New Jersey is home to Springsteen, pork roll sandwiches and, soon, maybe Tesla once again.
The Garden State banned Tesla from selling cars direct to consumers back in March, but the company may soon be able to open up shop once again thanks to a new vote by New Jersey's State Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee. The group voted 4-0 in favor of reversing a law that made it illegal for automakers to sell cars directly to consumers, instead of through dealerships, in the state of New Jersey. According to NJ.com, the law dates back to the 1970s.
"New Jersey prides itself as being pro-business, pro-innovative [sic] and pro-jobs," Assemblyman Tim Eustace told NJ.com. "And this is a company that is an American company, an American idea, I think we would be mistaken if we didn't reverse the idea that the MVC made, making it illegal to sell Teslas in New Jersey. Henry Ford did not start with dealerships. As the company grows, they may need to change their business model. This business model is for right now." The changes approved in the new bill grant Tesla permission to operate four New Jersey locations but at least one of them needs to be able to perform maintenance on Tesla cars as well.
New Jersey isn't the only state that banned Tesla sales because of its direct-to-consumer business model. Texas and other states have also enforced similar laws. Shares of Tesla are trading up 1.2 points on the news.
