December 17, 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!

MANDATORY PAID SICK LEAVE APPROVED IN NJ SENATE
MERCER COUNTY ENDORSES $15 MINIMUM WAGE
CONSTITUTIONAL DEDICATION OF FUEL TAXES
NJ DEP 2016 COMPLIANCE CALENDARS
ENTIRE ETEP AND ETEP RE-CERT CLASS SCHEDULE FOR 2016
NJGCA'S FIRST-EVER AUTO REPAIR AND TIRE SHOP SUMMIT!

I'm back from Disney and as I'm sure you can imagine, I have compiled a long list of things to discuss. I've tried my best to keep each update brief, but it is critical that all of these items be brought to your attention so that you can stay updated.  Here goes...
 
Despite our efforts, the New Jersey Senate voted today to pass a bill which would mandate paid sick leave.  The bill still needs to pass in the Assembly, and then it goes to the Governor's desk.  If this does not happen by January 12th, the process will start all over again.  So, not all hope is lost, and we will fight until the very end.  One important note regarding NJGCA's involvement on this issue: Just like you have joined an Association to represent your interests and give you a louder voice, NJGCA also bands together with other like-minded organizations to have a more powerful voice.  Currently, NJGCA is part of a 29-organization coalition fighting this issue and many others. Click here to read a letter, from those 29 organizations, which went to the Senate yesterday, urging them to consider our position on paid sick leave. I also want to acknowledge AASP/NJ and the NJ Landscape Contractors Organization, who forwarded our Action Alert to their members, urging them to send letters or emails to their state Senator.  We usually reserve our VoterVoice action center for members only, but when critical issues pop up, we are more powerful when we band together. Not all associations have the same ability to organize this type of campaign as NJGCA does, so I will make these decisions accordingly.
 
The other critical issue being undertaken by this coalition is minimum wage. There continue to be repeated efforts to increase minimum wage in NJ to $15 an hour.  These efforts are underway in individual municipalities and counties across the State, which would be far worse than if legislators in Trenton just increased the minimum wage for all of NJ. Due to the continued success of our coalition, negotiations in Trenton have stalled, but, that means that the issue has been taken up at a local level.  Most recently, the Board of Chosen Freeholders in Mercer County passed a resolution asking for a $15 minimum wage on a statewide level. Mercer County cannot change or set their own minimum wage, but they joined Essex and Hudson Counties in urging legislators in Trenton to do so. This, of course, is very similar to our fight to stop individual towns from raising their legal age to purchase tobacco.
 
Moving on, there is another proposal being discussed in Trenton today that is sponsored by Assembly Speaker Prieto, and calls for all NJ fuel tax revenues to be constitutionally dedicated to the TTF.  Clearly, this is the first step to preparing the State for an increase in the gas tax.  I chose not to testify today, because there's no reason for me to weigh in.  In spite of the claims that the State has raided the TTF and the funds have been misappropriated, this is simply not true.  I know that I myself have even used those words, as it is the simplest and clearest way to blame the governors and legislators for the TTF debt.  It's true, the governors and the legislators do deserve to be blamed, but not for actually raiding the fund.  Rather, it's for the fact that they have spent billions more than the fund ever took in, creating an $18 billion debt.  I am of the strong opinion that there's no reason to have this constitutional dedication of funds, and it would just be "feel good legislation."  Strategically, I have decided to stay out of this fight at this time, but I reserve the right to enter the fray if I deem it to be necessary.
 
Next, each year at this time, NJGCA has helped distribute the compliance calendars provided by NJDEP.  In the past, an NJDEP representative would drop off cases of these calendars to us, and we have either hand-delivered or mailed them to you. The State will no longer absorb the expense of printing these calendars, and has now provided THIS LINK for you to access and print out the calendar for yourself.  We will maintain this link on the NJGCA website in case you misplace it, as it is important for you to maintain the proper records showing that you have complied with all vapor recovery and underground storage tank regulations. Many of you have learned the hard lesson that not complying can cost you tens of thousands of dollars.
 
I want to also remind you that NJGCA will continue to offer re-certification classes for ETEP in 2016. We will be offering full-day classes and evening classes.  The evening classes will begin in January and will be two nights per week for four weeks (a total of eight nights).  The full-day classes will begin in late February. In addition to the re-certification curriculum, which is **new** sections 8, 9 and 10, NJGCA will be offering the ENTIRE ETEP curriculum for anybody that wants to become an Emission Repair Technician.  This class will be 11 full-days, starting on January 5th.  For more details on all of these classes, click HERE.  For a registration form for any of these classes, click HERE. 
 
