NEW YEAR TO USHER IN MANY CHANGES FOR DEALERS IADA wishes all of our members a very Happy New Year. We sincerely appreciate your support and partnership in all our efforts and programs as we work together to navigate through these unique times. We are stronger together! The new year will usher in several changes for dealers, most of them favorable. Below is a quick reminder of the legislative changes affecting dealers that will take effect on January 1, 2022. LEGAL REMINDER: $10,000 CAP ON TRADE-IN CREDITS EXPIRES AT YEAR-END Legislation supported by IADA and CATA to remove the $10,000 cap on first-division motor vehicle trade-ins will take effect on January 1, 2022. Starting Saturday, all customers will be able to get credit for the full value of their trade-ins. If a customer makes an advance trade-in of a vehicle worth over $10,000 before the end of the year and waits to use the credit on or after January 1, 2022, the customer will be entitled to a full trade-in credit. Additional details about how to use advance trade-in credits can be found in this IADA Bulletin. WHAT WE GET ACCOMPLISHED WITH YOUR SUPPORT AND PARTNERSHIP IADA is as strong as our members, you! Thanks for your participation in our Association Programs, especially IADA-CVR, which allow us to achieve so many of these accomplishments for you. Everything IADA does is with the intention of having a strong, unified voice for all our IL dealers. We have been working with CVR to improve your title and registration process since the inception of the ERT process and we will never take your support and participation for granted! Stay tuned for some very exciting news about our fully integrated 50-state solution to help make all your out-of-state sales go smoother! NEW WARRANTY REIMBURSEMENT LAW TAKES EFFECT JANUARY 1st IADA and CATA promoted legislation (Public Act 102-232) to increase dealer compensation for warranty repairs will take effect on January 1, 2022. The following article summarizes the upcoming changes to warranty reimbursement and provides guidance on steps that dealers can take now to best take advantage of those changes. (Click here for the full article) IADA hosted a webinar conducted by Bellavia Blatt, PC, which provided additional information about how dealers can take advantage of the new law. A recording of the webinar is available here
(passcode needed - ?50xr*4N) SB 573 - 90 DAY DRIVE AWAY PERMIT/ $20 DEALER TITLE IADA was able to make a couple of changes to the Illinois Vehicle Code, enacted as Public Act 102-154. The first change was to extend the current 30-day drive away permit to be used for 90 days. The extended duration of the drive away permit will give non-Illinois customers sufficient time to title and register their vehicles in their home states. P.A. 102-154 also allows dealers to obtain a $20 dealer title when the assignment areas are full, saving dealers from paying the full price on titles. Both of these changes are effective January 1, 2022. MAXIMUM DOC FEE INCREASES TO $324.24 FOR 2022 The documentary fee, or doc fee, will increase from $303.60 to $324.24 on January 1, 2022. This is an approximate 6.8% increase in the 12-month Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers issued by the U.S. Department of Labor.
The change in the base doc fee will require updates to the notice that must accompany or be included on the retail installment contract as required under Section 11.1 of the Motor Vehicle Retail Installment Sales Act. The required disclosure is as follows:
"DOCUMENTARY FEE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT AN OFFICIAL FEE. A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS NOT REQUIRED BY LAW, BUT MAY BE CHARGED TO BUYERS FOR HANDLING DOCUMENTS AND PERFORMING SERVICES RELATED TO CLOSING OF A SALE. THE BASE DOCUMENTARY FEE BEGINNING JANUARY 1, 2020, WAS $300. THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT THAT MAY BE CHARGED FOR A DOCUMENTARY FEE IS THE BASE DOCUMENTARY FEE OF $300, WHICH SHALL BE SUBJECT TO AN ANNUAL RATE ADJUSTMENT EQUAL TO THE PERCENTAGE OF CHANGE IN THE BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS CONSUMER PRICE INDEX. THIS NOTICE IS REQUIRED BY LAW."
Please note that the doc fee is subject to Retailers' Occupation Tax as part of the gross proceeds from the vehicle sale. SOS TITLE FEE INCREASING TO $155 ON JANUARY 1st Beginning January 1, 2022, the fee for a Certificate of Title will increase from $150 to $155. Please note that the increased fee will be assessed on the date the transaction is submitted into CVR, not the purchase date. LOCALLY IMPOSED SALES TAX CHANGES EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1ST Beginning January 1, 2022, the rates of certain locally imposed sales taxes that are administered by the Illinois Department of Revenue will change. Please refer to the attached bulletin from the Illinois Department of Revenue to see if you are affected. Please note that these sales tax rate changes apply only to general merchandise and do not apply to vehicles. The Department of Revenue bulletin outlining the sales tax increases can be found here. LEGAL REMINDER: STATEWIDE MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES TO $12/HOUR ON JANUARY 1, 2022 The statewide minimum wage will increase from $11.00 per hour to $12.00 per hour on January 1, 2022. On January 1, 2023, and on each January 1st thereafter, the State minimum wage will increase by $1.00 per hour through January 1, 2025, when the minimum wage will reach $15.00 per hour.
