< Previous20GOLDEN TEE SPONSORS automotiveMastermind BBVA Enterprise JM&A Group Spectrum Reach Tekion Vitu Zurich $50,000 HOLE-IN-ONE SPONSOR MOC Products Co., Inc. $25,000 HOLE-IN-ONE SPONSOR United Contractors LONGEST DRIVE SPONSOR Dealer Protection Group STRAIGHTEST DRIVE SPONSOR EPIC Brokers CLOSEST TO THE PIN SPONSOR Wells Fargo Auto DRIVING RANGE SPONSOR Physx Promotions SUNSCREEN SPONSOR Creative Package McKahan REGISTRATION GIFT SPONSORS Kolar & Associates Los Angeles Times GREEN SPONSORS Celly Services And many other sponsors… PLATINUM SPONSORS BG PetroSpecs Inc. Ferruzzo & Ferruzzo Portfolio GOLD SPONSOR Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP SILVER SPONSORS Comerica Bank Fisher & Phillips, LLP Steve Freeman Events LLC BEVERAGE CART SPONSOR AVRS BREAKFAST SPONSOR COCKTAIL RECEPTION; LAWN BOWLING & MARGARITA BAR SPONSOR MANY THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS GOLF CART & GOODIE BAGS SPONSOR MICRO-BREW MOJITO BAR HELICOPTER DROP SPONSOR LUNCHEON ON THE GREEN SPONSOR TIKI BAR SPONSOR SPORTS BAR & $10 HIO DIAMOND SPONSOR RAFFLE PRIZE 21GOLDEN TEE SPONSORS automotiveMastermind BBVA Enterprise JM&A Group Spectrum Reach Tekion Vitu Zurich $50,000 HOLE-IN-ONE SPONSOR MOC Products Co., Inc. $25,000 HOLE-IN-ONE SPONSOR United Contractors LONGEST DRIVE SPONSOR Dealer Protection Group STRAIGHTEST DRIVE SPONSOR EPIC Brokers CLOSEST TO THE PIN SPONSOR Wells Fargo Auto DRIVING RANGE SPONSOR Physx Promotions SUNSCREEN SPONSOR Creative Package McKahan REGISTRATION GIFT SPONSORS Kolar & Associates Los Angeles Times GREEN SPONSORS Celly Services And many other sponsors… PLATINUM SPONSORS BG PetroSpecs Inc. Ferruzzo & Ferruzzo Portfolio GOLD SPONSOR Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP SILVER SPONSORS Comerica Bank Fisher & Phillips, LLP Steve Freeman Events LLC BEVERAGE CART SPONSOR AVRS BREAKFAST SPONSOR COCKTAIL RECEPTION; LAWN BOWLING & MARGARITA BAR SPONSOR MANY THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS GOLF CART & GOODIE BAGS SPONSOR MICRO-BREW MOJITO BAR HELICOPTER DROP SPONSOR LUNCHEON ON THE GREEN SPONSOR TIKI BAR SPONSOR SPORTS BAR & $10 HIO DIAMOND SPONSOR RAFFLE PRIZE 22Auto Show Student FundraiserMore than $500K Raised Through This Program - Spread the Word!When your local high school teams and student groups request a donation, you don’t ever have to say NO! Simply refer them to OCStudentFundraising.com to learn about OC’s Best Student Fundraiser—student groups keep 100% of their proceeds! OCADA will partner with the students to raise funds by selling tickets to the OC Auto Show. The fundraiser starts in August and runs through the start of the auto show. The average team raises $1,200! Contact Kim McPhaul at 949.428.5050 or Kim@ocada.org.RETAIL WARRANTY REIMBURSEMENTArmatus provides the industry’s only turn-key solution for retail warranty reimbursement submissions. Our dedicated staff and proprietary software guarantee you will achieve an optimized result.OUR COMMITMENT TO OUR CLIENTS:ÙYou Won’t Lift a Finger: Armatus does all the work for you.ÙFully Contingent Fee: You only pay when you are approved.ÙSpeed and Accuracy: We’ll have your project done in 30days or less.ÙData Governance: Your customer information is safe with us.(888)477-2228info@dealeruplift.comWWW.DEALERUPLIFT.COMARMATUS WORKS WITH377%OF CA’S DEALERSARMATUS HAS COMPLETED886622SUBMISSIONS IN CAON AVERAGE, CA DEALERS ADD$21133,331122IN LABOR UPLIFT ANNUALLYON AVERAGE, CA DEALERS ADD$2554,2688IN PARTS UPLIFT ANNUALLYExclusively Licensed By24One of the most attractive benefits to consumers in any industry is the ability to purchase products and services at a discounted price. Discounting saves customers money, allows companies to earn their business and disciplines the prices competitors offer for the same items. In a normally functioning market, it is a win-win for both consumers and businesses.At the same time, discounting involves pricing discretion, and pricing discretion that is not carefully exercised by a business can give rise to concerns about arbitrary pricing and, worse, pricing that discriminates against protected groups of consumers. It is this concern that has driven the efforts of many consumer advocates and government officials over the years to eliminate dealer pricing discretion. In the context of dealer financing, this would be attempted by eliminating the dealer participation that dealers earn for originating credit contracts and replacing it with a non-discountable, flat fee.Many finance sources that are assigned credit contracts compensate dealers with non-discountable flat fees, and the National Automobile Dealers Association takes no position on the form of compensation freely entered into by dealers and their finance sources. Nevertheless, NADA has resisted—and will continue to resist—efforts by the government to prohibit finance sources from being able to compensate dealers with