The USA, one of the world’s largest car markets, has great electrification potential. While some states are progressive, there are many that are quite conservative. One of these is the southern state of Mississippi, which now wants to make it harder for electric car manufacturers and thus says no to electric cars.
Mississippi’s Republican Senate gave approval last Thursday to a bill that makes it harder for electric car manufacturers to open traditional dealerships.
It’s a matter of requiring electric car manufacturers to follow the same rules as “traditional car manufacturers,” as they put it.
Yet, at the same time “Sales of electric vehicles in the United States rose by two-thirds in 2022, comprising 5.8 percent of all new cars sold. The list of body styles coming in 2023 and beyond varies, and the number of brands introducing their first EV model is also growing.” according to Gadgetadvisor.com.
Complicated background
It all stems from the fact that direct sales of cars in the USA are more or less illegal.
This is something that has been around since the 1970s when the three big American manufacturers – Ford, GM, and Chrysler – were banned from selling directly to customers to avoid pricing out dealerships.
More and more car manufacturers have begun direct sales which, in turn, removes a middleman.
This results in the manufacturer being able to produce exactly the number of cars they sell, and pricing becoming more uniform.
No to electric cars? A polarizing subject
Those who are in favor of the new bill in Mississippi argue that it means all car manufacturers must comply with the same rules, regardless of business model.
Those who are against the new bill believe that it means the state is intervening too much while hindering job opportunities and healthy development. Many car manufacturers circumvent this problem by categorizing their stores as just stores, rather than dealerships.
What the proposal specifically entails is not clear; instead, it is a matter of making it harder for so-called electric car manufacturers.
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