It has been a pretty active day for us at the Texas State Capitol, as we have a little more news regarding Save the Texas Dune Buggy, Sandrail & Kitcar. We have confirmation as to who it is that is trying to rid Texas roads from Dune Buggies, Sandrails & Kitcars. The lobbyist for TADA (Texas Automobile Dealers Association) spoke with Ron (our lobbyist) at the Capitol & told him TADA is opposing our bill. Even though the bill has not been filed & they have not had the opportunity to read a word of it.
“The Texas Automobile Dealers Association (TADA) is the statewide trade association representing over 1,300 franchised automobile dealerships in nearly 300 communities throughout the state of Texas.TADA advocates on behalf of the dealers at the Texas Legislature, Congress, and all regulatory agencies.”
For those of you who do not know General Counsel for TADA has been involved with this issue from the start, yet they have been VERY Closed lipped at EVERY MEETING!
When discussions on the safety of our cars was brought up, and we asked how a Dune Buggy, Sandrail or Kitcar was less Safe then a Motorcycle. Tada had nothing to say.
When we asked why the TxDMV felt that a Assembled Vehicle was less safe than that of a Motorcycle, Hot Rod, Rat Rod, etc., and the TxDMV responded with “Those vehicles are in a different catagory”. TADA had nothing to say.
When we asked the TxDMV for data to PROVE that our Vehicles were unsafe. TADA had nothing to say.
When we showed the TxDMV that NHTSA had written a letter talking about how an Assembled Vehicle was not governed by the Federal Government, & that it was up to the individual State to regulate them. TADA had nothing to say.
When we showed Graphics of how other categories of vehicles modified their chassis in much the same way as a person did for an Original Dune Buggy, and the TxDMV only said that those vehicles were in a different category. TADA had nothing to say.
When Jeremiah Kuntz, the Director of the Vehicle Titles & Registration Division for the TxDMV directly asked TADA General Counsel what they had to say about the 3 Working Group Meetings that were set up by the TxDMV Board of Directors. TADA had nothing to say.
Of all the time and money that has been spent thus far during both Working Group Meetings as well as TxDMV Board Meetings that TADA has been DIRECTLY INVOLVED in. TADA has had nothing to say.
Fast forward to today when their lobbyist told ours, that TADA will be opposing our bill BEFORE they have even had a chance to read it. Stating that they are doing so because they heard they were unsafe automobiles. This is 100% disgusting, Friends!
Folks, we now have absolute confirmation who our enemy is! At the right time we will need EVERYONE to call their legislator and give them the facts. They need to hear from US the Builders & Owners what the facts are in regards to our vehicles, and NOT the distorted arguments that TADA will give.
The FIGHT is on. That is all we have for now!
86th Legislative Session
Monday, January 21st, 2019, Ron our Lobbyist, gave us an update. He said that the Newly appointed Texas State Senate Transportation Committee for the 86th Legislative session was announced. That is good news as it means that they will finally get things underway, we hope.
Chair: Sen. Robert Nichols, Jacksonville
Vice Chair: Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills
Members: Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston
Sen. Juan Hinojosa, D- Edinburg
Sen. Lois W. Kolkhorst, R-Brenham
Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock
Sen. José R. Rodríguez, D-El Paso
Sen. Charles Schwertner, R- Georgetown
Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas
As of the time that I am writing this, our bill is being rewritten by attorneys, once they have put everything into the “legal language”, it will be presented to us in order to look over and make any corrections we feel might be necessary. We will post when this happens.
After the attorneys have done their due diligence Texas State Senator Ed Thompson (R) District 29 will present our bill to the Texas State House Transportation Committee.
After the House Transportation Committee, the bill will be presented to the Texas State Senate Transportation Committee.
Once both the House & Senate Transportation Committees have passed our bill. It will be presented to both the House as well as the Senate Floor for Debate.
At this point, you are probably asking yourself what you can be doing while this LONG process takes place.
Most importantly, you can follow along on the “Save the Texas Dune Buggy, Sandrail, & Kitcar Facebook page.
