March 20, 2015

Dear NJGCA Member:

Thank you for reading this week's NJGCA Road Warrior!

Here is what you will find in this edition:

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S MESSAGE: GREETINGS & SAL-UTATIONS! 

TOUGH DAY IN TRENTON, BUT WE WON THE FIRST R2R BATTLE
GAS TAX UPDATE - BATTLEFIELD STILL QUIET
5.25% DIVIDEND FOR NJGCA MEMBERS IN WORK. COMP. PROGRAM
RECENT REPORTS ABOUT SAFETY INSPECTIONS
COUNTERFEIT & FRAUDULENT AIRBAG LEGISLATION
NOTE FOR CRIME RESEARCH SURVEY PARTICIPANTS
APPS. FOR GENERATOR GRANT PROGRAM DUE MARCH 31, 2015

As per the WILDFIRE ALERT that was sent to you last week, we went to Trenton on Monday to testify in support of Right to Repair legislation in the Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee. The bill would require manufacturers to provide access to the repair codes you need to fully repair your customers’ vehicles. Unlike the national Memorandum of Understanding, our bill would follow the lead of Massachusetts’ law and require information manufacturers must provide to heavy duty vehicles. Although Right to Repair has already been agreed to for passenger vehicles, we still need a law for protection. There is nothing to stop one or all of the manufacturers from just dropping out of Right to Repair completely in five or ten years. But if this bill becomes law, they will always have to provide these codes in the state of New Jersey, just like they will always have to do so in Massachusetts. Besides, I just plain, flat-out don’t trust them.
 
To read the full text of the bill, please click HERE. To read my testimony to the committee, click HERE. To listen to the testimony that I provided to the committee, click HERE. 
 
Eric and I were joined in Trenton by NJGCA Members Keith Krehel, Norman Lippmann, and Lou Papale. Keith and Norm provided valuable testimony to the committee. As I have said before, when Legislators hear from YOU, it often has a greater impact on them than anything I could say.  To hear Keith and Norm's testimony in front of the committee, please click HERE.
 
Despite our victory in getting the bill passed out of committee on Monday, we did face some resistance from the big auto manufacturers and we expect them to be active opponents for the rest of this fight. As I said before, we were successful on Monday, but that was only the first in a series of victories that we need in order to get this signed into law.  The steps are:
 
1 - Pass Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee: Accomplished
2 - Pass General Assembly - TBD
3 - Pass Senate Commerce Committee - TBD
4 - Pass full Senate - TBD
5 - Signed by Governor - TBD
 
Rest assured, you will all be kept up to date on this issue, and we will be coming back to you in the future to ask for your support and your participation in this battle.  I cannot win this fight alone!  I have included some pictures from the hearing at the bottom of this message.
 
I want to also quickly note that I am happy to report that for the second week in a row, the gas tax battlefield has been quiet.
 
I have more good news for those of you that participate in our Workers Compensation program. We just recently learned that there will be a 5.25% dividend paid to you. This is a dividend based on the Work. Comp. premiums that you paid between November 2013 - November 2014. For those of you who don't participate in the NJGCA Workers Compensation program, here are some facts that should make you consider enrolling in our program and taking advantage of your NJGCA membership!
 
Fact #1:  Workers Comp rates are set by the State, no matter what insurance company you use.
Fact #2. Using simple mathematics, if your business paid $10,000 in workers comp. premiums last year, then you can expect a check sometime in the next two weeks, in the amount of $525.
*Important Note: That's $75 MORE than the annual NJGCA Membership Dues!
 
I continue to encourage you to enroll in all of the NJGCA benefit programs and take advantage of the opportunities to put money in your pockets. I'd also like to note that you should be watching your mailbox because sometime in the next week you will be receiving the 2015 MBP brochure, listing all of the savings programs and vendors that you can access to save more money!
 
