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2012 ASCCA Legislative Day
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The leadership of the Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA) held its annual Legislative Day on Wednesday, April 18, 2012. Members from throughout the state convened in Sacramento to hear presentations by influential legislators and policymakers and to highlight legislation which has an impact on the independent automotive repair industry.
ASCCA's presence in Sacramento is critical to ensure that our members - small business owners - have their voices heard and that legislators are educated about the automotive repair industry. The association's priorities in 2012 include Career Technical Education, employment issues, vehicle key information access and monitoring regulatory activities of the Bureau of Automotive Repair and Air Resources Board, both of which have an impact on our industry, and legislation affecting the industry.
In addition to 60 meetings with individual legislators and staff, attendees heard from:
- John Wallach, Chief and Pat Dorais, Deputy Chief, Bureau of Automotive Repair;
- Senator Juan Vargas, 40th Senate District, Chair, Senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee
- Assemblymember Katcho Achadjian, Vice Chair, Assembly Banking & Finance Committee, Member, Higher Education Committee
- Assemblymember Curt Hagman, Assistant Republican Floor Leader, Vice Chair, Assembly Insurance Committee
Key legislative issues addressed by ASCCA throughout the day included:
- SB 750 (Hernandez): Vehicles: Key Information Access: Oppose. This bill would eliminate the sunset and make permanent a special key code/data replacement exemption for only BMW, while other car manufacturers must comply.
- SB 1115 (Dutton): Employment: Working Hours: Support. This bill would permit an individual nonexempt employee to request an employee-selected flexible work schedule providing for workdays up to 10 hours per day within a 40-hour workweek.
- SB 1323 (Wyland): Career Technical Education: Support. This bill lays out a roadmap for what the state must do to reinvigorate career technical education programs in California.
On the floor of the Senate Room in front of the marquee, ASCCA 2012 Legislative Day attendees.
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ASCCA Member Helps a Soldier
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Dennis Schlundt a very humble man who was hesitant to tell his story has owned Dennis' Automotive for more than 25 years; he got choked up as he thought about the young solider he helped.
"They are sacrificing a lot for us and there's a lot of us out there that don't know how to do it and I felt like this is a way I could help out," said Schlundt.
26-year old Jay Cahill was in Fresno for a meeting but had to get back to his base in Sacramento, he was in his uniform driving around trying to find an auto shop knowing his car wasn't going to make the three hour drive.
"You know I ambushed him practically I was like, oh my car just broke down and I have to get back to Sacramento for duty and he was like okay, come on in and we'll take a look at it," said Cahill.
Dennis gave Jay an estimate and the green light was given to work on the car. As Dennis repaired jay's car, they talked and Dennis knew he had to do something for this young man who just returned home from fighting in Iraq.
"He was just a great personality, proud to be an American, serving his country," said Schlundt.
When Jay went to pay the bill, it was taken care of. Jay didn't have to pay a dime for the services.
"Citizens like him are the reason why people serve, and you know being a small business man like himself are what makes America great," said Cahill.
Jay plans to send Dennis and his employees at the auto shop pizza for lunch. But says he will never forget what this small business man did for him.
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Click It Or Ticket
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May is National Click it or Ticket month and the California Office of Traffic Safety would like to remind you of the importance of buckling up when you hit the road. Taking a couple of seconds to buckle your seat belt will not only save you the trouble and hassle of a ticket and the fine that comes along with it, but more importantly, it could save your life and the lives of your loved ones. Seat belts account for saving more lives than any other countermeasure.
Since the debut of California's Click it or Ticket campaign in 2005, the state's seat belt use rate has increased from 92.5 percent in 2005 to a record high of 96.6 percent in 2011, which is much higher than the national average of 85 percent. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration estimates that the lives of 1,243 Californians were saved as a result of the current seat belt use rate. However, there is still work to be done to continue to promote seat belt use, since over a million Californians are still not regularly using them. During May's annual Click It or Ticket seat belt enforcement campaign, law enforcement throughout California will be issuing citations to drivers and passengers who are caught not wearing a seat belt. Officers will be on the lookout for seat belt violations - day and night.