Be prepared to attend any meetings that we ask you to attend. (On the Save the Texas Dune Buggy, Sandrail, & Kitcar Facebook Page.) So get those dress clothes to the cleaners in order to be prepared, we HAVE GOT TO HAVE LARGER NUMBERS show up to the meetings we ask you to attend than we have in the past. Remember there is strength in numbers.
It is understood that it feels a lot like we are asking everyone to sit on our hands, seeing how we were all so individually active a few months back. But sending letters & making calls at this time very well could do more harm than good at this point. As each Legislator is getting bombarded and their time is very limited right now. What we need to do is let Ron (Our Lobbyist) do the job we are paying him for. I have been with him in Downtown Austin on more than one occasion, it seems everyone who walks around downtown Austin, knows who Ron is & knows who he represents. It’s pretty close to being with a Rock Star. LOL
Lastly, we NEED YOUR continued donations! Please keep in mind that all proceeds go to fund the fight & we can not do this without your donations. If you would like to make a donation, please donate to our PayPal Account.
December Fund Raiser
Someone was asking if we were still selling T-Shirts, Hats & Stickers. Yes, Yes we are! We still have T-Shirts in all sizes ($35.00), Black hats with White, Red, Blue or Green Graphics ($35.00) & 6″ Stickers available($10.00). If you would like to donate in order to receive one of the items below. Please pay via PayPal
Vote!
I spoke to Ron (Our Lobbyist) and he said that it is NOT a good idea to start a letter-writing campaign at the moment. The Elections are just around the corner, next Tuesday, November 6th to be exact. (So get out and vote!) Soon after the elections, we will get back to work writing letters that will help our cause move forward.
If you have been a member for very long, you know that the waiting game is darn near painful for me. LOL However, we do need to do some fundraising in order to keep this ball rolling. ALL FUNDS raised go directly to the cause!!! Please expect to see a few items up for sale later today! THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
On a side note, if you live or vote in the Texas State 22nd Congressional District, please email me at faron@savethetexasdunebuggy.com I will explain more in a reply email!
Save the Texas Dune Buggy Rally
Successful! That is how we all should look at the Save the Texas Dune Buggy Rally held on the South Lawn of the Texas State Capitol Building, October 25, 2018. The Rally to help build support for Save the Texas Dune Buggy, Sandrail, & Kitcar was successful indeed! We had people from all over the country that took time to show 
support! We are all grateful to each!
It was interesting to see so many people walk by to see what we were doing, & we know that our Rally got a lot of attention. We truly feel that the Rally reached far more people than what we know, important people. The fact that Empower Texans posted an article about our Rally is huge, as that article went out to people that will have an opportunity to vote on our Bill. Empower Texans is a Conservative Watchdog Group that is very close to Gov. Abbott & Lt. Gov. Patrick & many other very Conservative Legislators. The Rally was ANOTHER Huge step towards the Success of Save the Texas Dune Buggy, Sandrail, & Kitcar!
Save the Texas Dune Buggy Rally Video
Posted by Faron Smith on Thursday, October 25, 2018
Carolina Dune Buggies TV Show
Here at the CDB show, we are with you guys in spirit. May it all go well tomorrow!! Thanks Faron Smith for taking the time to go on camera with us to raise awareness.
Facebook page now Public!
In the past, we had worried about the TxDMV being able to read what was written in this group. We did so because, during the Working Groups, they used our words against us at times. In fact, the talks about ways to get around the rules seemed to push Kuntz to put up more roadblocks. However, in this process, we are no longer worried about the TxDMV. We have moved beyond them, and are now working with their “Boss” if you will. I say all of that to get to my point, I have opened the group so that posts are easier to share. The problem with that, EVERYONE has to THINK before they post! Please be reasonable with your posts, and if we feel your post is offensive. It will be deleted. We haven’t had much of a problem in the past, but the group was not this big. Please be kind, if you notice there is only one Admin on this page. LOL
Check it out here… Save the Texas Dune Buggy
Austin Rally
Good Morning! It is time that I take a moment to write another Really Long informative post as I have been getting a few questions about the upcoming Rally on October 25th, 2018.
