NEWS BULLETIN
Maine Automobile Dealers Association
180 Civic Center Drive P. O. Box 2667 Augusta, Maine 04338-2667 DIAL 623-3882 e-mail:info@maineautodealers.com FAX 623-2318
2016-7
DISTRIBUTION• General Manager • Office Manager
• Parts Manager
NON-COMPLIANT ADVERTISING on WEBSITES
• Sales Manager • Service Manager
From time to time some manufacturers insert advertising items into dealership websites. Dealerships do not have control of this inserted material, nor do dealerships have the ability to change any of this content. Some of this content includes promotions of financing terms. These financing terms are at times not compliant with federal and state Lending and Truth-in-Leasing disclosure regulations.
All of the above are facts which arose in a recent enforcement action by Maine’s Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection (Bureau) involving Subaru dealership websites. At first, the Subaru dealerships received letters from the Bureau indicating the non-compliance and requesting a signed agreement in which the dealership acknowledged the problem and paid a fine. After MADA met with the Bureau and dealerships provided the factual information outlined in the first paragraph, the Bureau contacted Subaru of America (SOA). The results of subsequent discussions between the Bureau and SOA are evidenced in the enclosed copy of the Assurance of Discontinuance signed by Subaru of America.
The Bureau has asked MADA to provide this information to all Maine dealerships, and to advise that the Bureau continues to review various forms of dealership and manufacturer advertising. The Bureau will also be contacting other manufacturers about their responsibility on placement of compliant promotional material in dealership websites.
MADA’S 2016 ANNUAL MEETING AND CONVENTION
Your Association’s 2016 Annual Meeting will be held on Friday morning, June 17, in the historic Bar Harbor Club on the beautiful grounds of the Harborside Hotel, Spa and Marina located ocean-side in Bar Harbor, Maine. The official notice of this annual meeting is enclosed.
MADA’s annual meeting and convention is a time for dealers, dealership personnel, allied industry representatives, family members and guests to gather for a variety of educational, recreational, and social events in a very picturesque setting on the coast of Maine. It presents an opportunity to learn more about the major issues currently facing Maine dealerships, to understand some events of the next 6-12 months which will impact your operations, to renew friendships and establish new acquaintances, and to enjoy the multitude of attractions on Mt. Desert Island and in Acadia National Park.
Our business agenda will include a presentation by a NADA Attorney on the subjects of recalls, the electric vehicle sales mandate, and federal labor law issues affecting services writers and salaried individuals. Issues such as medical and recreational marijuana usage, income tax surcharges, and minimum wage levels on automatic pilot will come before Maine voters in referendum this Fall, and we will discuss the impact on dealerships. The Maine Legislature has completed its 2016 session, with a variety of laws amended or put out for study – we will review those affecting dealership operations. Future workers compensation and health insurance topics influencing dealerships and their employees are agenda items as well.
2016-8
Bar Harbor is the place to be on June 16, 17 and 18 for a learning yet relaxing time. Join your fellow Maine dealers, and industry friends, for MADA’s 2016 event. Register today – contact your Association office if you need registration materials.LEASE DISCLOSURE OBLIGATIONS CHANGE
Lease contracts issued in Maine require a disclosure which estimates future costs of the vehicle’s registration during the term of the lease. Maine Revenue Services and the Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection have collaborated on a clarification to the method of computing the excise tax cost to be included in this lease disclosure. Please carefully review the enclosed Memo on the subject. Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact your MADA office.
“SWAP” DRIVERS
The opinion of IRS and State taxing authorities, as well as federal and state Departments of Labor, is that “swap” drivers should be treated as employees with respect to withholding and payroll taxes. It is highly unlikely that these folks could qualify as independent contractors. This subject is a point of emphasis by these federal and state agencies.
CFPB PROPOSES ARBITRATION REGULATION
The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has indicated that it will regulate arbitration clauses in financial contracts. It is unclear at this time how the regulation would impact arbitration agreements utilized by some new vehicle dealerships. A coalition of dealer associations, including MADA, is reviewing the 300-plus page regulation and will prepare comments on behalf of new vehicle dealerships, with the comments to be filed during the public comment period. MADA will continue to provide updates.
CREDIT CARD ISSUES
As most of you are aware, there has been a big change in the relationship between merchants that accept credit cards and the banks that issue them. This “liability shift” happened October 1 and impacts face-to-face payment transactions involving cards with an EMV chip on the front. You’ll recall that the liability shift means that the organization with the least secure system now assumes risk for a counterfeit transaction. If you, the merchant, have not upgraded your terminal and you process a chip card whose alternative magnetic stripe has been recoded and is now a “counterfeit card”, you assume liability for that transaction. About 10% of chargebacks since October have involved EMV cards used at merchants which have not upgraded their processing terminals.
As we get further into the world of EMV, expect the number of chargebacks to rise, because the bad guys will have fewer and fewer places to use those cards. If all other merchants in your community have upgraded and you are the only one with an old terminal, the bad guys will figure that out and focus on your business as a place to use those cards. It is analogous to being the only car in the parking lot with the windows rolled down and no one in it; the thief will target that car because it is an easy target.
