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June 7, 2018

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:

• Payroll Tax Bill; UEZ Extension Legislation; What's Going On in the Fuel Market?; Important UST Registration Renewal Information; NJ Primary Election Results; Diner Tour & Young Professionals Group

NJGCA CLASSIFIEDS
- Monmouth County: Gas Station and Repair Shop Business Since 2001
- Asbury Park: Commercial Building for Sale. Possible Sale of Business
- Bergen County: Shell Gas Station with 6-Bay Repair Shop for Sale

NEWS AROUND THE STATE
• The Other Shoe That Could Drop With $15 Minimum Wage (Opinion)
• San Francisco Bans Sales Of Flavored Tobacco Products
• Oil Trains On The Rebound To Northeast Refineries, Federal Data Show
• PSEG Plans $3 Billion In Energy Efficiency Projects And 50,000 Vehicle Charging Stations

TRAINING CLASS SCHEDULE!
??????• ETEP Re-Cert Class, THURSDAY June 21, 28, July 5, and WEDNESDAY July 11th
??????• Emissions Inspector Training Class, THURSDAY, August 9th

MEMBER BENEFIT PARTNER MESSAGE BOARD
• The Amato Agency: Garage Insurance and Workers Compensation!
• ATS Environmental: Confidence in your Tank & Compliance Testing
• Bellomo Fuel: Exceptional Service, Aggressive Petroleum Marketing
• CBIZ Insurance: Our Business is Growing Yours!
• Gill Energy: Getting you There!
• Lending Capital: "Commercial Loans Made Easy" Program
• Salomone Brothers: Tank Testing and Environmental Compliance
• TMP Energy Solutions: Another Way to Save On Your Energy Bills

POLITICAL PARTICIPATON: THE NJGCA PAC
• Participate in the NJGCA PAC today and help us keep our Agenda rolling in Trenton!

Energy Information Agency Weekly Retail Gasoline Prices

JOIN NJGCA ON FACEBOOK -- CLICK HERE
TO SEE OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL -- CLICK HERE

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S MESSAGE:

PAYROLL TAX BILL
UEZ EXTENSION LEGISLATION
WHAT’S GOING ON IN THE FUEL MARKET?
IMPORTANT UST REGISTRATION RENEWAL INFORMATION
NJ PRIMARY ELECTION RESULTS
DINER TOUR & YOUNG PROFESSIONALS GROUP

This is how out of hand and ridiculous the issue of revenue has become in Trenton and in municipalities. Trenton is now in the midst of passing a law that will permit any city with a population over 200,000 to impose a payroll tax of up to 1% on employers. This means that only two cities in New Jersey would apply, Newark (which already has this tax in place) and Jersey City. Those of you in Jersey City should be following this issue closely, as this will cost YOU, and also for everyone else this has the potential to result in a snowball effect. It won't be long before other municipalities are asking Trenton to make exceptions so that their local government can also impose a payroll tax. This is completely anti-business and we plan to be vocal against it. We expect our members, especially those of you in Jersey City, to vociferously oppose this and to make your feelings known loudly to your legislators. Read more about this in the articles below:

Lawmakers Advance Jersey City Payroll Tax Bill
Biz Groups Criticize Jersey City Payroll Tax Plan

If you have an auto repair shop or convenience store in Bridgeton, Camden, Newark, Plainfield and Trenton, you need to be aware that Governor Murphy just reauthorized the Urban Enterprise Zones which permits sales tax to be charged at 50% of the current 6.625% effective immediately. Please adjust the sales tax rate that you are charging accordingly.

In the past 10 days, the average wholesale price of gas has dropped 20¢. I gave you a prelude to this several weeks ago, and I want to encourage you in the strongest terms possible to avoid running and lowering the price on your pumps and to grab as much margin as you can for as long as you can. You may remember that I was predicting prices would drop precipitously over the summer. However, I really was not expecting this drop to begin until July. I am satisfied that it is dropping now. Please take advantage of the margins as you will surely all be squeezed once the price begins to rise again. As of now I do not have any predictions as to when that will be.

If your gas station business is located in Union county, your Underground Storage Tank (UST) registration expires June 30th, 2018. In order to renew it, you must submit your $50 payment, and then separately complete the new UST certification questionnaire and submit a copy of your entire financial responsibility insurance policy (tank insurance) to NJDEP. If you have only paid the invoice for $50.00 and have not downloaded the form, completed it, and submitted it with your Tank Insurance, you will be subject to a $15,000 penalty with very little wiggle room on our end to help you! Previously the questionnaire was sent with the invoice. Now the questionnaire must be accessed thru a link, and the sentence in the letter that informs you of this can be missed very easily. Here is what the invoice letter says:

*Operating a regulated Underground Storage Tank with an expired registration certificate may result in fines/penalties and/or a delivery ban
*Complete, sign & include the UST Facility Certification Questionnaire (FCQ) & copy of your entire insurance policy with your renewal. The UST FCQ can be found at http://www.nj.gov/dep/srp/forms/ust/
*Mail check payable to: Treasurer - State of New Jersey, Payment, Stub, UST FCQ and entire insurance policy to the NJ Department of Treasury address listed on the registration invoice
*Please note that UST registrations following this renewal are now required annually
*Any questions see back of invoice for DEP contact information

Please note you are not in the clear if you sent in your check but have not completed the annual questionnaire. This statement may look like nothing, but it means everything!

Thanks to all of you who did go out and support our two friends running for the House of Representatives that we identified to you last week. Both Congressman Leonard Lance and candidate Assemblyman Jay Webber won their respective primaries. Both are facing a very difficult election in November against their Democrat opponents.

