March 2009
In This Issue:
- NMMA: Tell Congress and Treasury to Support Marine Financing
- Tax Relief Coalition Opposes Obama Budget
- S.T.E.P. Purchasing 2009 - Information Mailed Week of March 30
- Supplier of the Year Ballots Mailed Soon
- How Economic Stimulus Bill Affects Employers
- New Legal Advisory From NAW
- Educational Webinar from MHEDA
NMMA ACTION ALERT: Tell Congress & Treasury to Support Marine Floorplan Financing
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York and U.S. Treasury have provided details on a consumer and business lending initiative known as the Term Asset-Backed Securities Lending Facility (TALF). They indicated additional items will be available for a second round of funding. They are actively considering, among other things, AAA-rated asset-backed securities (ABS) backed by non-auto floorplan loans.
We MUST URGE Members of Congress, the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to include marine floorplan financing loans backed by ABS into TALF.
This would:
- Provide important new liquidity to this credit market
- Help relieve the mounting pressure on marine retailers and dealers
Failure to include marine dealer/floorplan loans, and any consumer credit assistance for the marine industry, in TALF would worsen an increasingly fragile financial market required for basic business operation in the U.S. marine sector. Click here to easily contact your Members of Congress, the Treasury Department, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to urge the inclusion of marine floorplan loans into TALF.
NMMA and MRAA are both working on this issue. MRAA has already created a letter that you can send to your members of Congress that highlights how you are being affected.
Tax Relief Coalition Opposes Obama Budget
The breathtaking scope of the Obama budget proposal and its trillions of dollars of proposed tax increases necessitated a decision by the Tax Relief Coalition Management Committee to voice strong opposition to this budget. This is a letter that was sent recently by TRC to all members of the U.S. House and Senate expressing our strong opposition to the Administration’s budget. The letter explains in detail the policy proposals contained in the budget which TRC opposes because they would do serious damage to our already weak economy. Information about how you can take action will follow.
S.T.E.P. Purchasing 2009 - Information Mailed Week of March 30
S.T.E.P. information will be mailed the week of March 30 to current members of NMDA. The materials included are: contact/call sheets, tentative agenda, hotel info, conference time planners. Companies who have not yet paid their dues will NOT be listed on the appointment/contact sheets. If you need a copy of your dues invoice, email Kathy@nmdaonline.com.
S.T.E.P. Purchasing
When: July 13 & 14, 2009
Where: Westin Imagine, Orlando, FL
S.T.E.P. Purchasing will be held at the Westin Imagine, not at the Convention Center and not at the Rosen Centre Hotel.
Shuttle service will only be available during MAATS (Wednesday, July 15th through Friday, July 17th). We are working on obtaining shuttle service Sunday, July 12th through Tuesday, July 14th, but this has not been confirmed.
If you would like to make sure you have a room at the Westin, it is not too early to book a room using the attached housing form.
To book a room at either the Westin or the Rosen Centre Hotel, visit http://events.ambassadors.com/mat09.
Click here to see a map of the hotels and their distance from the Orange County Convention Center and each other.
Supplier of the Year Ballots Mailed Soon
Supplier of the Year initial nomination ballots will be sent to distributors in early April. The Supplier of the Year will be presented at our Awards Luncheon, Monday, July 13 in Orlando at the Westin Imagine.
How Economic Stimulus Bill Affects Employers
On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed the Economic Stimulus Bill into law. This legislation includes provisions affecting the continuation of health insurance coverage (“continuation coverage”) employers must make available to certain former employees and their families under provisions of the “Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985” (COBRA).
We have prepared an outline of the key provisions of the Stimulus Bill that touch COBRA continuation coverage and how employers may be affected.
Go to: http://www.naw.org/files/COBRA.pdf
We have recently received reports from wholesaler-distributors that counterfeit parts and products are appearing in the marketplace with increased frequency, with questions as to the legal responsibilities and obligations of distributors regarding the sale of counterfeit products.
Wholesaler-distributors can in fact face serious legal consequences for the sale of counterfeit goods. To read NAW’s new Legal Advisory on the potential consequences of the sale of counterfeit goods, go to: http://www.naw.org/govrelations/advisory.php?articleid=563
Educational Opportunities from MHEDA - Webinars
Sales Excellence: A Basic "How To" of Selling
Date:
March 23, 2009
Time:
12:00 p.m. — 1:00 p.m. CT
Speaker:
Joe Ellers of Palmetto Associates
Registration Fee:
$149 per company location for each session in the series
This sales training program will NOT be based on "who you are" but will focus on "what you do." This one hour webinar will present a step-by-step approach that covers all the basics of how to sell.
Be sure to
visit the
NMDA website.
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