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November 15, 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:

• F.D.A Ban on Flavored E-Cigarettes; Jersey City Payroll Tax; Possible Federal Gas Tax Increase; Update on Male Sexual Enhancement Demand Letters; 2018 Turkey Drive Success

NJGCA CLASSIFIEDS
- Monmouth County: Gas Station and Repair Shop Business Since 2001
- Bergen County: Shell Gas Station with 6-Bay Repair Shop for Sale

NEWS AROUND THE STATE

• OPEC Eyes Output Curbs And Prices Climb
• The War Inside 7-Eleven
• Vote On $15 Minimum Wage For N.J. Coming Soon, Top Democrat Says
• F.D.A. Plans to Ban Most Flavored E-Cigarette Sales in Stores

TRAINING CLASS SCHEDULE!

??????• Emissions Inspector Training Class, THURSDAY December 6th
??????• Entire Emission Repair Technician Program: October 8, 10, 15, 24, 29, 31, November 5, 7, 19, 26, December 3
??????• Emission Repair Technician Program RECERTIFICATION: November 7, 19, 26, December 3

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
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER-- CLICK HERE

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S MESSAGE:

F.D.A BAN ON FLAVORED E-CIGARETTES
JERSEY CITY PAYROLL TAX
POSSIBLE FEDERAL GAS TAX INCREASE
UPDATE ON MALE SEXUAL ENHANCEMENT DEMAND LETTERS
2018 TURKEY DRIVE SUCCESS

The federal government has been making a lot of noise about restricting flavored e-cigarettes and banning them from being sold in your convenience stores. Their ban would make it illegal to sell e-cigarettes or any vape products in places other than specialty vape stores. Obviously, the tobacco companies that are the primary suppliers of these products and have used them as a replacement for their lost tobacco sales are as concerned about this as we are. If you can't sell it, then they can’t sell it. In a move to try and placate the food and drug administration, major e-cigarette manufacturer Juul announced that they will stop selling flavored products such as Mango, Fruit, Cream, and Cucumber in physical stores. These flavors will only be available on Juul’s website, and they will continue to sell traditional tobacco and menthol flavors in convenience stores and specialty vape shops. This may have a significant impact on your sales, as these flavored products have become very popular. At issue is the concern that these flavored products are too attractive to teenagers and people under the age of 21.

Read more about this effort in the following recent articles:

FDA Could Be Leaning Toward Ban Or Limit On Menthol Cigarettes
Altria Plans To End Sale Of Pod E-cigs, Support Raising Minimum Age To 21 To Buy Tobacco Products
Juul Labs Issues Action Plan for E-Cigarette Product Sales

NJGCA also sent out an Action Alert this week to make your voices heard on how harmful this ban will be on your business. The irresponsibility and neglect of some should not affect those who have been consistent and diligent to check ID before completing tobacco purchases. You can participate in that campaign HERE.

Recently, the state legislature passed a law that would permit Jersey City to impose its own payroll tax. What does that mean? It means that any business in Jersey City will have an additional tax; similar to social security, unemployment and disability taxes, imposed on their employees. Like submitting federal and state taxes every month, businesses will need to submit a check to Jersey City as well. This has not been imposed yet, but the mayor is fearful there will be a petition drive to prevent the implementation of a payroll tax. Jersey City needs to make up $20 million in lost state aid, and their plan is to do it by imposing this tax. NJGCA has many members in Jersey City, and we lobbied against passing this bill. This will be an added burden for our members in Jersey City.

Once again there is some renewed talk of increasing the federal gas tax in light of issues with deteriorating transportation infrastructure and dwindling revenues to pay for it. This of course is a result of vehicles getting better gas mileage and a growing number of vehicles that rely on battery or fuel cell electric power. Although no one wants to see any tax increases ever, we will be less opposed to a tax that will also be increased on our neighbors in New York and Pennsylvania, unlike the increases in New Jersey that only affect you. You can read more about this HERE.

For those of you who have been following the developments around the male sexual enhancement demand letters, another round of letters have steadily been released this fall that we have become aware of. Our attorney is working on settling the matter for our members. We want to encourage any of you who received these lawsuit demand letters from Outlaw Labs to please contact us.

