June 08, 2017

Dear NJGCA Member:

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

Here is what you will find in this edition:

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

DURBIN AMENDMENT AND DEBIT CARD FEES PROTECTED FROM REPEAL
RESULTS OF THIS WEEK’S GUBERNATORIAL PRIMARY ELECTION
LEGISLATION WOULD RAISE MINIMUM WAGE AT NEWARK AIPORT TO $22/HR
NEW JERSEY SEES INCREASED TOBACCO TAX REVENUE
DINER TOUR ON WEDNESDAY 6/14 AT THE SUBURBAN DINER IN PARAMUS

We learned last week that the Durbin Amendment is safe and the cap on debit card swipe fees will not be removed or repealed. We frequently ask you to write to your member of Congress on many critical issues, and I want to thank you one more time for your help in making our campaign successful. The ultimate success would have been to convince Chairman Hensarling of the House Financial Services Committee to protect this legislation in his own right, but we know that the Chairman would do this tomorrow if he could. However, we did succeed in getting New Jersey’s representatives and other members of Congress to inform Chairman Hensarling that they would not support any reform which includes repeal of the Durbin Amendment.

On a positive note, we have had several successful meetings with legislative leadership in New Jersey to bring Durbin-type legislation to New Jersey… to do for credit card fees what the Durbin Amendment has done nationwide for debit card fees. I talk about this issue frequently, as NJGCA has been working on it since 2014, and we continue to build legislative support. I firmly believe that if we are successful passing the legislation, depending on the sales volume in your store, whether it be gasoline sales, auto repair, or sales of coffee and soda, the competition in the marketplace will generate a savings of ½ percent to a full 1% drop in credit card fees. If your credit card sales every month amount to $50,000, then a full 1% drop in fees will save you $500/month! I know many members have hundreds of thousands of dollars in credit card sales and can expect to save thousands every month. Please continue to follow this issue any time I write about it.

You should all be aware that the primary election took place this week and we now know the candidates for Governor in November’s election. As expected, and feared, the Democrats nominated Phil Murphy as their candidate. The Republicans nominated current Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno to run against him. There are huge differences between these two candidates and you can be sure that I will be outlining these differences in the months ahead. My fear is that the recent victories we have had this past year in blocking very burdensome employer-mandates and legislation will resurface as the most difficult issues we will face should Phil Murphy become Governor. I have a relative degree of confidence that we can continue blocking these burdensome proposals if Kim Guadagno is victorious in November. We have prepared an official questionnaire that will be sent to both candidates, and all of the nearly 240 candidates running for the 120 seats in the Legislature. As is customary, we will outline their positions and responses in the October Voter Guide issue of On The Road.

Next, there is a vote this week to raise the minimum wage, focused on employees at Newark Airport. This is not just TSA Agents, gate agents, airline employees etc. but all workers including janitorial services, food services, cashiers at the gift shops, etc. For example, if this legislation passes, McDonald’s employees at Newark airport would be required to be paid $18 per hour plus benefits, which will total up to $22. The employees at a McDonald’s down the street in downtown Newark would still be making minimum wage of $8.44. This is a very bad and dangerous precedent for the rest of the employers throughout the State as wages will be set by State Law rather than by the marketplace or negotiation. We are just watching on the sidelines right now as it does not pertain to you, but is a concerning proposal.

Cigarette taxes are back in the news... As you know, for the past several years we have successfully beat back any increases in the taxes, especially a proposal which would've added a $2.70 tax onto each cigar sold in your convenience store. Tobacco revenues decline every time New Jersey raises its tax, but recently New Jersey has seen an increase in revenue from tobacco taxes for the first time in years. This increase in revenue has proven our point that New Jersey loses revenue when it raises taxes. Why has our revenue suddenly increased? Because last year, Pennsylvania raised their cigarette tax by $2.60 a pack, and the city of Philadelphia an additional $2 per pack above that. There’s now no reason for New Jersey tobacco users to make purchases in Pennsylvania any longer, and they have returned to buying cigarettes in New Jersey. New Jersey’s taxes are also lower than New York’s and many tobacco retailers have enjoyed more robust tobacco sales as a result.