The current minimum wage in Cook County, outside of Chicago, is $13.00 per hour (except in municipalities that have opted out of the Cook County Minimum wage) and the minimum wage in Chicago is $15.00 per hour.
Illinois employers are advised to review their pay plans to make sure that they meet minimum wage obligations. OSHA VACCINATION AND TESTING REQUIREMENTS FOR LARGE EMPLOYERS SET TO RETURN On December 17th, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the stay of OSHA's Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), meaning that the COVID-19 vaccine or test mandate for employers with at least 100 employees (see November 5 IADA Bulletin) is back in effect. Several groups filed legal challenges to the stay with the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court has announced that it will hear oral arguments on January 7th. Implementation of the ETS was originally set to begin on December 5th with full implementation required by January 4, 2022. Shortly after the 6th Circuit lifted the stay, OSHA issued a statement that it will not begin enforcing the ETS until January 10, 2022 and will not enforce the testing mandate for unvaccinated employees until February 9, 2022. There is no guarantee that the Supreme Court will issue a ruling by January 10th, so affected employers are advised to consider compiling a list of vaccinated employees and preparing to adopt a vaccination policy soon. WHAT EMPLOYERS NEED TO DO BY JANUARY 10, 2022 COVID-19 Vaccination Policy Required Covered employers will be required to adopt one of the following COVID-19 policies. Employers must adopt a Vaccination Policy and distribute the policy to all employees by January 10, 2022. The policy must either mandate that all employees who do not qualify for a medical or religious exemption must be vaccinated or mandate weekly testing and masking requirements for all unvaccinated employees. Option 1-Mandatory Vaccination: Mandate Covid-19 vaccination for all employees who report to an indoor workplace where other employees are present, subject to reasonable accommodation exemptions for medical reasons or sincerely held religious beliefs. If an employer chooses Option 1 and grants a reasonable accommodation exemption, the exempt employee must submit to weekly COVID-19 testing and wear a face mask when indoors or in a vehicle with other people. The OSHA website has a sample policy here. Option 2-Vaccination or Test and Mask: Require all employees who are not fully vaccinated (2 weeks past final vaccine, not including booster) to submit to weekly testing and wear face masks when indoors or in a vehicle with other people. The OSHA website has a sample policy here. Along with the policy, employers must distribute the CDC document "Key Things to Know About COVID-19 Vaccines" and notification that it is illegal for a person to knowingly provide false documentation about his or her vaccination status. Although employers are not obligated to pay for employee COVID tests, under the Fair Labor Standards Act, time spent by Option 2 employees and Option 1 employees who qualify for a reasonable accommodation exemption to get tested is compensable time. Determination of Vaccination Status-Recordkeeping Requirements As part of the Vaccination Policy, the ETS will require employers to determine the vaccination status of all employees by January 10, 2022, which includes obtaining proof of vaccination for all employees who report that they are vaccinated. Vaccination status and proof of vaccination are confidential medical records that must not be disclosed, except as required by law. It is permissible to inquire whether an employee is vaccinated, but, unless the employee is seeking a reasonable accommodation exemption, the inquiry should end there. Asking an employee why he or she is or is not vaccinated can be considered an impermissible health-related inquiry. Similarly, if an employee makes a request for a medical reasonable accommodation exemption, follow-up inquiries should be limited to requests for documentation from a health care provider that the employee cannot be vaccinated and an employer should not inquire about why the employee is unable to be vaccinated. Paid Sick Leave for Vaccinations The ETS requires employers to provide a reasonable amount of paid sick leave for employees to get vaccinated (up to 4 hours) and additional time to recover from the side effects of a primary (non-booster) vaccination dose. WHAT EMPLOYERS NEED TO DO BY FEBRUARY 9, 2022 Employers who elect Option 2 and employers who elect Option 1 but have employees who qualify for a reasonable accommodation exemption must begin weekly testing of their unvaccinated employees by February 9, 2022. Employers must keep records of all employee test results, which are confidential medical records. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Additional information, including a general overview, Frequently Asked Questions, and model policies can be found on the OSHA website. IADA OFFICES WILL BE CLOSED AS WE CELEBRATE NEW YEARS EVE! |
