39 YEARS
S O UTHEASTEDIT I ON
AUTOBODY AL / FL / GA / MS / NC / SC / TN / VA / WV
U.S. Deficit 60.7% Higher Than This Time Last Year by Bethany Blankley, The Center Square
The federal deficit in the first three months of the b ud get year is 6 0.7 % higher than over the same time period as last year, a record -b reaking $ 57 2.9 b illion. The deficit surged as a result of C ongressional spend ing of $ 3 .5 trillion in 2020 in response to the coronavirus, although critics note that spend ing on pork b arrel programs that had nothing to d o with the virus increased and also drove the deficit. A t the same time, revenue d eclined b ecause of ongoing state lockd owns.
T he T reasury D epartment reports that the deficit is 21 .3 billion higher than the same Octob er-D ecemb er period in 201 9 . A record in spend ing for the period represented an 1 8 .3 % increase of $ 1 .3 8 trillion, while at the same time revenues fell 0.4 % to $ 8 03 .3 7 b illion. I n the month of D ecemb er alone, when C ongress passed , and P resid ent D on ald Tru m p signed several spending bills, the deficit reached a record $ 1 4 3 .6 b illion. T he shortfall for the 2020 b ud get year, which end ed Sept. 3 0, reached an all-time high of $ 3 .1 trillion. See U.S. Deficit, Page 6
‘Who Pays for What’ Survey: About 2 in 5 Shops Itemizing Diagnostic Time Separately from Scanning M ore than a third of shops ( 3 9 % ) itemiz e on invoices the d iagnostic lab or time they spend researching d iagnostic troub le cod es ( D T C s) apart from the charge for the vehicle scan itself, accord ing to j ust-released results from a “ Who P ays for What?” survey. A mong the more than 500 shops respond ing to the survey’ s new q uestions related to d iagnostic time, ab out half acknowled ged never having includ ed an itemiz ed charge for d iagnostic time. B ut among those that d o, ab out three in 1 0 ( 29 % ) say they are paid
“ always” or “ most of the time” for the charge b y the largest eight auto insurers, and the maj ority ( 55% ) say they are paid at least “ some of the time.” M i k e A n d erson of C ollision A d vice, which cond ucts the “ Who P ays” surveys in conj unction with C RA SH N etwork, b elieves those numb ers will grow b ecause d iagnostic time is b ecoming an increasingly significant portion of collision repair work. I know firsthand how much time it takes to research and troub le-
Vol. 11 / Issue 12 / February 2021
2009 redux? Biden cites ‘urgent’ need for his $1.9 trillion stimulus by Philip Wegmann, RealClearWire
T he economy was b ad , and the White House planned to go b ig. On the d ay the mammoth $ 8 00 b illion Recovery A ct b ecame law, however, the new presid ent took care to stress how his ad ministration would keep a close eye on every d ollar going out the d oor. T his task of provid ing oversight, B arac k O b am a announced at the b ill’ s 2009 signing ceremony, would go to J oe B i d en . “ T o you, he’ s M r. V ice P resid ent,” Ob ama q uipped to a room that includ ed more than one skeptical Re-
pub lican lawmaker. “ B ut around the White House, we call him the sheri . I n a few d ays, the country will call him M r. P resid ent. A d ecad e later, B id en confronts a d eeper economic crisis, this one b rought on b y a glob al pand emic, and the incoming ex ecutive has proposed a $ 1 .9 trillion stimulus package meant to b uoy families and communities and small b usinesses as his ad ministration pushes to step up d istrib ution of the coronavirus vaccines. All that old sheri has to do See $1.9 trillion stimulus, Page 12
American Honda Motor Launches New Certification Program by Stacey Phillips
N early six years ago, Am eri ca n H on d a M ot or launched the P roF irst C ertified Body Shop Program. Many were skeptical ab out ob taining OE M certifications, according to R ossan a A lvarez , assistant manager of collision certification and parts marketing for A merican Hond a M otor.
See ‘Who Pays for What’, Page 18
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Over time, she said , shop owners began to realize the benefits of certification for their businesses and momentum b egan to b uild . I n response to feed b ack A merican Hond a M otor has received from shops across the country, the OE M has taken steps to update its certified
collision program. A s a result, the Hond a and A cura Certified Collision Program will replace the P roF irst program d uring a grad ual transition throughout 2021 . “ T he automotive ind ustry continues to make technological ad vances at b reakneck speed , highlighting the need for repair shops to b e fully eq uipped and trained with access to necessary repair proced ures to cond uct a safe and proper repair,” said A lvarez . “ OE M collision certifications are no longer simply popular; they are essential. T he d ays of them b eing consid ered a fad are long gone.” A lvarez said the collision ind ustry is rapid ly changing and it was important for the Hond a team to keep pace. As OEM certification programs continue to gain traction with other sectors of the ind ustry, the immed iate recognition b y those entities and our Hond a and A cura vehicle customers becomes e ponentially beneficial See New Certification Program, Page 16
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