URGENT!! SEMA Pro-Hot Rodding Bill Re-Indroduced In Florida!!!

Hello everyone!!

Not sure if this is the right place for this, but I hope Ryan and other moderators can understand the importance of this to entire automotive community - included those of us that want to continue building traditional hot rods into the future -

So I ask, please leave this up - maybe even sticky it for a couple of days?

If you live in FL, please email these congressmen and voice your support for this bill.

If you don't live in FL - do it anyways. We need all the help we can get, and the more states that adopt this bill, the more will follow -

This is an important piece of legislation for the future of the hobby/business we all love so much.

The next hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, March 8th. Please email this people.

Here is a little info on the bill:

SEMA model legislation to amend the vehicle ***ling and registration cl***ifications for street rods and create a cl***ification for custom vehicles has been reintroduced in the Florida House. The bill (H.B. 545) defines a street rod as an altered vehicle manufactured before 1949 and a custom as an altered vehicle at least 25 years old and manufactured after 1948. Under the bill, kit cars and replica vehicles will be ***igned a certificate of ***le bearing the same model year designation as the production vehicle they most closely resemble. The bill mirrors model legislation created by SEMA and recently enacted in Illinois, Missouri, Rhode Island, Montana, Hawaii, Maine and Colorado.


* H.B. 545 provides specific registration and ***ling cl***es for street rods and customs, including kits and replicas.

* H.B. 545 allows for the use of non-original materials and creates a ***ling criterion that ***igns these vehicles the same model year designation as the production vehicle they most closely resemble.

* H.B. 545 exempts street rods and customs from emissions inspections and exempt street rods and custom vehicles from a range of standard equipment requirements (only that equipment required in the model year that the vehicle resembles).

* H.B. 545 provides that vehicles ***led and registered as street rods and custom vehicles may only be used for occasional transportation, exhibitions, club activities, parades, tours, etc. and not for general daily transportation.

* H.B. 545 permits the use of blue dot taillights on street rods and custom vehicles.



Just copy and paste these email addresses into the "TO" line of your email. Put " Please Support HB 545" as the subject. And write whatever you like in the body.

You can do them all at once with just one email - cut and paste them all together!


Mike.davis@myfloridahouse.gov rich.glorioso@myfloridahouse.gov susan.bucher@myfloridahouse.gov greg.evers@myfloridahouse.gov
ed.hooper@myfloridahouse.gov jimmy.patronis@myfloridahouse.gov scott.randolph@myfloridahouse.gov Michael.scionti@myfloridahouse.gov Nick.thompson@myfloridahouse.gov



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great idea. i just sent emails 2 them from all my address. thanks for the info

 

Done
Mike

 

I'm not in FL, so this really doesn't apply to me. But... I don't see anything in there that is really benefitial. Except if you're building a gl*** bodied car with a repro frame, then possibly it's an advantage if it's currrently impossible to get it ***led as an old car.

Personally I wouldn't want my car ***led as a "Street Rod" or "Custom". Not because of the terms, but because one of the provisons says you "may only be used for occasional transportation, exhibitions, club activities, parades, tours, etc. and not for general daily transportation." That doesn't sound like progress to me.

Am I missing something?

 

This would be beneficial if you bought a $2k Model A body here on the HAMB, and then built your own frame for it.

There is no VIN ***ociated with a car like that. This is a big problem for everyone.

And yes, it is nearly impossible to currently ***le a car using a repro body and/or frame in FL. The buying of old tiles and having a trophy shop make you a VIN plate is going away very fast here.

The ***le will not say "street rod" or "custom". It will be ***led as what the car most closely resembles. If you tell the DMV lady it is '17 Packard, you are getting '17 Packard on your damn ***le! haha!

This bill creates emmissions exemptions for these cars as well.

As for the limited use, all of the "old car insurance companies" say we can only use them for limited use, and we seem to drive the hell out of them anyways!

 

Lets not get into a debate as to whether this is only a benefit to "repro bodys vs. original Henry bodies"

This is a bill, that is pro-car hobby. That is a good thing.

 

Like I said, I'm not in FL so I don't know how hard it is to get a ***le there. In my state and others, if your car doesn't have a VIN, you fill out some paperwork, put a bond on the car, and the state will issue a new number. I haven't heard of any problems with my state trying to make gl*** bodies or new frame cars use the current year.
So, if this is an improvement over your state's current situation, then by all means support it!!

 

What's wrong with a healthy good-spiritied debate? The best solutions are almost always achieved through healthy discourse.

I'm really not trying to be a smart *** here, but please explain the benefits of this legislation to me.

