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January 16, 2020
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 Inside this issue
  Executive Directors Message  
 

REPAIR SHOPS-AN NJGCA VICTORY IN TRENTON
RIGHT TO REPAIR -THE NEXT FIGHT
FLAVOR BAN PERISTS, CONVENIENCE STORE BAN FAILS
PLASTIC BAG BAN DEAD. . .FOR NOW
FEDERAL OIL SPILL LIABILITY TAX
WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE MARKETPLACE? DISTRIBUTORS NOT TO BLAME

 
VICTORY
I made mention last week that we would have an outcome for you this week: we won. After four years, Governor Murphy finally signed legislation last Thursday requiring car manufacturers to provide a written statement informing car buyers of their rights for warranty coverage associated with the vehicle in terms of service at independent repair shops.
 
The legislation, S-1712, states that within 90 days after the purchase or lease of a new motor vehicle, the manufacturer is required to provide a new vehicle buyer or lessee with a written statement as well as provide a copy inside the vehicle manufacturer's owner's manual, which includes the following language:

"The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. s.2301 et seq., makes it illegal for motor vehicle manufacturers to void a motor vehicle warranty or deny warranty coverage solely because an aftermarket or recycled part has been used to repair the vehicle or someone other than the authorized service provider performed service on the vehicle. This provision does not apply to a new motor vehicle purchased solely for commercial or industrial use." 
 
Failure to comply with the notification provisions set under this statute is considered an unlawful practice under the consumer fraud act.
 
I expect that we will be developing some materials for you to place in your customer waiting areas that will help you educate your customers so that they know with certainty that they can bring all of their cars to your shop without worrying that their warranty will be voided. This is a big victory for us. 
 
RIGHT TO REPAIR
This is also a perfect setting for us to move on to the next big issue in your repair shop, and that is to revisit right to repair. Because telematics is now transmitting the data from your customer's cars directly to the manufacturer, they are steering your customers into their dealership's shops. Our position is that the data being transmitted by a vehicle belongs to the owner of the vehicle and should be sent to the shop of their choice. They may choose to still have the data sent to the dealership, but they also may choose to have it sent to you, or at least to themselves so that they can decide what to do with the data. This is now the next big fight we have on our agenda for the auto repair industry. The effort has already begun in Massachusetts because state law permits their citizens to submit signatures for an issue to be voted on in the November ballot. Because of that, the manufacturers are trying to compromise on legislation rather than allowing the voters to decide in November. The effort in Massachusetts will certainly be helpful to us. Read more about it HERE.  
 
FLAVOR BAN
When is something that hurts actually considered a victory? Our convenience store owners must know by now the tidal wave sweeping the country regarding vapor products and e-cigarettes. Every state is enacting their own form of a ban, and New Jersey is no different. Several pieces of legislation were introduced that would ban any flavor vape products, including flavored e-cigarettes, and would also ban e-cigarettes from being sold in convenience stores or any stores other than an adult only specialized vape shop. An enormous amount of NJGCA efforts in the past two months in Trenton was spent trying to compromise and avoid this devastation. We knew there was no way of stopping the flavor ban, in fact, the federal government two weeks ago enacted their own flavor ban nationwide. However in New Jersey, the efforts remained to keep convenience stores from selling e-cigarettes. With last minute negotiations, we were successful having legislators in both the Senate and Assembly remove the e-cigarette ban from the bill. Both houses passed the bill on Monday. So even though we are losing flavors, we were successful eliminating the ban on your stores. Here's the catch: as of today, the governor still has not signed the legislation. It is possible that he vetoes this legislation because he disagrees with allowing your stores to continue selling e-cigarettes. If he does veto this legislation, then we will have to fight this fight all over again as early as next month. I should be able to report results of the Governor's action in next week's Road Warrior. You may remember we sent out a Wildfire two weeks ago announcing the FDA ban on flavors. In the Wildfire, we stated that it would go into effect on February 1st.  Because of some technicalities, the real date that this flavor ban will take effect is February 6th. After this date, you can only sell tobacco and menthol flavors of e-cigarettes. Please remove flavored e-cigarettes from your shelves or you will be subject to severe penalties. 
 
