out for your best interests.

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