Next, as I mentioned several weeks ago, there is still silence coming from Trenton with regard to the Request for Proposals (RFP) for a new inspection program. I expect an announcement of the state's intention to have all emissions inspections performed in YOUR shops. Although I anticipate this, I'm not sure if this is what the RFP will in fact say.  We'll have to wait and see, as they have fooled me before. 
 
Another issue that has gotten you and me very heated over the past few years is the elimination of safety inspections and what it has cost each of you in your shops. Each time that I discuss the subject (which I do primarily because so many of you still bring it up in phone calls and in conversation), I repeat that I don't ever expect safety inspections to return... not because I don't want them and not because I don't think that safety inspections should be mandatory, but because I have absolutely no evidence or data to support requiring motorists to perform safety inspections -- however, I would like for you to read THIS article that appeared in Sunday's Bergen Record. I know this reporter and I can tell you, he's one of the few reporters that takes his job seriously enough to actually investigate the stories he reports. The article contains comments from both me and NJGCA president Tony Crisalli.
 
You may recall that in a recent Road Warrior I spoke of legislation in Trenton that would prohibit the manufacture, sale and installation of counterfeit airbags. Many of you should recall that there have been multiple news reports in recent months about faulty and defective airbags, and apparently the issue is even larger than we first thought. However, we are happy to report that bill S-2174, which addresses this issue, passed the full senate on Monday. While we were in the Statehouse battling for Right to Repair, this was being voted on and passed in the Senate chamber. As you can tell, we had a very busy, but productive and successful day on Monday.  In case you didn't read the letter that I wrote in support of the bill (co-signed by AASP/NJ Executive Director Charles Bryant) in the Road Warrior two weeks ago, I have provided the link again, HERE.
 
Finally, a brief reminder to everyone that took our crime research survey last year. Our research partners have indicated that with the weather getting nicer again, they are going to start back up with the site-visits. If you filled out the survey, and they have not yet stopped by your station, please be prepared for them to come by. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to call Jacy at 973-376-0066.
 
Also, next week is the last full week to apply for the Generator Grant Program.  The application period ends March 31, 2015.  For assistance in applying for the program, please call Jacy at 973-376-0066 or send an email to jacy@njgca.org. More information, including the application, can be found online at www.njeda.com/generators.

As promised, here are some pictures from Monday's hearing in Trenton:

Sal providing testimony to the committee.


NJGCA Members Norman Lippman and Keith Krehel addressing the committee.


NJGCA Group Shot: (L-R) Norm Lippmann, Keith Krehel, Sal Risalvato & Lou Papale

That's all for now!  Thanks for reading -- See you next week!

Regards,
Sal Risalvato
Executive Director

TRAINING CLASSES!!
-ALL CLASSES WILL BE HELD AT NJGCA HEADQUARTERS-
66 Morris Avenue - Springfield, NJ 07081 (Union County)

FUTURE CLASSES WILL BE ADDED UPON REQUEST AND ACCORDING TO DEMAND. CONTACT DEBBIE at 973-376-0066 or DEBBIE@NJGCA.ORG TO LET HER KNOW YOU ARE INTERESTED IN TAKING A SPECIFIC CLASS.  THIS WILL ALLOW US TO GAUGE YOUR NEEDS AND KEEP TRACK OF THOSE WISHING TO PARTICIPATE!!

CLASSIFIEDS! -- FOR SALE & HELP WANTED ADS 

NJGCA MEMBER BENEFIT PARTNER GILL ENERGY LOOKING TO HIRE FOR (3) DIFFERENT POSITIONS!

District Manager
Store Manager
Trucking Operations Manager

For more information about these positions, and to submit a resume for consideration, please contact: ravigill@gillenergy.com.

