Auto retailers in Georgia filed a petition to the Georgia Department of Revenue to ban Tesla Motors Inc. from selling its sedans within the state.
According to the Georgia Automobile Dealers Association, the electric carmaker is selling more than the allowed number of cars, which violates the state's rules. The group consists of 500 dealerships that want the government agency to revoke Tesla's license to sell.
"It's just very simple -- we want them to comply with the law the way others are," Bill Morie, president of the Georgia Dealers Association, told Automotive News.
Tesla's license to operate in Georgia only allows the company to sell cars manufactured using the specifications that the customer has requested on the vehicle's design. The company is also limited to selling only 150 units per year. The petition highlighted that Tesla has sold more than 173 cars from October 2013 to June 2014 in one outlet in Atlanta.
"It's difficult to find fault in the dealers association point that manufacturers should adhere to the existing laws," Eric Ibara, senior analyst for Kelley Blue Book in Irvine, California told Bloomberg. "With the success of the Model S and the prospect of future Tesla products, it's also not hard to envision a groundswell of Georgia voters petitioning their lawmakers into allowing for the sale of these cars in their state."
This is not the first time that Tesla got involved in complaints like this. The company also had the same issue in New Jersey, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. Tesla CEO Elon Musk defended that the Model S sedans are best sold by their own staff that can provide more information about the vehicle's features and utilities.
Tesla refused to comment about the petition, while the Georgia agency has confirmed that the petition was filed on Friday.
