SELF-SERVE MAKING NEWS ONCE AGAIN… THE FIGHT CONTINUES
MORE INFORMATION ON USTs AND EXTENDED REPORTING PERIODS
MBP SATISFACTION SURVEY ONLINE AND IN THE MAIL

The first topic this week is self-serve, because it has been active in the news recently. And no, that is not just a coincidence… We are getting people talking.  Our discussions have caught the attention of the media, starting a few weeks ago with a conversation on NJ 101.5 where motorists (and myself) called in to voice their opinions on self-serve. The segment of the show which included my comments was posted online to NJ 101.5’s YouTube account, and there was a news article written to complement the audio clip. Part of the news story also included a video pulled from the archives of the Jon Stewart show, which mocked New Jersey (and NJGRA) for their position on self-serve. You may remember that NJGRA opposed self serve in the 1980s when this was last debated in the Legislature.  You can read the article, with the audio from my interview and the Jon Stewart clip HERE.
 
Another criticism of New Jersey’s long-standing ban on self-serve gasoline came in the form of a tongue-in-cheek piece written by Popular Mechanics in their last issue.  You can see that article, with comments from me as well, by clicking HERE.
 
Finally, the reason for the discussions this week is that Governor Christie said on Tuesday that fear of the women’s vote is one of the reasons that self-serve will never be a reality in New Jersey.  When the Governor talks, people listen, so again, NJ 101.5 had a discussion on self-serve and my comments were included on the radio.  To hear my contributions, please click HERE.  It is our barnstorming around the state in recent months to visit with legislators that has them and the Governor talking about self serve.
 
We have been beating the drums on self-serve during our meetings with legislators all summer long, and we have encountered some who have embraced the issue, and others who have nearly thrown me out of their office. Nonetheless, as long as the conversation is continuing and I know that I have the support of the organization behind me, I will keep discussing this issue and fighting for what my members want. What is very clear to me is this: anytime a discussion is started, people who strongly desire to pump their own gas come out of the woodwork to voice their opinion. Each time this happens, it provokes others who may have been opposed to self serve to rationally consider the benefits to themselves as motorists. I believe that continued discussion, if done intellectually and not emotionally, will ultimately change public perception. I can’t seem to forget how strongly the motoring public demanded that NJ allow self serve gas back in the 80s.
 
Additionally, I have an update on last week’s message regarding USTs where I wrote about the issue of 40 year old tanks and I warned that many insurance companies are alerting you that your policy will not be renewed because your tanks have reached the age of 40 years old. I also told you that you must discover any pollution within 6 months of your policy being cancelled in order for your insurance coverage to take effect. Basically, if you contact them 7 months after your policy was cancelled and say that you found pollution, they are going to deny your claim as not covered. But after further investigation with one of our insurance specialists, The Amato Agency, I have learned that you can actually purchase an extended reporting period. Please read the paragraphs below carefully and digest the contents.  If you are not clear about what I have written below…PLEASE CALL THE OFFICE AND SPEAK TO ME, or DEBBIE!
 
Here is what I learned:
Storage Tank Pollution Insurance Policies are normally issued on a “Claims-Made and Reported” basis.  This means the confirmed release must have commenced on or after the “retroactive date” listed on the policy AND the release must have been discovered and reported during the policy period.  The “retroactive date” is normally the effective date of the policy or a prior date. If the insured has kept continual coverage, the “retroactive date” will remain on the policy each year, keeping coverage back to the original date the first policy was in force (or the date the tanks were installed).
 
Since the release must be reported during the policy period, there is a potential coverage gap when a policy is cancelled.  If the release is discovered after the policy was cancelled, there would not be coverage, even if the release date was when the insurance was in force. This problem is resolved by an endorsement called an “extended reporting period”.
 
An “extended reporting period” endorsement extends the time for the claim to be discovered and reported. The release still must have first commenced during the policy period (not after the policy has cancelled), but the discovery of the claim and reporting of the claim can occur after the normal policy period date.
 
Most policies provide an automatic six month extended reporting period without cost to the insured.  However, there are options to purchase longer periods of time for additional premium.  The additional time is usually up to three years beyond the automatic six months.
 
The insured may have to make the decision to purchase the additional extended reporting period within a certain time frame.  Usually it must be purchased within 30 days of the cancellation date.  So this decision has to be made quickly, not at the end of the automatic extended period.
 
The reporting period may not always be available (an example is for a policy cancelled for non-payment of premium). 
 
This is a general overview of the “extended reporting period”. Read your specific policy and speak to your insurance agency for information regarding your policy and your needs. It's also important to do this any time you are planning on cancelling your policy or selling your station or removing your tanks.
 