The Host Hotel will be the Hilton Garden Inn, that is about a 15 to 20-minute drive to the Capitol Building. We reserved 20 rooms for the event, and if you mention that you are with the Save the Texas Dune Buggy Group the room will be $129.00 per night plus tax. They have a nice lobby with a bar where we can all get together and hang out. They also have a nice outside area if the weather is nice. A lot of people have committed to showing up Wednesday the 24th. Some will leave Thursday the 25th after the Rally, but we will have an event planned for all the way through Saturday Evening! (We will post the schedule once everything is fully planned.) As for parking at the hotel, I was told that the front portion would be reserved for us. However, I am not holding my breath that is 100% true, as the Sales-Manager was not happy agreeing to that. There is parking for those of you who have trailers, but as with anything NOTHNG is guaranteed. We did the best we could. There are other hotels in the General area, we will get info on them as well.
Hilton Garden Inn
7610 John Glenn Way
Austin, Texas 78741
(512)386-7474
On the 25th we will hold the Rally on the Texas State Capitol Lawn in Austin. The reason for doing the Rally will be to invite Legislators to learn more about Dune Buggies, Sandrails, & Kitcars & why they should not be banned from LEGAL Title & Registration in Texas, or any state for that matter. The Rally will start promptly at 10:00 A.M. and will end at 11:00AM. There will be a list of speakers, but the people most of us really want to see is Bruce & Winnie Meyers.
Texas State Capitol
1100 Congress Ave.
Austin, Texas 78701
It is unfortunate, but the State Preservation Board does not allow for vehicles to be parked in the area where the Rally will take place. However, we can pay to have the State put a bag over the Parking Meters. There are 24 Parking Meters on the South Side of the Capitol Building (That would be considered the front to me) & 50 along the West Side. If you would like one of these spaces, we are going to have to ask that you cover the $15.00 for the day fee the State will charge us. Please let us know ASAP so that we can reserve them. We will also ask that you be open to letting people sit in your vehicle and give Legislators rides if they ask. However, it is your vehicle do what makes you comfortable. IF you do give a Legislator a ride, it is 100% imperative that you obey ALL TRAFFIC LAWS.
There is a large Parking Garage to the East side of the Capitol Building. We are not 100% sure that it is possible to pull a trailer in there, we will be doing a lot of scouting around Austin Wednesday & will let you know Thursday morning.
If you come here from out of state and your vehicle is Titled/Registered in a state other than Texas. You are perfectly legal, and should not have a problem with the law, unless you act a fool and break our traffic laws.
If you are a Texas Resident and are Grandfathered in, you should be safe. If you are a Texas Resident and you are not 100% legal, you are subject to a little trouble. Possibly, but who knows for sure! There is no way to know what will, or could happen & we will not & cannot tell you what you should or shouldn’t do. Basically, you have 3 options. 1. Be ultra-bold and drive your Vehicle to the event knowing that you are in fact taking a risk. 2. Bring your Vehicle on a trailer and pull your vehicle off to put it in a Parking Place. Or finally 3. Leave your Buggy on the trailer showing Legislators the Strong Statement that vehicles from other states are here to support our cause & are perfectly legal & able to enjoy freedoms in their home state. While the State of Texas is reducing the freedoms of its citizens.
The Rally itself will be held the morning of October the 25th, and we will schedule fun for the rest of the day. But that is not where the fun will end. We will have fun scheduled for the Friday 26th, as well as Saturday the 27th. The schedule is not complete as of right now, we will post up the full schedule as soon as everything is finalized.
Time to bring this to a close. The Rally to be held Thursday October 25th is very important to our cause. As Texans we should be THANKFUL that people have already committed to joining us at the Rally from out of state. Listen up Texans, this has the most immediate effect on you as a Assembled Vehicle Owner, PLEASE take the time to join us at the RALLY! We cannot stress enough that it is REALLY IMPORTANT that we have a large crowd in attendance!