On March 3, EST, according to local media reports, the Oklahoma House Commerce Committee passed a new Bill 3994 - prohibiting companies that have not obtained dealer licenses from selling cars.
In other words, tesla, which does not have any dealers and sells all its own cars, may be forced to withdraw from the Oklahoma market.
The bill clearly stipulates that no depot or enterprise may arbitrarily sell or rent vehicles. Any relevant transaction must go through a licensed dealer before it can be carried out. At the same time, a subsidiary controlled by a depot may not apply to become a dealer.
The delivery of all new cars must also be handled through the dealer, and cannot be transported by themselves. In addition to cooperating with dealers in sales, automakers must also provide relevant consumer data to dealers "for safety reasons." In contrast, dealers do not need to cooperate with manufacturers to provide consumer data.
Parts of the Act are as follows:
Curtis Hayes, a member of the Oklahoma Motor Vehicle Commission, further explains how the wording of Bill 3994 will ensure that electric vehicle manufacturers are regulated by the Motor Vehicle Commission:
Regulation will allow Oklahoma consumers to turn to state government agencies when they encounter problems. Now, if consumers file complaints, the Auto Council can't do anything about it, and the only electric car manufacturer we're talking about is Tesla.
All traditional OEMs that produce electric vehicles operate through a franchised dealer system. So we're working on this. It's a very complex issue because it has branches in the whole law that involves auto dealerships, so I can only say that from the work of the Motor Vehicle Commission, Rep. Dobrinksi, and the Oklahoma Auto Dealers Association, we're not trying to stop Oklahoma consumers and residents from doing auto repair services in Oklahoma.
The bill was strongly opposed by Tesla
The bill has been met with strong opposition from automakers, including Tesla.
On Feb. 21, Tesla was using its "Tesla Engage" community platform to call on people to oppose the bill.
Tesla said the bill would prohibit automakers like its own from operating services and delivering cars within the state. If the bill passes, even some of its existing stores in the state could be forced to close. What's more, the bill could also lead to Tesla owners in Oklahoma having to drive out of state to pick up and repair their vehicles.
Tesla asked people to contact their representatives to let them know they were against the bill.
Here are Tesla's objections to Oklahoma's Bill 3994:
House Bill 3994 is a harmful bill that could be interpreted to prohibit electric car makers like Tesla from serving and delivering cars in Oklahoma, and members of the House Commerce Committee are currently considering the bill.
Please contact your representative today and encourage him or her to vote against Bill 3994.
If the bill is passed, Tesla could be forced to close existing stores in Oklahoma and prevent Tesla from shipping cars to anyone in the state, which would force locals to go out of state to repair their cars or pick up their new Tesla cars. Oklahoma should focus on increasing income and employment in the state, rather than curbing competition and restricting consumer choice.
Using the tools above, send messages to your state representatives and members of the House Commerce Committee to share what this bill means to you and why it's not good for Oklahoma.
Tell them your story as an Oklahoma electric vehicle owner and let them know you're against Bill 3994.
Let your voice be heard and help stop the passage of Bill 3994. Contact your state representative and the House Commerce Committee today.
To this day, there are still states that prohibit Tesla and other automakers from selling cars directly to consumers. Because of the introduction of the old law, the licensed dealers were protected from fierce competition. But now, those laws are being used to stop Tesla and other new automakers that never own franchisees and compete with dealers who sell other automakers' vehicles.
Several states have changed their direct selling laws to avoid this abuse, giving third-party dealers a monopoly on car sales, but there are still some dealer associations that have a lot of power in state politics to outlaw direct selling.
In Mississippi, Tesla has only one store. In January, the automaker faced a similar situation in the state's Senate Bill 2836, which Tesla asked people to oppose. For now, the bill does not appear to be passed on the Senate Finance Committee.