discountable dealer participation for originating credit contracts with their customers. The pro-competitive benefits that dealer participation provides to consumers should not be eliminated by unwarranted and untested government intrusion into the marketplace.Notwithstanding the flaws of such a mandate, concerns about “unfettered” pricing discretion that have been expressed by the acting chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and others should not be ignored, and dealers should consider ways to address those concerns while striving to provide their customers with affordable and competitively priced products. One approach a dealer should consider to fulfill this goal (managing discretion while promoting competition) when earning dealer participation in a credit contract is to adopt the optional NADA/NAMAD/AIADA Fair Credit Compliance Policy &Program (NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program).1The NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program was not developed in a vacuum. Rather, it stems from—and fully adopts—an approach to fair credit compliance that was set forth in consent orders that the Department of Justice (DOJ) entered into with two automobile dealerships to settle pricing discrimination claims in 2007.2In those consent orders, the dealers were required to adopt “Guidelines for Setting Dealer Reserve,” in which the dealer established a standard dealer participation rate (SDPR) that it included in credit offers to consumers (i.e., the dealership would offer an APR that is the sum of the wholesale buy rate offered by the finance source and its SDPR) unless a “good faith, competitive reason” that supports a lower dealer participation rate was present in the transaction. The consent orders included seven such legitimate business reasons for discounting the SDPR, with the three most common being the presence of a lower cap imposed by the finance source, a consumer’s monthly budget constraint and a consumer’s access to a more competitive offer. The consent orders further required that any deviations from the SDPR be recorded on a pricing certification form, reviewed by the general manager or his or her designee, and retained by the dealership.In November 2013, while speaking at a ConsumerFinancial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Auto Finance Forum, a senior DOJ official3 validated this approach when explaining that—i. pricing discretion is not prohibited by the Equal Credit Opportunity Act;ii. however, when exercised, pricing discretion presents a fair lending risk that needs to be managed; andiii. one way to manage that risk is to adopt the approach set forth in the 2007 DOJ consent orders.4The Attack on Dealer Participation: A Path ForwardBy Paul D. MetreyBuilt for dealers, by dealers, ComplyAuto is the all-in-one compliance solution for California Consumer Privacy Act compliance in the automotive industry.Purpose-built CCPA Compliance SoftwareCopyright © 2021 ComplyAuto Privacy LLC All Rights Reservedhttps://complyauto.comGIVE US THE KEYS TO DRIVE YOUR CCPA COMPLIANCE PROGRAM.Our Compliance GuaranteeHow confident are we that our solution will shield you from the state government? Very. We’ll pay any fines or penalties assessed against your dealership by the state for violations of the CCPA arising out of the services provided by ComplyAuto.Dealership must be a current ComplyAuto client. Other restrictions apply. See https://complyauto.com/compliance-guarantee/ for more details. TRUSTED BYExclusively Licensed Vendorinfo@complyauto.comTwo months later, after extensive preparation and review, the three national trade associations representing franchised automobile dealers released the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program. As noted above, the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program fully adopts the framework established in the DOJ consent orders and builds on it. A dealer who adopts the program has it approved by its board of directors and appoints a senior dealership official to serve as the Program Coordinator (PC). The PC oversees the implementation and maintenance of the program by establishing the SDPR, conducting initial and periodic training, reviewing pricing certification forms, submitting an annual compliance report to the board and performing other related tasks. The program explains each of these steps in detail. Since its inception, the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program has gained widespread support from many prominent observers both inside and outside of the industry.5 Recent additions to the list of supporters include (i) the American Bar Association, which overwhelmingly approved a resolution at its 2020 annual meeting that, in part, urges governments at all levels to offer “a safe harbor against pricing discrimination claims for dealers that faithfully implement the NADA/NAMAD/AIADA Fair Credit