Finally, I want to congratulate our Young Professionals group and thank our generous members for a very successful Turkey Drive this year. Last Friday, the Young Professionals donated 213 turkeys to Fulfill NJ, the food bank that serves Monmouth and Ocean counties. A special thanks to Gill Energy for their generous contribution of 60 turkeys. This was the Young Professionals group first community service project, and plan to do many more in the future. As business owners, it is important to understand the needs of the community and give back, something I hope our Young Professionals will take with them as they begin to take over family businesses and take on leadership positions. A big thanks to them and everyone who was able to donate! If you know of someone who may be interested in joining the Young Professionals group, please call the office and speak with Michelle, or email at michelle@njgca.org.

Top Left (L to R): Eric Blomgren (NJGCA), Michelle Horowitz (NJGCA), Ryan Ramsay (Bellomo Fuels), Mauro Tucci (CSG Law Firm), and Kevin Myers (Envionmental Alliance) at Fulfill NJ; Top Right: Just some of our donations!; Bottom Center: Young Professional Jesse Georgeaklis (Pit Crew Lube) helping load up the turkeys

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

Emissions Inspector Training Class - One Day Only!
THURSDAY, December 6th, 2048 -- 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, December 6th from 7:00am to 3:00pm.
Cost is $275 for members.
Click HERE for registration form

Want to become an emission repair technician/facility?
Entire Emission Technician Education Program (ETEP) Training Classes
Sections 1-7
October 8, 10, 15, 24, 29, 31 [TBD],
November 5
Sections 8, 9, 10 (RECERTIFICATION)
November 7, 19, 26
December 3
1 PM to 9 PM

Stop turning away work!!
The New Jersey Inspection Program requires vehicles that fail emissions inspection to go to a Licensed Certified Emission Repair Facility and have a Licensed Emission Repair Technician perform the repairs! When the new Emissions Inspection program begins, a list of Certified Emission Repair Facilities will be given to the vehicle owners who fail the New Jersey Emission Inspection. If you want your business name on the list – make sure you have a Certified Licensed Emission Repair Technician and you are licensed as a Emission Repair Facility! Those signing up for the FULL training course will attend sections 1-10. Recertification classes start November 7.
Full ETEP class fees for members are $2,195 and non-members are &2,395
Recertification fees for members are $729 and non-members are $879.
Click HERE for 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:

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

11/12/18
OPEC Eyes Output Curbs And Prices Climb
Crude oil prices are up on Monday following weeks of declines after OPEC and allied producers signaled yesterday that they may collectively trim output next year. The weekend meeting of officials from OPEC and Russia (among others) is the latest twist in a volatile period for oil markets. The potential curbs by the so-called OPEC-plus group come just 6 months after the coalition agreed to loosen production constraints. The potential strategy reversal shows how petro-states are now trying to prop up prices while grappling with variables like the uncertainty of Iranian output under sanctions, the U.S. production surge and signs of softening demand.

11/9/18
The War Inside 7-Eleven
It’s a huge headache and a public-relations nightmare for the company and its chief executive officer, Joe DePinto. But the immigration crackdown has also given 7-Eleven something potentially useful: the names of franchisees who might be in legal jeopardy. Store owners found in violation of immigration law could be in breach of their franchise agreements. And as they well know, 7-Eleven has the contractual right to take back a store from someone who’s violated his or her agreement. 7-Eleven says it had no advance warning of the January raids, or any raids, and gives the government information about a franchisee only if it has reason to believe crimes are occurring inside a store.

11/9/18
Vote On $15 Minimum Wage For N.J. Coming Soon, Top Democrat Says
Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin said Friday he expects his house will vote in the coming months on a much-anticipated bill raising the minimum wage gradually to $15 an hour. Despite broad support among Democratic lawmakers for this big boost in the minimum wage, legislation has snagged on disagreements over whether certain categories of workers should be excluded. Coughlin, D-Middlesex, said on radio station 1450 WCTC that he hopes to have a completed bill "in very short order" that the Assembly can vote on in December, at the earliest.

11/8/18
F.D.A. Plans to Ban Most Flavored E-Cigarette Sales in Stores
The Food and Drug Administration plans to ban sales of most flavored e-cigarettes in retail stores and gas stations around the country, in an effort to reduce the popularity of vaping among young people. The agency also plans to require age-verification measures for online sales to try to ensure that minors are not able to buy the flavor pods.

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 PARTICIPATION: 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.