This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Tesla motorcars spent $3 million to buy and build a dealership in South Salt Lake City, as the law required, before it found that Utah would not give it a permit. The House decided on Friday that is unfair.
It voted 73-0 to pass HB18, which changes the requirements for applying for a permit.
Rep. Kim Coleman, R-West Jordan, sponsor of the bill, said it would no longer require potential dealers to buy property as part of the process for applying for a dealership permit.
"That has been part of the process that was required," she said. With Tesla denied a permit after spending $3 million to build a dealership, "That essentially became the highest application fee ever."
The bill would allow applicants to take all steps necessary except buying property to receive a provisional permit. That would allow it to finalize property purchases safely. It would receive a final permit after a dealership is actually bought.
The bill now goes to the Senate.
State regulators have denied Tesla a license to sell its vehicles in Utah for more than a year, contending that the company is not complying with laws that require car manufacturers to enter into franchise agreements with third-party dealers in order to sell new cars in the state.
The company sued, and the case is now before the Utah Supreme Court.
In both the 2015 and 2016 legislative sessions, attempts were made to tweak the law to accommodate Tesla, but the car dealers beat back the effort with the help of other car manufacturers who said changing the law to help Tesla would put them at a distinct disadvantage.