The other place expected to see an increase in the use of fraudulent cards is online purchases. If you have any sort of online retail presence you should already be developing a plan to thwart the bad guys. As we shut down face-to-face fraud, it is expected to cause online fraud to spike. Make sure you are preparing your business and your staff for these changing times. No one wants to be the poster child for what not to do.
MAINE AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATION, INC. 180 CIVIC CENTER DRIVE
P. 0. BOX 2667
AUGUSTA, MAINE 04338-2667
NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF THE
MAINE AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATION, INC.
Please take notice that the Annual Meeting of the members of the corporation will be held at the Bar Harbor Club of the Harborside Hotel & Marina in Bar Harbor, Maine on Friday, June 17, 2016 at 8:15 a.m. to transact the following business:
1. Election of the Board of Directors and other Officers of the Corporation.
2. To Receive the Annual Reports of the Treasurer and Officers of the Corporation.
3. To Receive the Report of John T. Emerson,
N.A.D.A. Director for Maine, on N.A.D.A.'s Activities.
4. To Receive the Annual Report of the M.A.D.A. Insurance Trust.
5. To Receive the Annual Report of the M.A.D.A. Workers Compensation Trust.
6. To Transact Such other and further Business as may legally come before Said Meeting.
Dated this 12th Day of May, 2016.
Attest:___________________________________ Clerk
S丁A丁E OF高′鼻A工NE DEPART)1ENT OF PRO彊SSIONAL
AND FINANC工AL REGULATION
BuREAU OF CoNSUMER CREDIT PROTECT工ON
35 STA[E HousE STATION
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TO: New Ca「 Dealers
FROM: Te「「y Fancy, P「incipal Examine「, Bureau of Consume「 Credit P「OteCtion DATE: May9, 2016
RE: L麹se cont「acts: Chanqe in Fo「mula for DiscIosure of Estimated Excise T争x臆
We are writing ail deale「s who lease automobifes to consume「s, tO requeSt a Change in the way that you estimate excise taxes for discIosu「e on lease transactions.
As you know, this excise tax calcuIation is disc10Sed as part of the totaI amount of estimated taxes and fees the
consumer w用pay out ove「 the term of the lease" The total estimated cost is discIosed in the lease agreement unde「 the heading, “Estimated fees and taxes.”
As a result of a regulation change at the Maine Revenue Service, We reaIized that our Bureau’s calculation of estimated excise taxes on lease ag「eements was d苗erent. Historica=y, When caIculating the estimated excise
taxes ove口ease term we used the “agreed upon value ofthe vehicle’」 ln accordance with 36 M・R"S §1484(3)(D) if
a motorvehicle is Ieased for a pe「iod of one month or longe「, the excise tax must be paid whe「e itwould be paid if the lessee were the owne「.
With this in mind, Title 36 M.R.S §1481(2) of the Maine Revenue Se「vices Property Tax Division defines Maker’s
=st price as, “Make「’s =st p「ice当n the case of vehicles manufactured in the United States means the 「eta= price at the polnt Of manufacture, Iess the fede「aI manufacturerls tax・ ”Maker’s list price当n the case of vehicles
manufactured outside the U亜ed States means the retajl price at the nearest port of ent「y. 1n either case, ’’maker-s =st price当ncludes the manufactu「e「’s suggested 「eta= price of a= accessories and equipment which is a part of the
Vehicle at the time the excise tax is paid.
Therefore, the manufacturer’s suggested 「eta= price (“MSRP’’) sha= be used in place of the ag「eed upon value of
thevehicle.
Fo「 exampIe, fo「 a 48-mOnth Iease on a $36,00O vehicle言he Maine Revenue Services calculation would be as fo=ows: $36,000 (manufacturer’s suggested reta= price) x ,065 (48 month Iease factor rate) = $2.340,00
Maine Revenue Services continues to use the fo=owing weighted facto「s based on the lease term:
旧he term of a parficula「 lease fa=s between one of the above vaIues, then you should u帥ze the factor for the next
highe「 term. For exampie, ifthe lease term i§ 39 months, uSe thefactorof48 months, This w紺result in
discIosing a higher estimated tota=ax than jf the fees were based on an extrapoIated factor for the actuaI number of
months. However, Piease note that use of the nexトhighe「 te「m facto「 w用not 「esu旧n a disclosure va「iance that is
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The purpose ofthis memo is to notifyall dealers that ou「 Bu「eau w=I be adop冊g Maine Revenue Service’s method Of calcula帥g estimated excise taxes・ This w冊esu旧n increased consistency between the state agencies, and w用
bring unifo「mity to the formuIa for estima帥g excise taxes.
We ask that a= dealers begin u帥zing the more p「ecise formuia as soon as possible, and thatthe transition to that
method be completed within 60 days ofthe date of this memo.
Please contact our o棉ce with any questions you may have about the revised lease formuIa fo「 dete「m面ng
estimated excise taxes. Thank you.
Since「ely,
Te「「yFancy
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