We are keeping our eye on any efforts to increase New Jersey’s tobacco taxes so that we don't end up chasing those customers back to New York and Pennsylvania. Another good example that highlights the case about New Jersey’s tobacco taxes is a recent bust of cigarette smugglers who make giant profits by purchasing cigarettes in states with lower taxes than NJ and selling them illegally on the street here. Customers are happy to purchase them at a savings, black market smugglers are still making a profit, and the State of New Jersey is losing out on big revenues. These are all arguments we will use if there is any effort to increase New Jersey’s tobacco taxes.

Finally, we are having our next Breakfast Meeting in Paramus on Wednesday, June 14^th at the Suburban Diner at 9:30 AM. This is a very successful meeting since we have a high concentration of members in Bergen County, and this particular diner brings back many fond memories for me from my youth and when I owned my first Exxon station on Route 17 in Paramus. I promise to do minimal reminiscing and talk only about the issues that YOU bring to my attention as your priorities. I look forward to an exciting and passionate discussion of the issues and a great breakfast. Please RSVP that you plan to attend by replying directly to this email.

Thanks for reading -- See you next week!

Sal Risalvato
Executive Director

TRAINING CLASSES!!

All classes held at NJGCA HQ -- 4900 Route 33 West, Wall Township, NJ 07753

Emissions Inspector Training Class - One Day Only!

Want one of your technicians to become a NJ Emissions Inspector? We can help! Our one-day class will provide all the information for becoming a NJ Emissions Inspector, and the State will administer the written test the very same day at our offices! We are offering the class: Thursday, June 22nd from 7:00am to 3:00pm. Cost $250.
Click HERE for the registration form.

FUTURE CLASSES WILL BE ADDED UPON REQUEST AND ACCORDING TO DEMAND. CONTACT DEBBIE at 732-256-9646 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

FOR SALE:

Commercial Building in Asbury Park, Possible Sale of Business, Too! For listing information, please click HERE.

FOR SALE:

Four (4) Gilbarco Encore 300 dispensers. Brand New in 2003. Pumps work great, just no card readers. Call Katie or Al at 732-739-1360.

Also offering: Transac system for pumps and two dual LSI island lights

NEWS AROUND THE STATE: THE NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW

06/06/2017:
Seattle passes tax on sugary drinks
The Seattle City Council recently approved a new tax on distributors of sugary drinks such as soda in a 7-1 vote. A handful of other cities and counties have adopted similar taxes, including Berkeley, CA; Austin, TX; Philadelphia; and the county that includes Chicago. This action followed months of debate including arguments about whether diet soda would be taxed, whether syrups in flavored lattes prepared by baristas would be taxed, what the tax rate would be, and what the revenue from the tax would be used for. The Council settled on 1.75¢ per ounce. There were mixed messages about the reason for the tax, with some proponents saying it would discourage consumption of unhealthy beverages and others stressing the good that would be done with the revenue. Some council members said including diet soda would make the tax more equitable because diet soda is more popular with wealthy people and white people. But others said the science on diet soda being unhealthy is less solid than the evidence of regular soda being harmful. The mayor initially exempted barista-made coffee beverages from the tax. Then he exempted milk drinks, instead. It was unclear whether and how the syrups used in flavored lattes such as those ordered at Starbucks would be taxed. Under the mayor’s proposal, the bulk of the revenue would have funded education programs for low-income and otherwise vulnerable children. But the council shifted the emphasis more toward healthy-eating programs. Health organizations such as the American Heart Association, doctors and some community groups supported the tax. But the soda industry, many convenience store and restaurant owners, and the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce opposed it, as did a soda industry union and the Martin Luther King County Labor Council.

