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By Bill Dohring, IADAC Lobbyist
Not too many years ago, automobile dealers were not allowed to charge a customer for a documentary preparation charge. In essence, the dealer was doing DMV's paperwork. That was soon to change after the dealer association, then IADAC, sponsored legislation to establish a doc fee. I was not around then but when I began representing the association in 1982 the doc fee was $25.
Around 1986, we sponsored legislation to increase the doc fee to $35. Of equal importance is that prior to this time, dealers were not allowed to charge for a smog fee, even though some dealers did, it was not allowed. So in one bill, we increased the doc fee and allowed by statute a smog fee. This legislation made the dealers an extra $10 for each sale and allowed them to recoup the costs of complying with state law ensuring that each car was smogged. Not a bad deal, if you sold only 20 cars a month, you pick up an extra $200 almost enough to pay your dues!
Soon after increasing the doc fee and adding smog fees, the legislature introduced legislation to increase the dealer bond to $25,000 from $10,000. As part of the negotiations while opposing the increase, we hammered out a deal to once again increase the doc fee to $45; now the dealers were picking up an extra $20 for each sale. Not bad, huh? As always your association at work! During this time, the smog laws changed, and in certain parts of the state a dynamometer test was required once again raising the cost of the smog test. We went to the legislature and sponsored legislation to increase the smog fee to the current $50. Very important here is that we made another change to the smog law by allowing the dealer to add the cost of the smog certificate on to the contract allowing the dealer to itemize the cost of the cert instead of including it in the smog fee. At that time, the cert was $8, another gain for our members.
Back in 2005, another attempt was made to increase the doc fee to $55 because of the pending "Used Car Buyer's Bill of Rights" legislation that was pending. The bill made it to the Governor but the bill was vetoed.
In 2007, we got a major break at the end of the session and worked with the Governor's office and amended an existing Senate Bill S.B. 44 which the Governor signed and increased the doc fee to $55. Now for those of you who are paying attention, that is a 100 percent increase in the doc fee since 1982. Just add it up and see how much more you are adding to your bottom line at the end of the year. So next time anyone asks what does the association do for me all you have to do is say "how about a 100 percent increase in the doc fee?"
Not to mention all the other things that have been done throughout the years such as, mandating that tow companies notify you within 72 hours of picking up your car eliminating costly storage fees, making tow companies post their rates so they can't gouge you when you pick up your car. Our relationships with the DMV and other agencies that regulate you are of such a nature that they come to us and ask how they can help us with our business; the adversarial relationship that once existed is no more. Perhaps the most important benefit that we have is the Victor Snyder Scholarship Fund that gives our member's children and grandchildren thousands of dollars in scholarships each year! | 
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