April 28, 2021

The federal government, State of California and local jurisdictions have all adopted and modified laws relating to COVID-19 in the last several months to respond to the spike in COVID-19 cases in late 2020 and the availability of effective vaccinations. Now that the infection rate is dropping across the state and country and vaccines are available to a wider segment of the public, businesses and consumers are asking whether this is the beginning of the end of the pandemic.

California leads the nation with the highest number of electric vehicles (EVs) on its roads, due to the State’s promotion and protection of public health, welfare and the environment. The State’s encouragement of EV adoption through incentive programs confirm California’s commitment to improving access to clean air throughout our communities and has led to the

Recently, an automobile dealer was cited for failure to provide safety shoes. Cal/OSHA assessed a penalty of $5,850 for this serious violation. California Court of Appeals has also upheld a citation against employers not providing proper safety footwear. See Home Depot U.S.A., Inc. v. Cal. Occupational Safety & Health Appeals Bd., E070417 (Cal. Ct. App. Oct. 17, 2019). After this California Court of Appeals decision, we believe that citation for failure to have safety shoes is low-hanging fruit for OSHA inspectors. Dealerships would now be a frequent target for citations for failure to provide safety shoes for employees.

When it comes to building brand awareness and excitement, driving consumer traffic into dealerships and increasing vehicle sales, nothing beats an auto show, say dealers across the country.

Assemblymember Ward was elected in 2020 to serve the 78th Assembly District. Before his service in the Assembly, he served on the San Diego City Council, focusing his efforts on housing, homelessness, economic development and the environment, and authored San Diego’s landmark Equal Pay Ordinance, as well as enacted a local ordinance to make San Diego the largest city in California to ban Styrofoam and reduce single-use plastics.

One year ago, we couldn’t have imagined how the looming global pandemic would impact our lives and businesses. From a business perspective, we all had to implement significant operational changes and make difficult decisions over the past 12 months. Thankfully, throughout the pandemic, our New Car Dealers Association (NCDA) has provided San Diego County new car dealers with timely and important guidance to help us remain compliant with ever-changing rules and standards. Although life likely won’t return to a pre-pandemic normal any time soon, there is light at the end of the tunnel as COVID-19 cases decline throughout California and vaccines achieve widespread distribution.