06/04/2017:
States Considering a Carbon Tax, Fuel Tax or Emissions Tax
With the Trump administration’s decision to pull out of the Paris Agreement on climate change, legislators are taking action to tackle greenhouse gases -- in particular, through a carbon tax. Legislators in one West Coast and four Northeast states have introduced bills that would implement carbon taxes. Carbon taxes aim to drive down greenhouse-gas emissions by placing a tax or fee on either fossil-fuel products or emissions, often meaning an increase in gasoline taxes. If the state proposals are approved, they would join California, where the state Low Carbon Fuel Standard and a cap-and-trade program have already been in operation for the past few years. There are many variations in the proposals being considered in each state, but one thing in common is the tax is applied at the first point of sale, and translates to around 10¢ to 15¢ per gallon on gasoline.

06/02/2017:
35 Indicted in Interstate Scheme to Sell Untaxed Cigarettes
Federal prosecutors indicted 35 individuals who allegedly used their connections through ownership or employment in convenience stores and grocery stores in Missouri to sell untaxed cigarettes in Illinois, New Jersey and other venues where the city and state taxes are higher. The indictment shed light on a highly publicized raid of several St. Louis-area c-stores on May 23, 2017. Most of the cigarettes were purchased in St. Louis-area Sam’s Clubs, with the named individuals allegedly buying and selling product, arranging the deals and transporting both product and currency across state lines. Over about a three-year period, multiple individuals allegedly purchased large amounts of cigarettes on a daily basis and arranged to sell them to other individuals named in court documents. The buyers allegedly organized another set of named individuals to act as couriers. In one incident, officials stopped one individual with 5,420 cartons of Missouri-stamped cigarettes, according to the indictment. In another, officials stopped a second individual in an SUV in Indiana for allegedly transporting $240,000 in cash earmarked for cigarettes, officials said. The scheme allegedly involved rebates from R.J. Reynolds that those involved used to partially bankroll their operations. The indictment also noted how taxes in the city of St. Louis are 24¢ per pack compared to $6.16 in Chicago and $2.70 in New Jersey.

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 require 12 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 732-256-9646 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.

POLITICAL PARTICIPATON: THE NJGCA PAC

DEFENDING OUR MEMBERS.
PROTECTING YOUR INTERESTS.
ANSWER THE CALL & CONTRIBUTE TODAY!!

Promoting our agenda in Trenton is of utmost importance to NJGCA and our members.

However, in order to truly affect the debate, we must ensure our friends in the Legislature are re-elected. It is for this reason that your Association has established the NJGCA PAC.

For too long, the weight of funding our Political Action Committee, the arm of the Association responsible for political donations, has rested upon a few. This is not only unfair to those few members who have shouldered this burden, but means we are not utilizing our full strength to affect the debate in Trenton.

To truly understand the importance of supporting our allies, consider our successes in Trenton:

We defeated BELOW COST SELLING
We made history in getting FIRST RIGHT OF REFUSAL signed into law!
We have built large support for RIGHT TO REPAIR and got it passed out of the Assembly
We defended your small business against the false accusations of Attorney General Anne Milgram
We gained wide support to move New Jersey to an all PIF Inspection System and close the CIF lanes
...and MUCH MORE!!

In each instance, we achieved these goals with the help of our friends in the Legislature!

If every member contributes just $100.00 we will be able to provide the help necessary to ensure victory for our allies.

PLEASE SEND YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO:
NJGCA PAC
4900 Route 33 West, Suite 100
Wall Township, NJ 07753
Please make your donation payable to NJGCA PAC

I understand that times are tough for all NJGCA members, but this is just as important as any battle we have fought in the past.

We have made great progress in Trenton. I hope that you will answer the call.

*NEW* Energy Information Agency Weekly Retail Gasoline Prices

Each week, the Energy Information Administration publishes a list of average gasoline prices for the previous three weeks. NJGCA will begin including this list with the Weekly Road Warrior. Remember, these prices are reflective of self-serve everywhere except NJ.