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Oklahoma Wrecker Owners Association P O Box 25604, OKC, OK 73125 - (405) 319-1724 November, 2000 Newsletter Dear Fellow Wrecker Owners: This is an experimental letter.
This letter is slightly different than the one being received
by members. There will
be a few extra items and more about our legislative goals in the members
letters. There is also more about legal issues.
We hope this will encourage you to become a member.
Our dues support our lobbyists and our legislative activities. In the past we collected additional
fees to hire lobbyists when we wanted to attempt to change legislation. But in this day and age, we must have a constant presence at the
Capitol. Every year there
seems to be legislation that is contrary to our industry.
We must have knowledge of these bills before they are passed
out of committee so we can have input to make these new laws acceptable.
Last session Senator Milacek introduced a bill that would require wrecker
owners to notify owners and lien holders of vehicles towed by law enforcement
request. The wording
in the “PPI” law was being added to the non-consent tows. As you know, this would have caused
great harm to our industry. Thanks
to our lobbyists, we were able to get this law withdrawn before it got
to the Senate floor. We
owe Senator Milacek great thanks.
He is a very reasonable man and should be supported in his area
in and around Enid. The Credit Union Lobbyist made the request
for this bill. But this points out how important it is to have someone watching for bills
that may cause us harm before they get “rolling” towards
passage. It also helps to have other Legislators
to help talk to their fellow Legislators when problems arise for us. The Legislators are there to make things
run more smoothly. It
is important to let them know how thing work in the real world so they
can make an intelligent decision on the outcome of legislation. LEGISLATIVE GOALSNow is when we need to be making plans for introducing Bills for next
year. The deadline is
around December 1st so we need to firm up our ideas and present
them to our Legislators. The
current suggestions are:
Fuel Surcharge, Illegal Wreckers,
and Insurance Dumping.
If you would like to help shape your industry, please join. We need new ideas.
We, the members of the OWOA, are deciding our own fate. I hope you decide to join
us and help reach the goals our industry needs so desperately. This is how things get done when we
all work together for a common goal.
This is also why you need a good rapport with your Legislative
Representatives. HAZARDOUS MATERIALThe membership is receiving a report from the Attorney General’s
Office that relates to the requirements of picking up Hazardous Material
on the roadway after a collision.
The Officers and Board members have all received a synopsis of
the ruling. This may be helpful to many members
when dealing with Hazardous Material. DONATIONSAt the election meeting a motion was passed to collect voluntary donations
from the membership to forward to Trooper Evans’ family. He was one of two law enforcement officers
killed in Oklahoma City during a chase on I-40. Many members felt a need to help the
family in this terrible situation and the donations will be forwarded
to the Trooper’s family by way of the OHP Chief’s office. Anyone wishing to contribute may send the donation to the OWOA
(PO Box 25604, OKC, OK 73125-0604)
payable to Trooper Evans Memorial Fund or the OWOA with a note attached
that it is a donation. We
have collected over $200.00 and it should be mailed by the end of October.
INSURANCE RELEASE OF VEHICLESThere still seems to be a letter floating around from the Sapulpa Auto
Pool that adjusters are using to obtain the release of vehicles. While all members are aware of the changes
in the law, there are many non-members that are being forced to release
vehicles without the proper procedures and requirements. Be advised that the letter from the
Sapulpa Auto Pool is not accurate in its interpretation of the law. However, there are conditions in which
an insurance company may obtain the release of a vehicle without the
owner’s consent. To show the necessity for lobbyists I would like to tell you the ideas
presented by the State Farm lobbyist.
While in discussion of the rate increase, the State Farm lobbyist
was able to get the attention of the Legislators and wanted to make
severe changes to our bill.
The insurance industry wanted to be able to release all vehicles
on their sole authority only.
The Legislators would have gone along with it if we hadn’t
been there to point out the problems with the insurance proposal.
The Legislators need to know our side of the issues. Again, this is why we need lobbyists. NEW OFFICERS AND DIRECTORSI wanted to list the officers and directors again for this coming year.
If you know any of these people, give them a call and find out
why they think being a member is important.
These individuals care enough about their industry that they
have volunteered additional time to help improve our industry.
If you aren’t sure why you should belong, give them a call. The Officers and Directors for 2000-2001 are:
NEXT MEETING Our next meeting will be in Tulsa at Sutphen’s
Barbeque. It is located
at 10815
E Marshall. It is
in north east Tulsa. From
I-244 take exit number 14 which is Garnett Road.
Go North on Garnett from I-244.
Marshall will be on your left in an Industrial Park near the
end. There is plenty of parking and we usually
have the whole parking lot to ourselves. It is “Dutch treat” and the cost of the meal is
$9.00 without tip. There
will be a choice of 3 meats, buffet style.
I hope to see you there to join us in our pursuit of making our
industry better for all of us. NEXT MEETINGTUL SA –
SUTPHEN’S BARBEQUE |