Put A Legislator In Your Tool Box!

by Delegate Gary Howell of West Virginia

I had the pleasure of meeting Gary Howell at the SEMA show by accident. We have mutual friends that work at Eagle and while at the Eagle booth he overheard me complaining about emission laws and inconsistent enforcement of the vehicle code in California. He introduced himself and we had a good talk about everything from building Mopars to the state of our nation. Turns out we have many of the same core values and it was so refreshing to meet a politician who isn't afraid to stand up for the core views of his constituents. ary also happens to own Howell Automotive, specializing in Mopar Tuning and hopefully I can talk him into writing for us in the near future! – Mike Kojima

The tools you use to modify your car or truck are useless if the government stops you from making those modifications, so putting a legislator in your tool box might be a good idea.

Not all legislators want to take away your right to express yourself through your vehicle. If you drive in front of the West Virginia state capitol parked among the luxury SUVs and cars you will see a red 1999 Jeep Cherokee XJ with a Skyjacker 4.5″ Rock Ready lift with Pro-Comp 30×9.50's. It also has legislative license plates on it. I am not just a state legislator, I am also a motorhead.

In case you slept through civics class (not the class on Honda the class on government), then you might not remember what a Legislator is. If not, then let me give you a refresher. Each state has a Legislature. We are the people that write and pass laws and they can effect everything. That includes what you can do with your car.

All states have State Senators and members of the House. The members of the House maybe called Assemblymen, Representatives or Delegates depending on your state. Basically we are the state equivalent of Congressman and US Senators. There are a lot of state legislators that are motorheads and you need us in your tool box.

As a business owner, Gary wasn't talk, he decided to get involved. Here he is filing to run for office. You don't have to run for office but it helps if you watch laws that affect our sport and contact your own legislators. They want to hear from us and it makes a difference! SEMA can help.

One of my favorite quotes on politics is attributed to Socrates, “If you don't follow politics, then politics will follow you.” It was true some 2,000 years ago and it is true today. It doesn't mean you need to immerse yourself in politics like I do, but does mean you should pay attention enough to catch the things that might affect you and our hobby.

One way you can do that is by signing up for the SEMA Action Network. You can find it at http://www.semaactionnetwork.com Think of it as oil pressure gauge versus an oil pressure light. By the time your oil pressure light comes on, most likely your motor is already damaged. When you notice the oil pressure is dropping on your gauge, then you have time to save it.

Gary as I met him at the SEMA show. He is the real deal, a straight shooter devoted to democracy and serving the constituents that elected him. He is also a respected tuner in the Mopar community. I thought his name was familiar.