HB 516 Utah House · 2025 General Session

Automobile Franchise Amendments

HB 516 amends Utah's automobile franchise law to clarify definitions and remove outdated provisions. It defines "affiliate," excludes dealerships from the "franchise holder" definition, and repeals rules about franchisors' permitted activities. The bill makes technical adjustments to Utah Code sections 13-14-201 and 41-3-102, which govern franchisor-franchisee relationships. These changes primarily affect automobile dealerships and manufacturers operating under franchise agreements in Utah, streamlining existing regulations without introducing new restrictions.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2025

House Passage

Mar 2025

Senate Passage

Mar 2025

Signed into Law

Mar 2025

Introduced Feb 18, 2025 Signed Mar 26, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Substitute #1 → Enrolled · 2 edits · Mar 26, 2025

MINOR

This bill adds a cosponsor to the legislation and updates the effective date to May 7, 2025. The core text of the automobile franchise amendments remains identical to the previous version, with no substantive changes to prohibited acts, definitions, or enforcement rules.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the bill was changed from February 21, 2025 to March 11, 2025, which delays the implementation of the bill's provisions.

TECHNICAL

A new cosponsor, Melissa G. Ballard, was added to the Senate sponsorship list.

Introduced → Substitute #1 · 6 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates Utah's automobile franchise laws to address the rise of electric vehicles and direct-to-consumer manufacturers. The most significant change is expanding the definition of a 'franchise holder' to include manufacturers that acquire or expand interests in electric vehicle dealerships or other manufacturers, ensuring traditional franchise protections apply to these new market entrants. The bill also clarifies the definition of 'affiliate' to explicitly cover entities sharing common control and adds specific language regarding ownership by franchise holders. Additionally, the Senate sponsor was changed from 'LONG TITLE' to 'Chris H. Wilson', and the effective date was updated from February 4 to February 21, 2025.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to explicitly cover manufacturers that acquire interests in electric vehicle dealerships or other manufacturers, bringing them under the existing franchise holder regulations that previously may not have clearly applied to these specific acquisition scenarios.

DEFINITION

The definition of 'affiliate' was modified to explicitly state that control includes sharing 'common control with a person specified' and 'is controlled by a person specified', clarifying the relationship between related entities.

The definition of 'franchise holder' was modified to include manufacturers that acquire or expand an interest in another manufacturer or an electric vehicle dealership after July 1, 2018, ensuring franchise protections apply to these acquisitions.

The exclusion criteria for 'franchise holder' were modified to specify that the ownership or control must have existed 'as of July 1, 2018', establishing a clear cutoff date for grandfathering existing manufacturers.

The definition of 'material owner' was modified to include ownership of 'any other franchise holder' in addition to other manufacturers, broadening the scope of related party transactions.

TIMELINE

The effective date of the bill was changed from May 7, 2025, to February 21, 2025, accelerating when the new rules take effect.

TECHNICAL

The Senate Sponsor name was changed from 'LONG TITLE' to 'Chris H. Wilson', and the timestamp was updated from 11:05 AM on February 4 to 8:05 AM on February 21.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 26, 2025

Signed into law

Governor Signed

executive

Mar 8, 2025

Legislature · Passed

House/ signed by Speaker/ sent for enrolling

legislature

Mar 8, 2025

Lower · Passed

Senate/ signed by President/ returned to House

lower

Mar 4, 2025

Upper · Passed

Senate/ committee report favorable

upper

Mar 3, 2025

Upper · Passed

Senate Comm - Favorable Recommendation

upper

Feb 28, 2025

Committee

Senate/ to standing committee

upper

Feb 28, 2025

Introduced

Senate/ 1st reading (Introduced)

upper

Feb 27, 2025

Upper · Passed

House/ passed 3rd reading

upper

Feb 21, 2025

Lower · Passed

House Comm - Favorable Recommendation

lower

Feb 19, 2025

Committee

House/ to standing committee

lower

Feb 18, 2025

Introduced

House/ 1st reading (Introduced)

lower

1 primary · 1 co-sponsor