I can easily say without boasting that my term as CATA
chairman was one unlike any other. Under
the constant challenge posed by the pandemic, my one-year term stretched to two
as we climbed every obstacle that came our way.
Much like you did with each of your dealerships, the CATA came through
slightly bruised but proud of the way we met the challenge and emerged a better
organization. With many wins to be
counted, it’s with a great sense of accomplishment I say “thank you” for the
opportunity.
I can’t go any further without pausing to remember one of
our fellow CATA directors, Scott Muller, who passed away unexpectedly during
the past year. His enthusiasm for the
job of CATA director was something to be admired and has been missed over the
past months and will continue to be.
As the pandemic dawned, one of our primary CATA benefits,
expert legal counsel from Dave Radelet’s team at Littler, became a vital tool
for CATA members to get through the many issues brought on by dealing with the
virus in the workplace. The CATA Board authorized
a large share of our annual resources to provide this benefit at no cost to our
members.
The pandemic initially reduced the legislative session to
a bare minimum, but consistent and continuous efforts by the CATA ultimately
brought about the passage of two critical pieces of legislation, both of which
were signed into law by Governor Pritzker. The first measure was Senate Bill
58, which eliminated the $10,000 cap on sales tax credit for trade-ins.
The second was House Bill 3940, which provided
substantial benefit with regard to warranty rate, time, and parts. Special
thanks to committee chairman Dan Marquardt and the CATA staff for taking this
bill from square one to the finish line with some innovative messaging and
expert lobbying to get the bill passed into law. We have all greatly benefited from these
legislative successes.
Covid challenged the ability of the CATA to hold an auto
show, but the CATA responded by holding not one but two shows once the virus
began to subside. The CATA first reached agreement with state officials and the
City of Chicago to hold the first post Covid trade show in the city during July
2021. We designed a show smaller in size and shorter in duration, but it
created a huge buzz and showed the OEMs the great ingenuity of the CATA team. The
show’s indoor/outdoor hybrid design was well-received by manufacturers, dealers,
and especially consumers. The nightly
Chicago Auto Show Street Fest proved a huge success celebrating the show’s
first-time appearance in the summer.
Seven months later, the CATA held its customary February show
back in the South Building of McCormick Place, with a successful First Look for
Charity gala preceding the show’s opening. The show featured six indoor test tracks – the
most ever -- and electric vehicles received significant attention. Once again,
our media partners came through in a big way with television specials,
tremendous broadcast news coverage, and by extending our media buy. That, along with our leading social media
efforts, kept Chicago Auto Show awareness at the highest levels. Our show
continues to be heralded as the nation’s most significant consumer show by the
manufacturers, the dealers, the press, and most importantly, the public.
The CATA Civic and Dealer Relations Committee continued
with the fifteenth year of the Chicagoland Dealers Care program, with continued
CATA contributions to dealer-sponsored charities in the community. We staged
the ninth annual BBQ for the Troops on July 16, 2022 (interrupted once by
Covid) and proudly
surpassed $1 million to the USO throughout our 10-year campaign. To say we couldn’t have done it without the
continuing support of our dealers is a huge understatement.
CATA’s Drive Chicago Committee continues to refine and
update the website to maintain DriveChicago.com as the definitive online source
for vehicle purchases in Chicago. In conjunction, the CATA Media Strategy
Committee continues to wisely spend CATA resources to promote our dealers,
DriveChicago.com and the Chicago Auto Show.
The CATA Member Benefits Committee continues to seek out
potential partners to provide worthwhile programs and services for CATA
dealers. During the pandemic, many of our approved partners offered discounted
services to our membership. The CATA Board of Directors spent great time in
choosing our newest partner, Vitu, who we foresee providing unparalleled
electronic registration and titling services for our dealers.
The CATA Employee Benefits Committee dealt with a
contentious labor negotiation with Local 701, made more difficult by numerous
dealers who defected from the NCDC at a crucial period. The CATA made the
difficult decision to suspend the defectors from membership, and the CATA is
suing those defectors for damages as were set out in the NCDC Agreement which
they all signed. Additionally, the CATA expelled the law firm that represented
those dealers from membership.
In an effort to provide for more focused meetings and to
reduce cost, the CATA Board amended its bylaws to reduce the size of the Board
to twelve. Accordingly, the CATA Nominating Committee is charged with providing
exceptional candidates for the four annual vacancies on the CATA Board of
Directors.
Finally, we are thrilled that Jennifer Morand has
accepted the Board’s invitation to become Co-President of the CATA with Dave
Sloan for the next two years, and then becoming President upon Dave’s
retirement. Jen brings great vitality to the CATA and a skill set that will
benefit us greatly. We will be sad to lose Dave Sloan, but Dave will work
closely with Jen during the upcoming period to ensure her success.
I truly appreciate the hard work of Dave and Jen and the
entire CATA staff, who, along with Dennis O’Keefe and Dave Radelet who head our
respective legal teams, got the organization through some genuinely tough times.
My thanks also to the CATA Board of Directors for its wise counsel and support
through the past two years.
I congratulate J.C. Phelan on his election as CATA
Chairman for 2022/2023, which comes 14 years after his father served in that
role, and I look forward to my new role as Chairman of the 2023 Chicago Auto
Show.
Sincerely,
Kevin Keefe CATA Chairman 2020-2022
Chicago Automobile Trade Association 18W200 Butterfield Rd.
Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
(630) 495-2282