Maybe I'm being shortsighted, but the whole "cannot be used for daily transportation" scares me. Why can't we use our cars for daily transportation? The only benefactors of such a limitation of use (as far as I can see) are the automakers, as this essentially means that we have to own at least ONE new car to get around. As long as they stop, have whatever safety equipment is required, and generally operate safely, why is this in the bill??? How do WE benefit from legislation that limits our use?

Next point, I have plenty of friends with custom vehicles here in Florida. I personally own a 59 buick that sits on a 70 frame. I had no problem ***ling, registering, and insuring it. I haven't built a model A yet, but I've never heard my model A hotrod owning friends complain about this issue. So if we're all legally driving our custom automobiles already, where is the benefit of "specific registration and ***ling cl***es"? I see this and it makes me wonder if this will eventually be my insurance company's excuse to INCREASE MY RATES.

As far as creating an easy way for someone to legally ***le a vehicle as whatever it "most closely resembles", well, at first glance that seems like a way for an experienced, yet dishonest car guy to easily trick some less experienced car guy into m***ively overpaying for something, because the ***le says it's authentic.

Emissions exempt? Well I guess that might have been an issue before they stopped emissions testing in Florida in June of 2000, but even when we did have emissions testing all pre-74 vehicles were already exempt. So once again, where is the benefit?

And Blue dot tail lights? In this world of fartcan guys with full neon kits in their undercarriage, Altezza tail light treatments (you know - euro style with everything clear and no red at all), and ******** **** playing in the seatback video monitors for their p***engers in full view of all surrounding cars (don't look kids), do you really think the cops are still h***ling with blue dot tail lights?

To me, on the surface they're offering a bunch of stuff that we either already have or simply don't need, and slipping in the slipulation of limited use.

Ten years from now will they have ratcheted up the "limited use" to include anything older than 10 years old? How long until we are legally obligated to buy a new car often enough that we are indebted to the big 3 from the time we obtain a drivers license until the time we surrender it?

A ridiculous notion? Yeah, maybe. But then again, maybe not.

If I am missing something here, please help me out. Seriously, if this is something I should be voting for then I want to understand it, and thus far I don't

 

You don't get to vote for it.

Its is a house bill - the congressmen and women you elected (***ume you vote) are the ones voting.

The emails are for you to remind you congresspeople how important this bill is to you.

- Amerian Goverment lesson aside -



If you don't understand how this can help you, then you don't get it, and have never spent countless hours at the DMV trying to get to drive your hot rod.

Your '59 has a VIN on the body. I would ***ume you used that VIN and ***le to get in on the road. When you get around to building your hot rod Model A, there is no VIN on that body anywhere. If you put that on a new/different frame you are sunk. FL would have to issue you a new VIN. This new VIN and ***le would be for a 2007 Special Construction. You pay all the fees and taxes on it as a new 2007. It is held to 2007 safety standards, as well as emissions requirements of a 2007, both now, and into the FUTURE.

This legislation will allow the state to issue you a new VIN, and call the car a '29 Ford....or whatever you are building.

You cannot legally ***le and new Brookville '32 body and a new '32 frame in this state. There is no provision for that. If you have manufacturers license, you can claim you built it from scratch. If you wish to call it a kit car, you must provide the manufacturer's license that sold you the "kit".

Sure, your buddies that all have Model A's got them ***led. We all know how that goes down - you buy a ***le, stamp your own VIN on the frame that you pulled out of your ***, and your covered. Right....try to sell that rig to someone that doesn't live in FL, and have another state's DMV inspect that VIN plate from Joe's Trophy Shop.....your friends most likely have committed a fraud by buying a ***le and illegally placing another vehicles VIN on a different ch***is/body.

That isn't cool with a lot of people, especially those with more to lose if a criminal or civil proceeding was to occur.

As for the blue dot tail light issue - I just copied the entire description of the bill from SEMA's website. It is in there, its part of the bill. I don't like them either.

 

Is there anything in this bill preventing the self stamping bought ***le guy from using the old method? It seems like this bill gives you another avenue of getting legal, while not changing the current laws. If it doesn't stop us from ***ling our cars the old way ( cl***ifying our cars as original daily drivers) while allowing other guys the new method (cl***ifying there cars to limited use street rods) I see where it can benefit.If it changes the current laws I'm out. This seems like the deciding factor to me.

 

More and more states are cracking down on the "Broadway ***le" deal. If this fails to p*** and the FL lawmakers decide to ban "***le" sales, how are you going to register your car?

I have a hot rod registered in CO under the old way and it was a pain in the *** to get the proper paper work. Since it is registered and has all Model A running gear, it is insured as a Model A with agreed value.

