NJ CRONY CAPITALISTS PUT THE BRAKES ON TESLA
NJTP
New Jersey: The Latest State to Quash Tesla Sales
March 12, 2014 at 11:20:00 AM by Andrew Moseman
https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/auto-blog/new-jersey-the-latest-state-to-try-to-stop-tesla-sales-16585709?click=pm_lates
Today, it’s New Jersey that wants to ban auto manufacturers from selling cars directly to consumers, a move that appears aimed at Tesla and its no-dealership model.
The last time we reported from the Tesla wars, it was Ohio that was considering the same type of ban, with the statehouse under pressure from influential local dealerships to quash Tesla’s way of doing business. This week, while Tesla reps are in the Buckeye State working out a compromise, the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission is threatening to cut off the EV maker.
A spokesperson for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie told Bloomberg:
“Since Tesla first began operating in New Jersey one year ago, it was made clear that the company would need to engage the Legislature on a bill to establish their new direct-sales operations under New Jersey law. This administration does not find it appropriate to unilaterally change the way cars are sold in New Jersey without legislation and Tesla has been aware of this position since the beginning.”
Tesla’s response:
That’s exactly what we were doing, New Jersey. Elon Musk’s company responded with a blog post today saying that it was happy to work out a solution in the New Jersey legislature, but that Christie “has gone back on its word to delay a proposed anti-Tesla regulation so that the matter could be handled through a fair process in the Legislature.”
If you haven’t been following Tesla’s state-by-state legal maneuverings, the crux of the matter is that the company doesn’t want to sell its EVs through a locally owned dealership, the way you’d buy a Ford, Chevy, or just about any other new car. But those local dealerships have every incentive in the world to stop direct-to-consumer sales from spreading, which is why they’re flexing so much political muscle over a relatively tiny number of cars that Tesla sells. So far only Texas and Arizona have laws on the books to stop Tesla’s method, but several others have discussed it. New Jersey’s new rules would go into effect April 1.
It’s not protectionism when the Job Creators do it.