Finally, I have a very exciting announcement.  After the first of the year, be on the look-out for a postcard inviting you to NJGCA's First Ever Auto Repair and Tire Shop Summit.  HERE is a link to the postcard that you should be receiving in the mail.  You can even register online NOW by clicking HERE.  You will of course be receiving MUCH more information about this event in the next two months!
 
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

**NEW** Emission Repair Technician Re-Certification Class
Four (4) Full Days -- 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM -- December 9, 15, 22 & 29

Section 8 – Advanced Gasoline Technologies (Wednesday, December 9)
Section 9 – Advanced Light Duty Diesel (Tuesday, December 15 & 22)         
Section 10 – Hybrid/Electric Technologies (Tuesday, December 29)

Cost = $635 Member
$765 Non-Member

For more information and registration form, CLICK HERE.

Emission Repair Technician Re-Certification Class
Four (4) Full Days or Eight (8) Evenings

Days: 9AM - 5PM on Tuesdays -- February 23, March 1, 8, 15
Nights: 6 PM - 10 PM on Tuesdays & Thursdays -- Jan 12, 14, 19, 21, 26, 28 and February 2 and 4.


Emission Repair Technician ENTIRE Training Course
Eleven (11) Full Days -- 9 AM to 5 PM
January 5, 12, 19, 26 ... February 2, 9, 16, 23 ... March 1, 8, 15

For more details on all of these classes, click HERE. 
For a registration form for any of these classes, click HERE. 

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 

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

12/15/2015:
Opinion: Minimum wage fight comes to Mercer, thanks to the freeholders who don’t really get it
Mercer County has a county executive, making it one of only five NJ counties with such an executive position. In the other (16) NJ counties, the Board of Chosen Freeholders handles everything. In addition, in Mercer County, the county executive, Brian Hughes, is a Democrat, and the entire freeholder board are also Democrats.  Been this way for over a decade. As a result, I like to think of Hughes and the freeholders much in the same way I think of Gladys Knight & the Pips, all together on the midnight train to Georgia. Nobody’s looking to get off in South Carolina. There’s never any dissent, never any differing opinion (at least not publicly). Everyone just falls in line. Which, in my mind, could be a wonderful gift. It could give the freeholders time to explore some other facets of governmental life, give them time to tackle the tough subjects and give reasoned, well-thought out answers to problems we face as a county, a state, a nation. Instead, they decided to pass a resolution calling for a $15 minimum wage in NJ that would destroy small business owners. Just destroy them. You think your favorite ice cream shop could afford to pay their summer help $15 an hour? Here’s the short answer: They cannot.
 

12/14/2015:
New Vehicle Registrations Guarantee Record 2015 Sales
The news has been filled with all types of statistics to quantify the number of new vehicles have been sold this year. Well, the simplest may be this: in the last 12 month, 17 million new vehicles have been sold: the best result since 2006.  Experian Automotive released the number of new vehicle registrations from Nov. 1, 2014 through Oct. 31, 2015 in the US and the number matches the record result from 2006, supporting the assertion that 2015 will set a new single-year mark.  “It’s encouraging to see new registrations return to prerecession levels, with lower interest and higher employment rates driving vehicle demand,” said Brad Smith, Experian’s director of automotive market statistics. “While I’m sure the auto industry would like to continue this growth annually, it is important to continually monitor data trends and economic indicators to identify shifts in demand and adjust business strategies accordingly.” While the numbers may mirror previous record results, what consumers are buying now isn’t close to what they were buying then. For example, crossover utility vehicles account for 23.9% of the market in 2015, up from 11.9% in 2006.  The midsize car segment was the biggest seller nearly a decade ago, capturing 26% of the market and it’s still the second-biggest group at 22%.  For the 2006 and 2015 results for the remaining segments, click the link above.
 
 
12/11/2015:
Federal Spending Bill Could Shape E-Cigarette Regulation
Electronic cigarette manufacturers are pushing hard for a policy rider in the year-end catchall spending bill that would shield them from a costly, time-consuming FDA approval process. The FDA last year proposed the first-ever regulations for e-cigarettes, a growing market estimated by Wells Fargo Securities to be worth around $3.5 billion in 2015.  Under the proposal, e-cigarettes that were on the market as of Feb. 15, 2007, are exempt or “grandfathered” from the agency’s review process. FDA officials stated they don’t have the authority to change that date, which was in the 2009 Tobacco Control Act. But House appropriators included language in the fiscal 2016 spending bill that covers the FDA that would exempt any e-cigarettes on the market before the FDA regulations are finalized from the approval process required for new products. Final FDA regulations are currently undergoing review by the White House Office of Management and Budget, the last step before they are released. Public health groups argue the move would significantly weaken the FDA’s ability to act against flavored products that appeal to young people who could get hooked on nicotine.

 

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.