Tesla says 2 bills pushed through Capitol could jeopardize ability to operate in Oklahoma
They are calling on their owners and fans to tell lawmakers not to pass the bills.
They are calling on their owners and fans to tell lawmakers not to pass the bills.
They are calling on their owners and fans to tell lawmakers not to pass the bills.
Tesla said two bills being pushed through the Capitol could jeopardize their ability to operate in Oklahoma.
They are calling on their owners and fans to tell lawmakers not to pass the bills. The two bills, one in the House and one in the Senate would do the same thing.
It's specific language in those bills that Tesla said would force them to shut down gallery locations, such as the one in Automobile Alley.
"Tesla is going to win no matter what," said Mark Holden, Tesla Rental OKC.
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Holden is the owner of Tesla Rental OKC, a business covering people's short-term rentals of vehicles. His livelihood is based on Tesla's success in Oklahoma, so when Tesla put out a call for action from their owners and fans to contact the legislature to stop House Bill 3104 and Senate Bill 2022, he answered.
"The bill is going to impact our business in addition to theirs and will make it harder for us to get Tesla's here in Oklahoma," Holden said.
Under current state law, Tesla cannot sell directly and instead must operate what they call galleries in the state.
In a message to owners, Tesla said the new "detrimental bills that could jeopardize Tesla’s ability to continue to operate galleries in Oklahoma...If passed, these bills could put Tesla locations and Oklahoma jobs at risks. This proposal would ban educational and informational activities about Tesla and its products."
"This was in no way intended to be about Tesla," said state Rep. Mike Dobrinski.
Dobrinski co-authored the bills with Sen. Roger Thompson. Dobrinski said the bills intend to give dealers some protections from the auto manufacturers and don't name Tesla at all.
"Where we talk about the definition of what a salesperson is — the Tesla folks feel like some of the services they perform at their facility in OKC and Tulsa might infringe on that," Dobrinski said.
One of the bills passed out of committee on Monday and is expected to be heard by the full Senate chamber. As for owners like Holen, he wants to see a clear definition of what could become law.
"Even though Oklahoma is one of the best states to do business, there are things in place that make it impossible for a company like Tesla to do certain things they can do in other states," Holden said.
The representative said that he has been in contact with Tesla representatives about the bills and said talks are taking place and it is possible it could be amended.
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