 

Ding - Ding - Ding -

We have a winner!

 

OK, I understand a little better now, thank you for elaborating. Once again, I wasn't trying to be a ****, or start an argument.

And I guess I overlooked the fact that it is a house bill. And yes, I understand the nature of how this works.

Once again, I have never built a model A so I haven't gone through whatever is involved (thus my ignorance on the subject).

I guess I'm stuck on the whole limited use thing. I have to admit that the conspiracy theory nut in me sees that as a starting point for govt interference in our hobby. I love my country but I do not trust my government, and it seem like anytime I see a bill that somehow invloves our hobby, it seems like it always includes something like this that benefits auto makers and not us. I recently read an article in USA today about how many people are beginning to figure out that it's cheaper to drive an older rebuilt vehicle, and the automakers are starting to examine the effects that this is having on their numbers. What that tells me is that soon they will start "Lobbying" (or as I like to call it "bribing") our politicians to start the long process of severely limiting our use, and where does that end? I just don't see any reason we should let them set these kinds of terms just so we can legally drive our cars..

Thanks again for replying.

 

I understand your concern.

But I have $30k sitting in my shop in the way of a new steel '32 roadster project that is nearly done. I'm not willing to to commit a felony by VIN tampering. I've know a couple guys that did time for chopping cars in the 90's.....At this point in my life, it isn't even close to worth it just drive my car.

The limited use thing I would say is to protect us from future legislation lobbied by the new car makers. By saying our cars are limited use, I would imagine is making this bill easier to stomach for the more liberal lawmakers. And stricter emissions laws that only new cars can p*** are one of the avenues to get old cars off the street.

It would be pretty hard for the gov't to regulate our use anyways...when you cna reach under the dash and unthread the speedo cable in 10 seconds...haha

Remember, this bill was written by SEMA. They have a lot at stake in the car hobby, and so do their members. I'm sure a lot of time, energy and thought has gone into this to make it swim.



It would be pretty hard to

 

OK let me throw this out there, and I am sure I am in the real minority here anyway with my vehicle that I have. I have a Superformance Cobra replica, that I bought back in 98, and it is registered as a 98. Luckily I live in an area that I don't have to have it smogged, or p*** any bumper/safety stuff. The first thing that got me was my buddies at State Farm, they saw the 98 registration and wanted to insure it like a 98 Vette/BMW type car,ka-ching more money than I thought was resonable, ended up going with Midwest. Now I am trying to sell it, and I am finding out there are a lot of other states, and even Canada can't register them without them complying to 98 standards. Now if was ***led as a 65, I could be smog exempt, and it would be easier to my prospective buyer. The same thing will happen when I try to build my repo 33 roadster, if say I use a TCI ch***is, and somebodies body. I will have a MSO of the frame as a 2007, so the car will be ***led as a 2007, instead of a 33.
Mike
has a home in FL,
but spends more time in CA

 

This is exactly the problem. It doesn't even have to be a TCI and a gl*** body. The old Ford bodies had no VIN on them - and the tag agencies are getting wise to that. The little "Body Number___________" tags are not going to fly much longer. If you have a gennie frame with a visible VIN, you can pull it off. But if you don't - well.....

The Cobra replica guys are all over this legislation....they stand to benifit from this as much if not more than the rest of us. If you think ***le and registration posts come up a lot on this board, surf over to a Cobra site and take a look at that - it is a big problem for those guys.

 

when will we know if it p***ed. will you let us know. thanks td1932

 

It P***ed the first Committee today - unanimously.


Bill Number: 0545 Bill Name: HB 545 Action: Favorable With Amendments Committee: Committee on Infrastructure

Location: 404 HOB Duration: 2.50 Date: 3/8/2007 9:30:00 AM Sponsor: Patterson (CO-SPONSORS) Davis, M.; Subject: Motor Vehicles
Y Bucher Y Evers Y Hooper Y Randolph Y Thompson, N. Y Davis, M. Y Glorioso N/A Patronis Y Scionti
Total Yeas: 8 Total Nays: 0 Total Missed: 1 Total Votes: 9

Looks like is p***ed this committee - On the the next committee, "Economic Expansion & Infrastructure Council" Gotta love bureaucracy.

 

If any of you would like to get more updates like this from SEMA, espcially for YOUR STATE, and how you can get involved and DO SOMETHING more than talk about it on a message board -

Join the SEMA action network!

http://www.semasan.com/san/IndividualSignup.aspx

Its free! Stand up and be counted as a hot rodder.