Compliance Policy and Program”;6 and (ii) a CFPB Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law, which made a similar recommendation to the CFPB and the Federal Reserve Board in January 2021.7The FTC has also seen value in this approach to managing pricing discretion, as it included the framework and many elements of the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program in a May 2020 consent order it entered into with an automobile dealership to settle allegations of intentional credit discrimination.8Notwithstanding its broad support, the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program remains optional, and its adoption does not guarantee that a dealer will be protected from liability for a fair credit violation. However, if faithfully adopted, implemented and maintained, the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program provides a dealer with a well-regarded path forward in a very challenging environment. This should not be overlooked when a dealer discusses with its attorney how it will ensure the fair and lawful treatment of its customers. 26Lance, Soll & Lunghard, LLP | CPAs & Advisors | lslcpas.com | (714) 672-0022BreaSacramento“We have a fantastic relationship with the LSL team. They keep our interests top of mind and maintain a positive reputation in the industry.” Santa Ana -Craig Whetter, President, David Wilson Automotive Group (relationship since 1983) Donald Slater, CPA Automotive Services Partner donald.slater@lslcpas.comMike Mangold, CPA Automotive Services Partner mike.mangold@lslcpas.comDavid Myers, CPA Automotive Tax Partnerdave.myers@lslcpas.com1 The program and other supporting material are available at www.nada.org/faircredit.2 In re Pacifico Ford, DOJ Civil Action No. 07-3470 (September 4, 2007) (consent order); In re Springfield Ford, DOJ Civil Action No. 07-3469 (September 4, 2020) (consent order), available at www.justice.gov.3 Steven H. Rosenbaum, Chief, Housing and Civil Enforcement Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice.4 CFPB Auto Finance Forum (November 14, 2013), currently available at www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/live-from-the-cfpb/.5 See, for example, the statement made by Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) before the U.S. House Financial Services Committee in March 2016 referring to the NADA Fair Credit Compliance Program as a “wonderful document” whileRep. Beatty held up the publication and asked that it be included in the record; and testimonials from 12 prominent industry attorneys expressingsupport for the program (available at www.nada.org/faircredit), includingfrom former CFPB Assistant Director Rick Hackett, who stated his belief that the program “can resolve issues raised by the CFPB related to discretionary pricing… assuming it is faithfully executed as described by NADA.”6 American Bar Association, Resolution 116B (August 3, 2020), available atwww.americanbar.org.7 Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law (TFCFL), CFPB, TFCFL Report Volume II, Recommendation 66 (January 2021), available atwww.consumerfinance.gov.8 In re Bronx Honda, FTC Docket No. Case 1:20 (May 22, 2020)(consent order), available at www.ftc.gov.This article was prepared by Paul D. Metrey, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Chief Regulatory Counsel, financial services, privacy, and tax for the National Automobile Dealers Association.AutomotoHR.comPost job opportunities to AutomotoHR and they will automatically be listed on all of the top job post sites.Manage all of your Hiring, Onboarding, Employee Management and Compliance legally required documentation electronically.Hire to Retire Talent Management Platform: Government compliance forms and data all in one place, with a single secure log in.•••Recruit, On-board, and Manage all of your Employee Compliance in one place.Steven Warner • (951) 385-8204 • Steven@AutomotoHR.com“AutomotoHR has been the most effective way to fill our recruitment needs.” - John Oh, Lexus of WestminsterDeveloping Future Service Technicians in Orange County28This spring OC Driven for Success provided two virtual events for Orange County high school students to engage them with high-tech automotive career opportunities!COLLEGE & CAREER AUTOMOTIVE TECHNOLOGY PATHWAY The pathway event created awareness of high-tech automotive career opportunities and was divided into three weeks, each with a different focus. Week one covered “a day in the life of an auto technician,” week two examined skills needed in the auto industry, and week three took a deep dive into career opportunities. Each week featured a mix of online exhibits, pre-recorded videos from industry leaders and college instructors, and live panel sessions where students could ask questions about careers in automotive technology.Designed to encourage high school Juniors and Seniors enrolled in automotive classes to