PLASTIC BAG BAN
On a somewhat positive note, the Legislature was unable to come to an agreement on a ban on plastic bags and Styrofoam containers. This legislation died when the legislature expired at noon on Tuesday. However, Senator Bob Smith who is Chairman of the Senate Environment Committee has vowed immediate reintroduction and I expect a re-introduction quickly. 
 
OIL SPILL LIABILITY
Several members have called the office because they noticed their gas invoices containing a small tax for the federal oil spill liability. This is not a new tax, but a tax that previously existed and was suspended for 2019. Since the fee only applies to crude, and crude-sourced hydrocarbons, it amounts to different charges on various products. For diesel fuel, it works out to 0.2143cts/gal; On a typical 10% ethanol blend of finished motor fuel, the fee will be 0.1929cts/gal.
 
MARKETPLACE
I am sure that many of you noticed a big spike in rack prices followed by an equal drop in prices a day later. This is a result of speculators and traders on Wall Street panicking after the situation in Iran exploded. Once it became apparent that there would not be a full scale war and a shutdown of Mideast oil supplies at this time, the panic subsided. The traders came to their senses and dropped the prices as quickly as they raised it. This created a tough experience for those of you who received gas as the price that spiked. You paid a high price only to see the floor drop out a day later. You should know that this is not the fault of your supplier. Your distributor paid a much higher price at the rack and passed it on to you. Distributors then dropped their price to you as their cost at the rack dropped a day later. I know this could be a tough pill to swallow, but the marketplace is not for timid people. No one has a crystal ball. Please be patient in this situation with your distributor.
 
That's all for this week -  
Sal Risalvato
Executive Director

 


 
 

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  Training Class Schedule  
 

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

FUTURE CLASSES WILL BE ADDED UPON REQUEST AND ACCORDING TO DEMAND. CONTACT NICK at 732-256-9646 or NICK@NJGCA.ORG TO LET HIM 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!

 

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  News Around The State  
 

1/14/20
Murphy To Decide On Bill Creating EV Incentives And Statewide Program
The state Legislature sent Gov. Phil Murphy a long-stalled bill that would dramatically ramp up New Jersey's electric vehicle market over the next decade. Senate Bill 2252 was approved by a 27-12 vote in the state Senate on Monday and a 65-9 vote in the Assembly. It was widely supported by environmentalists as a way to slash carbon emissions that many contend contribute to climate change and drag down air quality. Murphy has a week to decide whether he will approve the legislation. Business groups such as the New Jersey Coalition of Automotive Retailers; New Jersey Chamber of Commerce; New Jersey Business & Industry Association; and the New Jersey Gasoline, C-Store and Automotive Association supported the measure, though it was opposed by trade groups representing the state's petroleum and gasoline sectors.

1/13/20
Auto Shops Urge Lawmakers To Fix 'Right To Repair' Law
Auto shop owners on Monday urged lawmakers to fix loopholes in the state's "right to repair" law to prevent another costly ballot battle. The Right to Repair coalition, which includes owners of auto repair shops North of Boston, wants lawmakers to update the nearly eight-year-old, voter-approved law that requires car makers to share diagnostic and repair information. Lawmakers are weighing more than a dozen bills to revise the law, as a referendum inches its way toward the November ballot.

1/13/20
Judge Blocks Cuomo's Ban On Flavored Vaping Products
A judge has blocked New York state from enforcing an executive order banning flavored vaping products. Acting state Supreme Court Justice Catherine Cholakis ruled that the state Public Health and Health Planning Council overstepped its authority last September when it issued a ban on e-cigarettes and e-liquids flavored with anything other than tobacco or menthol. In a ruling issued this week in Albany, Cholakis said regulating the vaping industry is a job for the state Legislature, not the executive branch, whose function is to implement policy set by lawmakers.

1/13/20
New Jersey's Push To Curb Plastic Pollution Is In Jeopardy And Paper Is To Blame
An 18-month effort to pass one of the nation's most stringent set of regulations to curb plastic pollution by banning most retail store bags, foam food containers, some utensils and plastic straws appears to have fizzled out as Trenton reaches its legislative deadline on Monday. And the culprit, ironically, is paper. The Senate is expected to pass the bill on Monday, the last day of voting in this legislative session. The Assembly had not posted the bill for a vote by Friday afternoon. And Gov. Phil Murphy's representatives have expressed reservations about signing the bill if it is passed as is.