 

thanks for the info.....this applys to more of us then we all think,maybe not now...but it will soon enough

 

look... this is something we all want...i keep all my cars registered in Montana...lived their for years... i bought this A pickup 4 years ago with a bill of sale... i made up a number(none visible on truck) sent it to montana and my plates and ***le came back as 1931 ford....my registration is 35 bucks a year...my insurance is 35 bucks a year...everything legit...the PA boys are having their ***es kicked trying to register vechicles...IF this the system they have, believe me it is what we all want...

 

whitey -

Montana has p***ed and signed the SEMA model legislation into law.

If you go to the SEMA SAN site, and click on your state, you can see all the things SEMA is involved with to support the car hobby.

 

The not for general use, clause looks like a trap.

 

This is already a major impediment in my state. In this state, you cannot drive a vintage tagged or YOM tagged collector car to work, school, or even on a shopping excursion. These are specifically prohibited under the law. And the law has been interpreted as excluding cruising and Sunday drives, too. You can only drive directly to a show, in a parade, or to a licensed mechanic. AND IT IS STRICTLY ENFORCED WITH YOUR TAGS IMPOUNDED FOR ONE YEAR WHEN THEY CATCH YOU! I wouldn't wish this provision on anyone. So much for SEMA promoting daily drivers. Floridians, be careful in deciding whether you want this law or not.

 

I don't think so. Remember the full faith and credit provisions of the U.S. Cons***ution, as well as the Commerce Clause? I know some states have tried to restrict this, but I do not think any have been successful. Even if they were, initially, I believe the restriction would be found to be uncons***utional when challenged in Federal court.

 

WHAT!!!!

Are you ****ing kidding me????

TD1932, I firmly believe that your heart is firmly in the right place here, but man, but this is exactly what I fear most.

How long before this rule applies to all pre-50's cars, then how long until it's all pre-60's cars, then 70's, and so on. As paranoid as it sounds, it isn't all that outside of reality.

You know what pisses me off? Our hobby has been around for decades upon decades. It is part of our culture and history. Why is it that the automakers are churning out 300-600 hp rides left and right, yet OUR hotrods are such a big ****ing deal???? I bet less than 5% of us run a daily driver that would hang with a new z06 or shelby, it's not like the 50's where we were actually a "hazard", so what gives? When compared to the current crop of completely clueless fast-n-furious street racers, we are a bunch of tame, responsible OLD GUYS for God's sake!!! In order to participate in the same hobby as my father and some of our grandfathers, a hobby which practically defined the male experience in our country for the past 60 years, why is that I have to make such concessions as "I promise not to drive my car unless I'm on my way to a parade or I have a note from my mechanic". That is ********.

So why are WE the targets of "use-limiting" legislation and not the guys in the fast n furious crowd???

Answer: those other guys are buying new cars on semi-regular business, and therefore are not a part of the automaker's "problem". The "problem" being guys like us who NO LONGER NEED THEM!!! Let's face it, most of the guys here could function just fine if they stopped selling new cars tomorrow - and they don't like that. Really, the only thing they CAN do is pay our policiticans to slowly pull the rug out from under us. I see this as the tip of the iceberg.

 

idont know about YOM or vintage tagged cars...i figured just get mine registered and insured and i was happy....my 31 has new plates on it, just like you bought a new pickup from the dealership...there are no restrictions and i can drive it to the lounge, to pick up broads or to just go get dog food...

 

Send a letter to the DMV in Colorado and California...While you're at it, send a copy to Boyd.

 

Here in FL if you build a car with parts from multiple cars or from new parts like a Brookville body and new deuce frame you end up with an ASPT ***le (***embled from Parts) with the current year on it. You have to provide reciepts for all the parts. The DMV puts a sticker on your car with a new serial number and the car ends up being a 2007 ASPT with an FLA VIN. I would be happy to have a ***le that says "1957" on it. All the forms are in the DMV procedures website. It is possible to get a ***le for a car built with a new body and frame, etc. if you fill out the forms, but you get a current year ***le.

Keep in mind, ***les are a separate issue from registration. Once you have a valid ***le, you can register any vintage car with regular tags and enjoy unlimited driving - work, school, shopping, etc... any restrictions are between you and your insurance company on that score. Even if you ***le with YOM plates, same thing applies. If you read the proposed HB545, the restrictions apply to cars that are "registered" with "street rod" or "custom" plates - a separate issue from the ***le. I don't think I would want a "street rod" or "custom" license plate anyway.

The current year ***le could be a problem if you try to sell the car to someone in a state with tight controls on safety and emissions.

 

Montana, the last great place