attend local community colleges to gain the education needed for a rewarding career as an auto technician, the 2021 OC Driven for Success Competition Finals took place on Saturday, May 1st. For the first time, the event was held virtually, made possible by our sponsors – CA Community Colleges, Snap-on Tools, and Electude.The culmination of arduous testing and months of training, the competition recognizes the technical expertise of local high school students. It began early this year with an initial field of hundreds of students from 11 Orange County high schools and ended with students competing on an interactive online test designed by college faculty, on an online learning platform that mimics gaming technology, allowing students to manipulate tools and parts as they would in real-life. The top-15 placing Seniors each received a $750 scholarship from OC Driven for Success to an Orange County Community College, plus tool prizes and trophies were awarded to the winners!HIGH SCHOOL AUTOMOTIVE TECHNOLOGY COMPETITION29ASKALISONIt’s 2022 “Strategy Season.” Not as exciting as baseball season or beach season, but it is more important to your dealership. The number of dealerships I come across that aren’t already in the midst of planning for their employee benefits in 2022 is surprising. “Winging it” with last-minute scrambling can, and often does, result in unexpected outcomes and costs.Q: When it comes to benefits, what are a few key elements to consider to set everyone up for success?A: Know what you’re trying to accomplish and what you want your benefits “to be”. Your benefits strategy should support and align with your dealership’s broader goals. This is likely driven by needs. Are you having difficulty recruiting or retaining employees? Are you losing key people to a competitor? Do you have issues maintaining compliance? Can your budget support your benefit plans or are rising costs impacting other areas of need? Q: How can I ensure my benefits are competitive and meet the needs of both my dealership and my employees?A: Build a benefits team. Your organization’s HR and finance teams, along with your employee benefits broker or consultant all need to be on board with your goals, guiding principles and challenges. It is not up to you and your internal team to do everything. If your broker/consultant hasn’t already helped you craft a long-term strategy, you’re already behind. If your insurers, administrators or vendors won’t help you accomplish that strategy, it’s time to find new ones.Q: How do I ensure my employees appreciate and value our dealership’s benefits?A: Survey your employees periodically. Only buy benefits (or keep existing ones) because they support your organization or fill a need felt by your employees and their families. Don’t conduct surveys unless you plan to act on the results – once you have solicited feedback, use it.Q: How do I ensure my employees appreciate and value our dealership’s benefits?A: Survey your employees periodically. Only buy benefits (or keep existing ones) because they support your organization or fill a need felt by your employees and their families. Don’t conduct surveys unless you plan to act on the results – once you have solicited feedback, use it.Q: How do I manage costs with the downsizing or growth of our dealership?A: Your broker should be asking you about your dealership to help form a viable long term strategy. During our strategy sessions, we always ask our dealers about upcoming business plans. It’s important to know if you are selling or opening a new dealership(s) particularly if it is in another county or state. Are you hiring ahead of planned growth? Trying to catch up on hiring because growth was more rapid than expected? Is there going to be a reduction in force? A change in ownership? All of these, and more, will impact benefit plans. My team and I follow a carefully crafted process for maximizing employee benefits and helping our dealerships develop and then implement and manage their strategic plan. We review every client every year to identify if their needs have changed or if circumstances will necessitate new approaches. Pre-planning with a strategy and common goals can result in reduction of costs now and in the future.EPIC ranks among the top 15 retail insurance brokers in the United States and is the largest insurer of auto dealers in the state. Alison McCallum has been in the employee benefits industry for over 20 years and personally works with more than 60 Southern California Dealersh ips. She is a Principal with EPIC insurance Brokers and Consultants, the only CNCDA licensed broker. With this partnership EPIC offers unique services available to OCADA dealer members at no cost. If you have questions or would like further information please feel free to contact her at (949) 417-9136 or alison.mccallum@epicbrokers.com.KEYS TO A SUCCESSFUL 2022 EMPLOYEE BENEFITS STRATEGY SEASONNext >