1/10/20
Wawa Founding Family Accused Of Cheating Former Workers Out Of Millions In Company Stock
Wall is one of more than 1,200 former workers who shared a $25 million settlement in 2018 - a fraction of their actual losses, according to Wall and some others - to settle accusations that the company cheated them out of company stock they were saving for retirement. Today the Delaware County-based company is negotiating a second federal lawsuit settlement with a larger group - who say they, too, were illegally forced to sell shares at a discount, so members of the founding Wood family could regain majority control of the fast-growing convenience-store chain. Consolidating control could make it easier for family leaders to sell the company for billions of dollars at terms favorable to them in the future. Wawa has not acknowledged wrongdoing when it agreed to pay the $25 million to settle the first suit, called Pfeifer v. Wawa, including $5 million for workers' lawyers. Spokeswoman Lori Bruce said the company would not comment on settled or ongoing litigation, or on Wood family plans.

1/10/20
FDA E-Cigarette Flavor Ban Takes Effect February 6
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Tuesday officially published its final guidance in the Federal Register banning most flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes, except for tobacco and menthol flavors. The guidance permits the sale of e-liquid flavors used in open vaping systems and in disposable, single-use vape products. The effective date when stores must remove cartridge-based e-cigarettes from their shelves will be February 6. NACS has created signage for members to display to customers noting this new policy. To get the signage, members may click here.

1/10/20
Another Chance for Plastic, Paper Bag Ban?
In an unexpected move, the Senate voted to amend a bill once hailed as the United States' most comprehensive ban on single-use bags during a tumultuous penultimate lame-duck legislative session that featured contentious debates on banning vaping products and other issues. The critical amendments, approved by a 22-0 vote without any debate, would delay the ban on single-use plastic and paper bags, as well as polystyrene cups, for two years. The original bill put a ban on single-use plastic bags in one year, and paper bags in two years. The new bill also deals with a significant issue for big-chain grocery stores. Under the old version of the bill, stores would have had to provide free reusable bags for two months after the law takes effect. In the amended version, the money to provide those reusable bags would come out of the Clean Communities program, an effort to reduce litter in New Jersey.

1/9/20
Oil Set for Biggest Weekly Loss Since July as Mideast Risk Fades
Oil headed for its largest weekly loss since July as the prospect of an immediate confrontation between the U.S. and Iran abated, allaying fears of disruption to Middle East energy supplies. Futures soared to an eight-month high to top $65 a barrel in New York on Jan. 8 as Washington and Tehran faced-off after the killing of a top Iranian general. But prices retreated as the two adversaries backed away from a full-scale conflict. Crude is now trading back below $60 and is headed for about a 6% loss for the week.

1/9/20
Royal Farms And Wawa Duke It Out At The Jersey Shore
For years, South Jersey had one top dog when it came to convenience stores - Wawa. . .But last April, a new competitor threw it's proverbial hat into the ring. Royal Farms, a Baltimore-based gas station/convenience store hybrid offering many of the same goods and services as our beloved Wawa, decided to set up shop just down the street at the corner of Fire and Tilton roads in Egg Harbor Township. And just recently plans have been announced for a second Royal Farms to be built in Egg Harbor Township . . . But no matter how many stores they build, can Royal Farms ever truly expect to dethrone Wawa as the unofficial king of South Jersey kwikie marts? We decided to do a little comparison to see what each spot has to offer.
 
 
 

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  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.
 
 

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  Member Benefit Partner Message Board  
 
 
    









 

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  Classifieds: For Sale and Help Wanted Ads  
 



NEW!


FOR SALE:

New! Business For Sale: Business for sale and lease: 6 lifts, 10 spaces, plenty of parking, fleet accounts, loyal customer base. 50 years in business. Turn key operation, busy corner highway. All stock and equipment, tools included. Used car dealer license, transmission shop equipment also included. Email: viener@outlook.com for more details.


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.


New! Parts For Sale: Incon TS-1000 tank monitor works well just taken out of service. Printer is aprox 2 months old. Also, Incon 8, tank probes. System replaced because on an Exxon upgrade. Call John Twin Towers Exxon (201) 224-8444



 

 

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