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West Orange, N.J.—The May meeting of the Limousine Associations of New Jersey (LANJ) was a packed house, which included a series of speakers, a luncheon, and its annual auction—its largest fundraiser of the year. The event was sponsored by Complete Fleet/Maplecrest, The Lincoln Motor Company, Grech Motors, and Chosen Payments. Chauffeur Driven Sales Manager Darren Saat and Managing Editor Susan Rose attended the meeting, which was held at the Wilshire Grand Hotel in West Orange, N.J.
At the end of the event, over $15,000 had been raised for the association. LANJ board member Pete Corelli of Lakeview Custom Coach was again the association’s auctioneer, often getting just one more bid out of reluctant members. The auction included dozens of donated items, such as sports memorabilia, tickets, and trips. Chauffeur Driven donated a show pass to the Atlantic City show this November, a full page of advertising, and an Affiliate Central ad, which were won, respectively, by John Sutich of Perfect Limousine Service, Mike Marroccoli of Capacity Coverage, and Bob Shiavo of Albert’s Limousine. Jay Glick of First Class Customs won the 50/50 raffle, which he generously donated back to LANJ—over $500.
Raising money wasn’t the only goal of the day. The meeting also included several speakers, such as James Arose of the Division of Inspection Services for the NJ Motor Vehicle Commission, who gave an overview of some of the new plates that will be required for some types of specialty vehicles; Julie Tattoni, special counsel with Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, who shared some strategies on how small businesses can take advantage of some grants that are designed to spur economic development; and Matthew Daus, also with Windels Marx and president of the International Association of Transportation Regulators, who gave an update on the current state of Uber and other apps in many cities across the country.
LANJ President Jim Moseley of TripTracker also presented former president Tim Rose of Flyte Tyme Worldwide with a plaque for his 14 years of service to the association. Rose still serves on the board of LANJ.
The meeting also marked the debut of the brand-new Ford Transit van, which features several wheelbases, body lengths, and roof heights for any purpose. The vehicle was displayed outside the hotel, where members could get a closer look inside and out.
The next LANJ meeting is scheduled for September 17.
Visit lanj.org for more information
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The annual meeting of Illinois Limousine Association (ILA) was held at the White Pines Golf Course in a northwestern suburb of the Windy City. The event was sponsored by Midwest Transportation and Battisti Customs. Bensenville, Ill.—
ILA President Greg Eggan of O’Hare-Midway Limousine Service warmly welcomed members to the well-attended event, but it was soon down to the business at hand with several presenters and panels. Those of note were Randy Allen of James Limousine who spoke about technology for operators; Maria Guerra Lapacek, the Commissioner of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection for the City of Chicago, gave updates on what her department is currently doing, citywide, for those in the chauffeured ground transportation industry; and Chauffeur Driven Publisher Chris Weiss gave a well-received speech on the state of the industry, the rising economy, technology (i.e., Uber and the ridesharing apps), productivity tools, and business profit.
Weiss also raffled off passes to the upcoming Chauffeur Driven shows; Joseph Glinka of Joseph’s Limousine won the pass to the Atlantic City show this November, and Scott Delheimer of Class Act Limousine walked away with a pass for the Canadian Summit, which is scheduled for August in Toronto. In addition, Weiss was asked to speak after the event, behind closed doors, to ILA members on ways grow the association and expand its membership. And, speaking of membership, Chauffeur Driven is now proud members of the ILA.
“The ILA has welcomed with open arms the increased support from our current member vendors in addition to several new members that have recently joined, including the very welcome addition of Chauffeur Driven.” says Tracy Reimer of Your Private Limo and vice president of ILA. “Several times throughout the day, I would hear from vendors, ‘How can we be more supportive to the ILA?’ It is evident by the attendance of members and vendors that uniting as an industry in order to face the current issues affecting us is imperative. Our industry as we have known it is changing, and we need to be in the forefront of this change in order to stay competitive and offer services that our travelers are requesting.”
“2014 is an exciting year for the Illinois Limousine Association. We initiated a modified annual meeting format with the objective of bringing more educational and industry-relevant information of interest to our membership,” says Paula DeBiasi of Chicago Coachworks and ILA board member. “Starting in June we will initiate a newly modified newsletter that will report on industry news as well as tips and techniques to help members optimize their business operations.”
In addition, there were well over 20 exhibitors and vendors at the meeting with various vehicles and wares on display, including Nationwide Bus Sales, Napleton Auto Group, Tesla Motors, Illinois Bus Sales, and Grech Motors.
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Sacramento, Calif.— The most recent meeting of the Greater California Livery Association (GCLA) tackled a bevy of meaty issues. The meeting itself was sponsored by Grech Motors/Team Superstores and Vallejo Cadillac, and put together by Dave Kinney, the Sacramento director of GCLA.
First and foremost on the agenda were the legislative issues the association is currently wrangling with. GCLA Lobbyists, Greg Cook and Rob Grossglauser, had an update on Senate Bill 611 (SB 611) which was finally signed off on by the GCLA, mainly because it will do away with the need for livery plates (and the accompanying hassle that obtaining these plates causes) in the state.
Chris Quinn, Northern California GCLA Director and president of Corporate Transportation Solutions, gave a presentation on independent contractors (IC) versus “regular” employees. California has some of the toughest standards for IC versus employee status in the nation—and much to the chagrin of many, will stay that way—and misclassifying employees comes with some hefty fines. The presentation tied directly into GCLA’s legal battle with Uber and other ridesharing apps. GCLA President Rich Azzolino of Gateway Global was personally invited by David Jones, the insurance commissioner of California, to give a presentation to the commission on the rogue apps’ hiring practices and myriad insurance issues. This presentation was very well received by the commission and will be used to initiate policy moving forward.
“After that presentation, let’s just say that all the app companies are (hacked) off at me and the GCLA … and we kinda like it that way,” says Azzolino. “We made an impact and they are running for cover.”
Azzolino also gave an update on the current issues being addressed at the San Francisco Airport (SFO). There is legislation in discussion that will deal with the rogue app companies illegally entering the airport for pick-ups and drop offs. This proposed legislation would greatly increase the amount of enforcement patrols, and increase the fines that can be levied against offenders. An issue stemming from this is that the San Francisco Airport is located in San Mateo County, not in San Francisco proper, and San Mateo courts were summarily dismissing these cases without enforcing the incurred penalties and fines. The main reason that the San Mateo courts were doing this because the revenue generated by these fines was going to San Francisco, not San Mateo, due to the fact that the police at the airport are a branch of the San Francisco police department. GCLA is backing legislation that would put an end to these summary dismissals, streamline the complicated process, and ensure that the perpetrators ultimately get their just desserts.
Finally, Charles Lesson from Tesla Motors had a Model S on display for operators to test drive at their leisure. Lesson also had information available about purchase and lease options on the sleek and stylish Model S.
GCLA’s next meeting will be held on May 13 in Long Beach, Calif.
Visit gcla.orgfor more information.
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