Finally, I wanted to send you another reminder about the MBP Satisfaction Survey.  This is something you will be hearing a lot about throughout the fall as NJGCA’s 2017 Member Benefit Partner Program begins to take shape.  We created this program for YOU, so YOUR INPUT is critical.  What you are happy with and what you are unhappy with will determine the future of our program, so please, check your mailboxes for the surveys or CLICK HERE to take the survey online.  If you remember seeing it in the mail but it already buried under a pile on your desk, or even already made it into the trash can, call Jacy at 732-256-9646 and we will mail you another one, no questions asked.

Thanks for reading -- See you all next week!

Sal Risalvato
Executive Director

08/24/2016:
Seriously, Jersey girls: Are you THAT against pumping your own gas?
At a town hall meeting yesterday, someone asked Governor Christie about lifting the ridiculous ban on self-serve gas. Somehow New Jerseyans are okay with self-serve postage machines in lobbies of post offices, self-serve scanners at grocery stores and convenience stores, self-serve ordering kiosks at QuickChek, self-serve car washes, self-serve Red Boxes for movie rentals, self-service ATMs, even self-service frozen yogurt shops. But gas? (Insert shuddering sounds here.) The governor’s answer was that allowing self-serve gas makes sense from a public policy perspective but that no one will vote for it. Why would the politicians in Trenton not vote for it? Apparently they’re afraid of losing the female vote. The governor went on to explain, “The last private poll we did on this question, 78% of New Jersey women said they were opposed to self-serve gas.” I have a hard time believing that 78% of New Jersey women are opposed to what women in the rest of the nation embrace. Especially busy women, and it’s hard to find a woman busier than a Jersey girl. Do busy women here really like wasting all that collective time year in year out waiting in line because orange cones have half the pumps blocked off, waiting for one attendant to finish with two other cars before finally taking the nozzle back out of theirs so they can move on with their day? I’d like to know demographically who these women were in his survey. If they were all over 60 I get it. But busy, working moms with careers and responsibilities and time constraints shouldn’t think of wasting time as a luxury.

08/23/2016:
NJ will never have self-serve gas because lawmakers fear women voters, Christie says
Gov. Christie says that proposing self-serve gas stations is the third-rail of NJ politics. During his latest town hall meeting on Tuesday, Christie was asked about the possibility of allowing drivers to pump their own gas, which presumably would save them a few cents a gallon. Every state in America except New Jersey currently allows self-serve gas. It’s completely prohibited in the Garden State. “It makes sense from a public policy perspective to allow self-serve gas,” Christie said. “The reason it’s not happening is no one will vote for it. I’m just telling ya.” He pointed out it’s a hot-button gender issue and “it is incredibly politically unpopular in this state to take away gas service at the gas pumps.” Christie told the crowd “the last private poll we did on this question, 78% of NJ women said they were opposed to self-serve gas -- 78%. You can’t find 78% of anyone in NJ who agrees on anything.” Christie then said after he was elected Governor seven years ago he had several meetings with former Gov. Tom Kean to get advice and counsel and Kean told him he’d “never have self-serve gas ever.”
 
8/23/2016:
Christie still pushing for gas tax hike: Let out-of-state drivers share burden
Gov. Chris Christie continues to push for a publicly unpopular gas tax hike, saying Tuesday that out-of-state drivers would help defray the cost of funding New Jersey’s road projects. Almost two months after a deal was supposed to be hammered out to replenish the state’s dried-up Transportation Trust Fund, lawmakers are still haggling over a deal that hinges on raising the gas tax -- currently one of the lowest in the nation. “I signed an executive order … that now allows me to take money out of the general fund to pay for emergency road projects, but I don’t want to be doing this stuff,” Christie during a town hall meeting in Bordentown on Tuesday.  Christie has agreed to support an increase in the gas tax if it’s coupled with a decrease in some other tax.  At the end of June he backed a measure passed by the state Assembly that would have increased the gas tax 23 cents a gallon, while decreasing the state sales tax from 7 to 6 percent, but the state Senate never voted on the proposal because some Democratic leaders complained it would cost the state too much money in lost revenue. New Jersey has the second-lowest gas tax in America because it hasn’t been raised in 27 years.
 
8/19/2016:
Pump our own gas in New Jersey? Let’s meet halfway
Think of how much time we waste waiting at gas stations. Wouldn’t it just be easier for us to pump our own gas? It’s something that is frequently talked about on air and the majority of callers seem to be in favor of Jersey having self-service. Occasionally people call in saying “We can’t have self-service. People will lose their jobs,” yet no one has ever called in saying “Don’t do it! I’ll lose my job!” Not once. Frankly, if we get self-serve gas, it’ll only make their job easier.  I propose this to you, Jersey: During the off hours when there’s only one person pumping the gas, we should be allowed to pump our own gas. Since there is typically only one person there at night anyway, no one has to worry about job security and we can get in and out of the gas station faster.