Feb. 2, 2016—Tesla Motors Inc. has applied for a Michigan dealership license in a move to test a state law effectively banning its direct-sales model, according to a report by Automotive News.
Tesla applied for the license in November and a decision is expected within two months. The automaker applied for the license about a year after Gov. Rick Snyder signed a bill prohibiting the direct sale of vehicles from automakers to consumers. The application is a way of testing the state’s seriousness in enforcing the law, according to the report.
“As recently amended, current Michigan law prohibits Tesla from being able to license its own sales and service operations in the state,” a spokeswoman for Tesla wrote in an email to Automotive News. “Submission of the application is intended to seek the secretary of state’s confirmation of this prohibition. Once confirmed, Tesla will review any options available to overturn this anti-consumer law.”