Finally, I want to send one last Road Warrior reminder that our next diner tour is coming up next Wednesday, June 13th at the Suburban Diner in Paramus from 9:30 - 11:30. Make sure to let Michelle know if you will be able to attend by emailing her michelle@njgca.org or calling the office. This is your opportunity to ask questions and provide us with valuable feedback on issues that are of importance to you. All are welcome to attend. Also for those of you with kids who may one day be taking over your business, know of other young professionals, or have young professionals working with you in your business, remember we are planning to put together a young professionals group at NJGCA. Please consider bringing them with you when attending our diner tour meeting so they can hear about what’s going on in the industry.

That’s all for this week,

Sal Risalvato
Executive Director

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

ETEP Re-Certification Classes -- Sections 8, 9, and 10
This class runs on Thursdays from 1:00 PM to 9:00 PM for 4 weeks
Class Dates: Thursday, June 21, 28, July 5th and WEDNESDAY July 11th
Stop turning away work!! The New Jersey Inspection Program requires vehicles that fail emissions inspection to go to a Licensed Certified Emission Inspector for Repairs! When the new program begins, a list of Certified Emission Repair Shops will be given to vehicle owners! If you want your business name on the list – make sure you have a Certified Licensed Emission Repair Technician & an Emission Repair Facility License!

Fees for members are $675 and non-members are $795.
Click HERE for registration form.

Emissions Inspector Training Class - One Day Only!
THURSDAY, AUGUST 9th, 2018 -- 7 AM to 3 PM
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, August 9th from 7:00am to 3:00pm.
Cost is $275 for members.
Click HERE for the registration form, and please send Debbie Hill a copy of your drivers license with 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:

Business For Sale: Monmouth County gas station and repair shop in business since 2001 is for sale. Owner is relocating out of state and is interested in selling business and equipment. Owner is open to limited financing. Business has a strong 10 year lease. The building has two repair bays and the gas pumps are leased to a large independent tenant. Repair shop business currently employs a Manager and two full-time Technicians. For inquiries and more info, please call Mark at 908-670-7798.

FOR SALE:

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

FOR SALE:

Shell Gas Station with 6-Bay Repair Shop for Sale in Bergen County!

Business established in 1980. Fully equipped repair shop with 5 lifts including an alignment rack with a 2-year-old Hunter Hawkeye alignment machine. New Hunter tire machine & wheel balancer. AAA approved and very busy.

Towing business also available which includes 3 Freightliner/JerrDan flatbeds (2015, 2016 & 2017), a 2012 Dodge crew cab wrecker with a Jerrdan Quick Pick & dual cable winch & 2 service trucks (a 2012 GMC 2500 utility truck with a plow & a 2014 Ford transit battery/service vehicle).

Pumping over 1,000,000 gallons per year. 100x300 lot with plenty of parking. Excellent location!!! Call Jim @ 201-851-3084.

NEWS AROUND THE STATE: THE NEWS YOU SHOULD KNOW

6/6/18
The Other Shoe That Could Drop With $15 Minimum Wage (Opinion)
The argument over raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour is going to go on until it finally happens. The latest against the idea comes from the thought that 32,000 jobs could be lost in New Jersey if it were to happen. The strategy of cutting employees and adding responsibilities to those that you keep is a great way for businesses to combat the hike, until it isn't. With all this fear of workers losing their jobs, don't be surprised if some lawmakers looking to make a name for themselves propose legislature that mandates a certain number of checkers, fast food workers, etc. to keep their jobs should the minimum wage go up. Think it could never happen? Ask any gas station owner where Sal Risalvato says they can't find people to man the mandated pumps. While other stores are able to offer self-serve, gas stations cannot, so the precedence is already established. If they could force gas stations to keep employees, why not other businesses?

6/6/18
San Francisco Bans Sales Of Flavored Tobacco Products
San Francisco voters approved a proposition that would ban the sale of flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes and flavored vaping liquids on Tuesday. With 99% of precincts reporting, 68% had voted in favor of Proposition E and 31% opposed. . . But those who opposed the measure said banning the flavored products was an overreach that infringed on adult choices. "Telling adults what they can and can't do isn't effective," opponents stated in its argument before voters, adding that California had already raised the legal age for buying tobacco to 21. They also framed the measure as harming small businesses like neighborhood corner stores.

6/5/18
Oil Trains On The Rebound To Northeast Refineries, Federal Data Show
After a steady decline throughout 2017, the volume of crude oil moving on trains to Northeast refineries is on the rise, federal data show. After peaking in 2014 and 2015, rail shipments of crude oil from Midwestern sources to the Northeast slowed to a trickle late last summer. Since then, numbers from the U.S. Energy Information Administration show a rebound. Northeast refiners consumed 3.1 million barrels of Midwestern oil shipped by rail in March, according to EIA data, the most since January 2017, and about 10 times what they received in August and September. The most recent numbers are still well below the peak of 13.8 million barrels shipped to the Northeast by rail in November 2014. Each barrel contains 42 gallons. An entire unit train of crude oil can carry about 3 million gallons.

6/1/18
PSEG Plans $3 Billion In Energy Efficiency Projects And 50,000 Vehicle Charging Stations
PSEG plans to spend nearly $3 billion over the next five years on programs to improve energy efficiency, reduce electric use and, in the process, combat climate change. The company also hopes to spend $2.5 billion to continue a sweeping effort to make the utility’s infrastructure more resilient to withstand another Sandy-like storm. And it plans to devote $300 million to develop a network of charging stations throughout New Jersey for electric vehicles. The new initiatives add to previously approved plans to invest between $11.5 billion to $13.2 billion by 2022 to upgrade aging transmission infrastructure and improve its natural gas distribution system.

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.

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.