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Senate lawmakers will begin to debate this week the a measure which was approved by the House to provide $2 billion in additional funding for the Cash for Clunkers bill.

The bill was signed into law by President Obama on June 24, 2009 which put in play the creation of the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) which is operated by the NHTSA.

We predict that the Senate discussion will be far from friendly. In fact, the initial $1 billion in funding barely made it out of the Senate alive.

The original $1 billion in funding was appended to a larger spending bill and a motion was raised to strip the Cash for Clunkers funding out of the bill. A floor vote was called in the Senate and supporters needed 60 votes to keep the Cash for Clunkers bill alive; they got exactly 60 votes.

With the initial measure passing by just one vote, opponents of the original bill will be gearing up for an even stronger opposition in round two of the Cash for Clunkers cat fight. Some Senators have even threatened a filibuster to block additional funding.

CARS Program Broke

Without additional funding the Cash for Clunkers program may be called to an immediate stop. The initial $1 billion in funding is already gone and Washington can’t let the program run out of gas for too long.

If the Senate vote is blocked or delayed, Washington will be forced to come up with another way to supply the promised funds to reimburse car dealers for trades that have been submitted. The program roll-out has been far from smooth and the lack of clarity about funding is par for the course.

In spite of being out of cash, the NHTSA and Transportation Secretary Raymond LaHood have confidently said that the program is running as planned and has encouraged consumers to go out and purchase a new car under the CARS program.

Firm End Date A Better Choice

Dealers and consumers would be better off if Congress set a firm end date for the Cash for Clunkers program and not a dollar amount. This would take away the fear of funding running out and give consumers and dealers clear notice on when the last day of CARS transactions can be made.

We have the final rules for the NHTSA Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) in hand and we will continue to post our consumer comments and analysis.

To read commentary:  Click Here

Here is the 136 Page NHTSA Document: Cash for Clunkers FINAL RULES

Many questions remain unanswered.  The final rules may resolve some of the questions that consumers have raised.

Cash For Clunkers Rulings

We are hoping that the published document on the official NHTSA CARS website (www.cars.gov ) will answer some of these questions:

1. What do consumers do when their car is not listed on http://fueleconomy.gov?

2. Will cars with outstanding loans (liens) be able to be traded in for a CARS credit?

3. What procedures will be put in place to ensure that cars are not resold?

4. Will clunker owners that had short lapses in insurance or registration do to unforeseen circumstances be allowed to participate?

5. Will parents by able to pass their clunker credit to their children?

6. What paperwork will qualify as proof of continuous insurance and registration?

7. Will consumers get any part of the cash that dealers will receive from the salvage yard?

8. Will dealers be taxed for the CARS government credit as income?

Go Blue will be the rallying call for car dealers this week. The NHTSA launched a new “blue website” dedicated to support cars dealers participating in the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS).

Dealers can visit this special CARS dealer support website by clicking here: Dealer Website

The dealers dedicated website has new information on the program as well as a future section for marketing material compliance. This coming soon area is for dealers to understand and implement advertising program that are compliant with NHTSA rules.

The True Blue website will be very important for car dealers to bookmark during the lifespan of the Car Allowance Rebate System. The NHTSA picked a blue color scheme for the website to differentiate it from the consumer facing website which is lime green.

Do the colors mean that consumers will see all the green and car dealers will be crying to blues with all the paperwork and compliance issues that the program represents?

The website has a Dealer FAQ  page as well as well as a graphical depiction of the the dealer NHTSA interaction will look. View Images.

Dealers should see their official registration letters in the mail this coming week. The letters were mailed on Friday July 17th from an Oklahoma mail facility.