Pub. 18 2019-2020 Issue 3

N E W J E R S E Y C O A L I T I O N O F A U T O M O T I V E R E T A I L E R S I S S U E N O . 1 , 2 0 2 0 8 new jersey auto retailer President’s MESSAGE | BY JAMES B. APPLETON Grassroots support of NJ CAR's governmental and legislative lobbying efforts is important in the best of circum- stances. We are, most definitely, not in the best of circumstances right now. The Coalition's work defending the rights of New Jersey's franchised automotive industry and the support of those who understand and rely upon the industry for their livelihoods is CRITICAL in times of crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic abruptly upended everyone's personal and professional lives and hit New Jersey particularly hard, creat- ing a situation where hard decisions had to be made very quickly. NJ CAR activated its growing grassroots network two times in the early days of the crisis and our supporters responded to the call, helping us achieve results that benefited New Jersey consum- ers, the State’s economy and the franchised automotive retail industry. On March 16th Bergen County Executive James Tedesco signed Executive Order 2020-1B that would have closed virtually ALL retail businesses in Bergen County, going far beyond Governor Murphy's initial Executive Order. NJ CAR launched a grassroots campaign on March 18th, and, by the following morning, 308 advocates had quickly responded to our call. They sent more than 300 emails to Mr. Tedesco, telling him why dealerships are essential to promoting highway safety, especially during a time of crisis. He rescinded the order later that day. Just a few days later, on Sunday, March 22nd, we asked our advocates to step up once more. This time, we asked them to contact Senators Cory Booker and Rob- ert Menendez to encourage their support of several small business provisions that would help auto retailers improve liquidity and cash flow contained in the early ver- sion of legislation that would become the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Se- curity ( CARES ) Act. In just a few days, 450 of NJ CAR's grassroots advocates stepped up and sent our Senators 900 emails and helped keep these important provisions in the final legislation. Grassroots Support Is More Important Than Ever During A Crisis NJ CAR defends the rights of New Jersey's neighborhood new car and truck dealerships every day. Rob Sickel wrote about some of the successes the Coalition has had in championing the industry's impor- tance during the ongoing crisis in his Chairman's column. But, as our two quick-turnaround grassroots cam- paigns last month show, WE CAN'T DO IT ALONE. More than 700 grassroots advocates have joined the NJ CAR Grassroots network since the beginning of March, bringing our current total to more than 2,200 advocates. This is a great start, but we need everyone who relies on the automotive retail industry to join together and speak with one voice. The COVID-19 pandemic has been a monumental challenge to navi- gate. But we will return to "normal" business operations and the day-to-day legislative and regulatory grind at some point and NJ CAR will, again, need to call upon its advocates to voice their support or opposition to their elected officials. Dozens of emails are a start. Hun- dreds of emails catch a politician's at- tention. But thousands of voices speak- ing out can go a long way to ensuring legislation that benefits the industry is passed and proposals that would harm the industry are defeated. Sign Up NOW For NJ CAR's Grassroots Network If you haven't already done so, please sign up for NJ CAR's growing grass- roots network at http://join.njcar.org or text “NJCAR” to the number 52886 on your mobile phone. It takes just a few seconds, costs nothing and will benefit the Coalition's effort to defend the rights of your industry. Remember, NJ CAR's work is amplified when the voices of thousands of engaged sup- porters are behind its efforts.