September 19, 2014

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! 

MUNICIPAL THREATS: MANDATORY GENERATORS, PAID SICK LEAVE, INCREASING TOBACCO AGE TO 21
REMINDER: MBP SATISFACTION SURVEY

This week, NJGCA learned of yet another municipality that wants to raise the age to purchase tobacco up to 21 years old. This is one of the most dangerous trends that we, as an organization, and as a society, are facing. Municipal governments have now determined that they can bypass Trenton by imposing their own set of laws to exist in their individual municipalities. We started to see this last year with mandatory generators proposed in towns like Teaneck, Bernards, and Marlboro. Then, earlier this year municipalities such as Passaic, Newark, East Orange, Paterson, Jersey City and Irvington passed their own paid sick leave policies. Finally, although we were successful in preventing the age increase to purchase tobacco from happening in Trenton, in response, Englewood and Sayreville voted to do so in their towns. Just this week, Hackensack was poised to do the same thing, but we sent letters via email to the mayor and all members of  town council as soon as we heard about it. The Council decided to postpone the vote, and we are hoping to be granted a meeting with town officials to convince them to forget this idea all together.
 
So, here is the fundamental issue. There are 565 municipalities in the state of NJ with their own separate governing bodies. If every time we stop something from happening on a statewide level in Trenton, each of these municipalities decides to impose whatever we have blocked in Trenton, we end up with as big a problem, if not bigger! Obviously I cannot mobilize a response with 24-hours notice to stop something from happening in a particular town.  I have sent out requests and warnings, asking members to keep me informed of what is going on in their municipalities.  We have no idea how this municipal threat is going to expand!  
 
Moving on... In general, you all know that I'm a sweetheart of a guy, and for the past month I have asked you, as sweetly and gently as I could, to please fill out the MBP satisfaction survey. I am working very hard to make sure that the vendors in our MBP program, who provide you with products and services, are the very best that they can be. I must have your feedback. So I am now transitioning from a polite appeal, and I'm no longer nicely requesting that you take the few minutes required to complete the survey. I am now scolding those of you who have not done so, and I'm angry that you aren't helping me, help you.  Please take the 10 minutes required, and either complete the packet that was mailed to you or CLICK HERE, and do it online. I finally want to say a big THANK YOU to all of you who have already taken the time to complete this survey. We know who you are, and it does not go un-noticed or un-appreciated!

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

Regards,
Sal Risalvato
Executive Director

CLASSIFIEDS! -- FOR SALE & HELP WANTED ADS 

Do you have a business for sale?  Are you looking for a new location or opportunity?

• NJGCA regularly assists members looking to sell their business by getting the word out.  Since everyone reading this message is involved in the small business gasoline retail, convenience store, and automotive repair trades, it is an ideal medium to connect with interested buyers and prospects!

NJGCA also helps members sell equipment by placing ads in the Road Warrior!

• If you'd like to list equipment for sale, or have an open position you'd like to make other industry professionals aware of, please contact NJGCA at 973-376-0066 and let us help you get the word out! 

NEWS AROUND THE STATE: THE NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW

09/18/2014:
NJGCA in the News: Sayreville bans tobacco sales to people under 21
An ordinance banning the sale of tobacco products to people under the age of 21 was adopted by the Borough Council in a 4-2 vote at last week’s meeting. Sal Risalvato, executive director of the New Jersey Gasoline, Convenience Store, and Automotive Association (NJGCA), urged the council not to pass the measure, claiming it would negatively impact local small businesses. “The small businesses in Sayreville that sell tobacco … would lose [a lot] of those sales simply because customers would cross the border into other towns [to buy cigarettes].” The issue should instead be one for the state Legislature to decide, Risalvato said.  The state Senate has passed a measure to raise the legal age to buy cigarettes, but the Assembly has yet to take action on it.
 
09/18/2014:
Some Solar and Wind Power Competes with Natural Gas Without Incentives
Fossil fuels have been an integral part of the industrialized world since it began 250 years ago. While renewable, carbon-free energy sources have long been viewed as the ideal solution, they were always more expensive than pumping carbon into the air. That may now have changed, according to a new analysis from Lazard published today and reported in the Financial Times. Specifically, large wind-turbine farms and huge industrial-scale solar arrays are now cost competitive in the U.S. with natural gas, the preferred fuel for new electric power generation. And most importantly, they are competitive without any government subsidies, tax breaks, rebates, or other incentives.
 
09/12/2014:
New Sayreville Law Will Prohibit Persons Under 21 From Buying Cigarettes
We all know smoking is bad for you, but shouldn't it be your choice to have a smoke or not? A new law in Sayreville, New Jersey will now limit the sale of cigarettes only to people 21 years-of-age or older. While this law was passed with the intention to help reduce the number of teenage smokers, all its really done is anger convenience store owners and drive away customers. "This is what I call 'feel good legislation' it allows the governing body to say, look what we did, and it actually does nothing," Executive Director of New Jersey Gasoline, Convenience Store, and Automotive Association Sal Risalvato said.
 
09/04/2014:
No E-Cigs in CVS, Either
E-cig sellers hoping to capitalize on the new CVS ban on the sale of tobacco said they are frustrated that the pharmacy chain won’t carry their products either, according to an ABC News report. "CVS stores have never sold e-cigs and has no plans to sell them in the future,” CVS Health spokesman Mike DeAngelis told ABC. Gregory Conley, the president of the American Vaping Association, an organization that represents independent e-cig sellers, said he had spoken to e-cig sellers who had been in talks with CVS to carry vaping products as far back as February when the company first announced its intentions to ban tobacco sales. He said he was disappointed the company has elected to treat e-cigs as a tobacco product. “Considering that CVS wants to rebrand itself, it would completely make sense they would want low risk alternatives to the product they just removed from the shelves,” Conley said.

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

No classes currently scheduled.  Please check back soon!

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!!

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.