NEWS AROUND THE STATE: THE NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW

03/18/2015:
Senate President, Assembly Speaker Talk Minimum Wage, Sick Leave and TTF with NJBIA Members
Senate President Stephen Sweeney said towns should not have their own minimum wage laws, Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto is looking for a compromise on paid sick leave and both said they were close to agreeing on a plan for the Transportation Trust Fund. The two legislative leaders spoke and took questions for an hour and a half at NJBIA’s first Meet the Decision Makers of 2015. With NJ 101.5 news radio correspondent Kevin McArdle moderating, Sweeney and Prieto spoke candidly about their legislative agendas and what they think should be done to improve the economy.  Click on the link above to read more specific information about their comments on minimum wage, paid sick leave, and the Transportation Trust Fund.
 
03/18/2015:
Tesla-inspired direct sales bill signed into law
Gov. Christie signed a bill this week which would allow zero-emission vehicle manufacturers to directly buy from or sell to consumers. The law's essentially limited to American electric car-maker Tesla, which uses a direct-sales business model, as it only covers zero-emission vehicle manufacturers that were licensed by the state Motor Vehicle Commission as of Jan. 1, 2014. A need for the bill arose after the MVC ruled against Tesla last year, stipulating that automobiles needed to be sold through franchises under a traditional dealership model. Criticism was launched at both the MVC and the Christie administration for what many argued to be a bow to special interest groups. Tesla will now be permitted to operate up to four licensed retail locations across New Jersey and maintain one service facility.
 
03/18/2015:
NATO Responds to Study on Raising Legal Purchase Age
Last week, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released a study that concludes that raising the minimum legal age to purchase tobacco products “will likely prevent or delay initiation of tobacco use by adolescents and young adults.” In 2013, the FDA contracted with the IOM to conduct the minimum age study, specifically requesting that the study focus on raising the legal minimum age to 21 and 25. It is important to note that the IOM study does not make a recommendation that the legal minimum age to purchase tobacco products should be raised, but only focuses on the question of whether there would be a public health impact of increasing the age to buy tobacco products. Moreover, the FDA does not have the authority to change current federal law that makes 18 the legal age to purchase tobacco products. Any change to the legal minimum age on the federal level would need to be made by Congress.  To read more of the study results and the National Association of Tobacco Outlets' response to the study, please click the link above.

MEMBER BENEFIT PARTNER MESSAGE BOARD:

TMP Energy Solutions
Another Way to Save on Your Energy Bills

We have had a number of NJGCA members successfully reduce their rate per kWh signing up through our energy saving program. We know it's difficult to collect 12 months worth of previous electric bills to get an "accurate" analysis when comparing a variable rate to a fixed rate, but we now have another option available. 

This new solution is a power purchase option; the other program is still in full force and has saved members thousands of dollars. If you sign up for the power purchase option, you will be grouped with other NJGCA members until the minimum KW demand is acquired. By pooling the member's usage together, you will be able to take advantage, as large energy users do, and receive a lower kWh rate.

Each member will receive their own contract. Each member is responsible to sign and return the agreement the day it is received in order to secure the price for their group.

Please do your due diligence, so when you receive the proposal and the agreement you will be able to make an intelligent decision.

If by chance, you still want us to assess you bills, to give you a price to compare, we will require12 months of your most recent utility bills.

There are no bills required, but we would still like to have one bill per meter on file to check account #'s, meter #'s  service addresses and other pertinent information incase there is a problem.

The term of the agreement is for 12 months. During this term period, you will have price protection against any energy price increases along with a low fixed kWh rate.

If you are interested in becoming part of this power purchase option, please contact Greg Cannon at the NJGCA.

Remember when you sign up your energy through the NJGCA Energy Program, TMP makes a considerable donation to the NJGCA Scholarship Fund through their proceeds. This has no affect on your rate, and costs you nothing out of pocket.

We hope to help hundreds of NJGCA members reduce their utility costs by participating in this and our other cost reduction programs.  Our purpose, in the endeavor, is to help NJGCA members lower their energy costs while supporting the NJGCA Scholarship Fund. 

Contact GREG CANNON at 973-376-0066 or email Greg at greg@njgca.org. Mention that you are interested in saving money on your energy bills. NJGCA & TMP Energy Solutions will handle all the rest.