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: If you're not a member of SAN @ SEMA.org, you better be... these people are fighting for your right to own a custom car & not have to deal with 'recon' crap like we heard about the other day in Hawaii. : [ http://www.SEMA.org ] :
: Driving Force Presented “Golden Quill” Award :
The folks at Old Cars Weekly News & Marketplace recently recognized Driving
: Force’s efforts to protect the hobby from government intrusion while
: promoting its growth. We thank them for their support and look forward to a
: continued partnership with their publication.
While it’s always nice to have your hard work noticed, the SEMA Action
: Network staff does what it does for the love of the hobby. Brian Caudill
: (Driving Force Editor), Steve McDonald, Stuart Gosswein and Andrew Rasberry
: work as a team to arm SEMA Action Network members with information regarding
: legislation and regulations affecting the hobby. What makes it all
: worthwhile is when you, the enthusiasts, are motivated to act and
: collectively we are successful in protecting our hobby from unnecessary
: government intrusion. Legislators only answer to their constituents, and
: were it not for SAN members around the country calling and writing their
: elected officials to voice their concerns, our pastime would almost
: certainly be worse off.
We owe every SAN member a big “Thank You” for willingly jumping into action
: to support the hobby and our way of life. This award belongs to you, just as
: much as it belongs to us. : CARB Reviews Scrappage Regulations :
In late July, SEMA and other aftermarket associations submitted joint
: comments to a California Air Resources Board (CARB) draft proposal to revise
: its vehicle scrappage regulations. The draft proposal attempts to minimize
: differences between CARB’s scrappage program and the scrappage program
: operated by the Bureau of Automotive Repair. At SEMA’s insistence and per
: California law, the draft also proposes policy options designed to maximize
: parts recycling.
SEMA has long believed that California law is very specific in
: requiring “vehicle retirement” programs to “maximize the salvage value of
: vehicles through recycling, sales and use of parts . . .” (Calif. Health and
: Safety Code, Section 44102). We believe this clearly indicates the
: legislative intent to accommodate the interests of car collectors and
: low-income citizens. In the past, CARB has maintained a far different
: interpretation and, to date, has done nothing to ensure that parts from
: retired vehicles remain available to automobile collectors and restorers or
: low-income drivers.
Under Option 3 of the draft proposal, CARB would allow total recycling and
: resale of all parts, including emissions-related and drive train parts.
: “SEMA believes Option 3 is not only the most desirable to vehicle collectors
: but also the easiest to implement,” said SEMA Director of Government Affairs
: Steve McDonald. “It would provide the greatest flexibility and least burden,
: while also maximizing the availability of vehicles and parts and reducing
: overall emissions of the vehicle fleet.”
Option 1 of the proposal would continue CARB’s prohibition on parts
: recycling, while Option 2 would allow the recycling of all but
: emission-related and drive train parts.
After reviewing comments to the draft proposal, CARB will publish final
: proposed changes for formal public review. We will keep you updated on
: developments. : U.S. Forest Service Rethinks “Roadless Rule” :
Adding a new chapter to the contentious debate over public access to
: federal land, the U.S. Forest Service is reconsidering the Clinton
: Administration’s regulation prohibiting road construction and maintenance in
: 58.5 million acres of national forests. This controversial regulation is
: commonly known as the “Roadless Rule.”
Announced by the Clinton Administration on Jan. 5 of this year, the
: original regulation outraged the off-highway vehicle (OHV) community because
: it threatened to effectively close many miles of forest roads currently
: enjoyed by recreationists nationwide. In response, the OHV community,
: including SAN members like the California 4 Wheel Drive Association, East
: Coast 4 Wheel Drive Association, Pacific Northwest 4 Wheel Drive Association
: and the United Four Wheel Drive Associations, joined the timber industry,
: many western state governments and other forest access supporters in
: protesting the regulation in both Congress and the courts.
So far, the strategy has worked. A federal judge has blocked the roadless
: rule from continuing, and in July, the Bush Administration formally reopened
: deliberations on a new regulatory approach designed to appease the OHV
: community and other land access advocates.
As part of the new rulemaking, the Forest Service sought comments on a
: number of priority questions: how roadless areas should be managed; what
: activities should be allowed in roadless areas; how the agency should work
: with local groups in creating forest policy; and what activities should be
: allowed or banned at “unroaded” sites.
In its comments to the new proposed rule, SEMA urged the Forest Service to
: protect the legitimate interests of OHV recreation and the industry that
: supports this popular pastime. Brian Caudill, SEMA director of outreach and
: public affairs, noted SEMA’s basic position, “Road and trail access is about
: more than environmental concerns for the ‘green’ movement and financial
: considerations for the timber and mining industries. It’s also about
: fairness. Tens of thousands OHV hobbyists enjoy access to established Forest
: Service roads every year and have been doing so for decades. To simply block
: access to the land without sufficient justification is unwarranted and
: excessive. We hope the Forest Service will take our comments into
: consideration when issuing a final rule.” : U.S. House Addresses Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE)
: During recent consideration of the Bush Administration’s national energy
: policy program, the U.S. House of Representatives rejected hard-fought
: efforts to drastically hike Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.
: Current CAFE targets are frozen at 20.7 mpg for light trucks and SUVs and
: 27.5 for passenger cars.
Legislative proposals to raise CAFE varied widely. Many House Members
: supported an incremental approach, raising CAFE from 20.7 to 25.8 mpg on
: light trucks and SUVs and from 27.5 to 31.6 on mpg on passenger cars by
: 2007. Hard-line environmentalist Members wanted greater concessions,
: preferring an across-the-board CAFE standard of 40 mpg by 2016. Still others
: preferred a go-slow approach, advocating a slight hike in standards for
: light trucks/SUVs alone.
For our part, automakers and SEMA opposed any legislative CAFE increase.
: Our argument remains that any CAFE hike will force automakers to limit
: consumer vehicle choice, particularly in the light truck/SUV and
: performance/luxury car markets, by either eliminating or curtailing
: production of popular models in order to meet fuel economy targets.
In the end, industry won a minor victory. Instead of raising standards
: specifically, the House bill would require light trucks to consume 5 billion
: fewer gallons of gas by 2010. Industry experts note that this will likely
: result in a net 1 mpg CAFE rise. The bill also includes tax incentives for
: purchasing vehicles equipped with advanced
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