Being properly restrained by a safety belt means that the lower (lap) portion of the belt crosses the hips or upper thighs of the occupant and the upper (shoulder) portion of the belt, if present, crosses the chest in front of the occupant. It is important that everyone in the vehicle, especially children, is properly restrained by a safety belt at all times when the vehicle is moving. There are various laws to protect children in a vehicle as they grow. According to California law, children under the age of eight or until they are at least 4'9" must be secured in the back seat in an appropriate car seat or booster seat.
Your child may ride in the front seat if:
- Your vehicle has no rear seats.
- Rear seats are side-facing jump seats. Child safety restraints must never be placed on side-facing vehicle seats.
- The child restraint system cannot be properly installed in the rear seat. For example, your vehicle has lap belts only in the back seat, but there are lap and shoulder belts in the front seat.
- Your child is five and weighs 45 pounds and must ride in a booster seat. The booster seat must be used with a lap and shoulder belt; therefore your child may ride in the front seat.
- Children under age 12 occupy all rear seats.
- Medical reason (written by the pediatrician) requires that child not be restrained in the back seat. All children are safer in the back seat, ask another adult to ride with the child in the back.
The minimum ticket cost for an adult seat belt violation in California is $142 and up, and the minimum cost for not properly restraining a child under 16 is $474. If the parent is not in the car, the driver gets the ticket.
Click It or Ticket is a cooperative effort among the five traffic safety-related departments under the California's Business, Transportation and Housing Agency: the California Office of Traffic Safety, California Highway Patrol, Department of Transportation, Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, and the Department of Motor Vehicles. OTS wants to remind patrons to buckle up and set the example for the younger passengers in the vehicle. For more information, visit www.ots.ca.gov.
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New Notice from NLRB Must Be Posted By April 30, 2012
| There is a NEW notice from the NLRB (National Labor Relations Board) that most employers will need to post. This notice relates to Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act.
Employers must have the notice posted by April 30, 2012 - a delay from the January 2012 deadline previously issued by the NLRB.
The reasoning behind the NLRB's initial delay to the ruling was a desire for additional public education and outreach to the business community. The second change to the effective date can be attributed to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, which requested that the NLRB postpone the effective date due to a pending legal challenge to the rule.
CLICK HERE to download the new poster.
CLICK HERE to see the Federal Register Notice announcing the postponement of the rulemaking.
CLICK HERE for more information from the NLRB website.
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ASCCA Launches New Membership Drive
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At February's ASCCA Team Weekend, the Board of Directors approved our new membership drive campaign for 2012, One Member Can. This campaign is designed as a tool to help us reach our goal of doubling our membership, and to remind each of you that EVERY member truly CAN make a difference in the growth of our Association.
The attached flyers were designed by the membership committee as marketing material to be used to introduce and provide information to Chapter Leadership about the One Member Can program.
The One Member Can informative, 2-page flyer is designed to be printed double-sided on 8 �" x 11" sheets of paper, while the one page poster is designed to be a tabletop piece, printed on glossy 8" x 10" stock paper - to be place next to the 2-page flyers. There is also a 16" x 20" poster available. If you would like to display a poster of that size, please contact us directly and the template will be forwarded separately.
Please take a moment to read through the marketing material thoroughly. The more you know about our One Member Can campaign - the better you'll be at using it to engage and enlist new members! The material also contains instructions on how to report your new member sign-ups, and how you can win a new iPad.
If you need any additional information or have questions, please don't hesitate to contact Heather Vigil at (800) 810-4272 or [email protected].
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Calendar of Events
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 Legislative Day
April 18, 2012
Sacramento, CA
Click here for registration form. Click here for 2012 Agenda. ASCCA Summer Educational Conference 
June 22-24, 2012
Hilton Irvine, Orange County Airport
Room Rate: $99
Hotel Reservation: Call 800.445.8667 and ask for ASCCA room rate.
Reservation deadline: June 5, 2012
2012 Attendee Brochure 2012 Exhibitor Brochure Team Weekend
September 29-30, 2012
Embassy Suites, Sacramento
Hotel Reservation
Room Rate: $149
Reservation deadline: September 7 Team Weekend
December 8-9, 2012
Embassy Suites, Sacramento
Hotel Reservation: COMING SOON
Room Rate: $149
Reservation deadline: November 16 |
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Visit Our Sponsors
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Visit our Diamond Sponsors |
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