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April 8, 2021
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 Inside this issue
  Executive Directors Message  
 

BIDEN'S INFRASTRUCTURE PLAN & HOW IT AFFECTS YOU

WILL THERE BE A DELAY FOR EMV COMPLIANCE?

ASE-PREP TRAINING (FOR NJ ASE-TRACK ERT/ETEP RECERTIFICATION)

GOV MURPHY LIFTS SELF-SERVICE FOOD STATION BAN
 

INFRASTRUCTURE PLAN

In March, President Biden unveiled his infrastructure plan, which will cost about $2 trillion over the next decade. $174 billion will be dedicated to electrifying vehicles, with some funds to be spent on the manufacturing side. Much of it will be dedicated to grants for state and local governments and the private sector to install chargers, with a goal of 500,000 EV chargers by 2030. The plan also calls to replace 50,000 diesel transit vehicles, electrify at least 20% of school buses, and electrify the entire federal vehicle fleet (which includes the Postal Service). Despite the investments, legal, budgetary and technical challenges still remain, with congressional funding approval and permitting cost-sharing regulations to address concerns at the state and local level still up in the air. The plan also budgets for modernizing 20,000 miles of highways, investing in public transit, and another $15 billion to invest in demonstration projects for Biden's climate research and development priorities. This includes utility-scale energy storage, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, advanced nuclear, rare earth element separations, floating offshore wind, biofuel/bioproducts and quantum computing.

To pay for the infrastructure plan, President Biden is calling for an increase to the federal corporate tax rate from 21% to 28% (it was 35% before the 2017 tax cuts), as well as a variety of other changes targeting the largest corporations, particularly multinationals. It also eliminates a variety of incentives in the tax code related to the oil industry, which could increase the cost of oil and gasoline. The Administration claims that if the proposal is enacted in full the 10-year plan will pay for itself in 15 years.

 

EMV COMPLIANCE

Additional requests have been made to the major credit card companies (Visa, Mastercard, Discover) to delay EMV compliance again due to the COVID pandemic. Keep in mind, there have been a lot of requests and pressure on the credit card companies to delay their usual annual rate increase which they agreed to for a second year in a row. I'm not quite sure how fast they will delay the installation of EMV at the pumps for a number of reasons. One is that the original deadline for this was October 2017, and retailers were notified of this as early as 2014. It became apparent in the middle of 2017 that there was no way retailers across the nation would be able to comply. They all agreed to extend it to Oct 2020, an additional three years, thinking this would be enough time to get into compliance. Of course, with the pandemic changing life as we know it in 2020, this created another scenario to delay. Once again, the major credit card companies were asked to delay their deadline, which they agreed to do until April of this year. Now the time has come, and unfortunately, there are still many of you that have not complied. Though this additional request has been made, I don't have a clue whether the credit card companies will be inclined to grant this request or not. However, I want to remind you that we have hosted a webinar on the subject with our MBP Sound Payments and directed you to a number of sources that will help you reduce the cost of complying with the EMV requirement. I strongly encourage you to reach out to Sound Payments to learn more about compliance at petrosales@soundpayments.com. If you have any questions, contact Nick at nick@njgca.org.

 

ASE-PREP TRAINING (FOR NJ ASE-TRACK ERT/ETEP RE-CERTIFICATION)

NJGCA will be offering an ASE-prep class for Emission Repair Technicians (ERTs) seeking to continue their existing accreditation. Under the State's Inspection and Maintenance (I/M) program, a facility cannot make emission-related repairs unless the work was completed (or supervised by) a certified ERT. As existing ERTs are aware, the compliance requirements to maintain your accreditation changed on January 1, 2020.  

Before that time, the NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) always maintained a "dual-track" system to allow technicians to earn their ERT credentials through New Jersey's Emission Technician Education Program (ETEP). This dual-track allowed technicians to certify as ERTs through either an ASE-test track or a ETEP-educational class track. Sadly, NJDEP has now abolished the ETEP-educational class track. Only the ASE-test track remains, and re-certification is required every five years. 

For years NJGCA trained technicians through the ETEP-educational class track. We provided practical in-class instruction that was well-received by members and non-members alike. The program was so successful and popular that, for the last year, we've heard from current ETEP-education class track ERTs asking how they can comply with the new education mandates. Building on what we've learned from fifteen years of instruction, we're pleased to report that our ASE-prep program is moving forward. 

The transition to (or re-certification on) the ASE-test track means that all ERTs must obtain the following requirements: 

1 - ASE A6 (Electrical/Electronics)

2 - ASE A8 (Engine Performance)

3 - ASE L1 (Advanced Engine Performance)

4 - Completion of online NJ Specific Module (or possess a current, valid NJ Inspector License)


You can learn more about these changes, the previously announced "phase-in period" (for those technicians moving from the ETEP-educational class track to the ASE-test track), and the complete program requirements by visiting https://www.stopthesoot.org/etep/


We will hold our ASE-prep training the first week in May and continue for five weeks. Students would meet twice a week for the entire five week period (ten sessions), and review the required material for the A6, A8, and L1 exams. While we anticipate most students would appreciate preparing for all three tests together, we can also accommodate technicians who only need to prepare for a specific section.


All classes will meet in Wall Township, from approximately 9:00am to 3:00pm, on the following dates:

 

May Dates:

Class 1 - Tuesday, 5/4

Class 2 - Thursday, 5/6

Class 3 - Tuesday, 5/11

Class 4 - Thursday, 5/13

Class 5 - Wednesday, 5/19

Class 6 - Thursday, 5/20

Class 7 - Tuesday, 5/25

Class 8 - Thursday, 5/27

June Dates:

Class 9 - Wednesday, 6/2

Class 10 - Thursday, 6/3

To keep things consistent and affordable for former students, we will maintain the pricing structure from our previous ETEP training program, as follows:


NJGCA Members: $1,995.00 (plus the price of books)

Non-Members: $2,195.00 (plus the price of books)

 

A final itinerary and related information will be forthcoming.

Please keep in mind that, due to COVID conditions, seating is limited.  

If you are interested in our ASE-prep course, or have any questions, please email us at training@njgca.org so we can gauge demand.

 

SELF-SERVICE FOOD BAN LIFTED

This may or may not affect those of you in convenience stores: We are not aware of any stores that utilize self-serve food (such as salad bars), however, if you do you should know that the ban that has been in place since last year due to the pandemic was lifted last night by Governor Murphy. Our concern in the past year was that any ban might be expanded to include your self-serve coffee and soft drinks, which of course remains unaffected. You can read more about the action HERE to find out if this affects you.  

 

Be Well -  

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

ASE-Prep Training (for NJ ASE-track ERT/ETEP Re-Certification)

NJGCA will offer an ASE-prep class for Emission Repair Technicians (ERTs) seeing to continue their existing accreditation. Students will meet twice a week for the entire five-week period (ten sessions), and review the required material for the A6, A8, and L1 exams. While we anticipate most students would appreciate preparing for all three tests together, we can also accommodate technicians who only need to prepare for a specific section.

All classes will meet in Wall Township, from approximately 9:00am to 3:00pm, on the following dates:

May Dates:

Class 1 - Tuesday, 5/4

Class 2 - Thursday, 5/6

Class 3 - Tuesday, 5/11

Class 4 - Thursday, 5/13

Class 5 - Wednesday, 5/19

Class 6 - Thursday, 5/20

Class 7 - Tuesday, 5/25

Class 8 - Thursday, 5/27


June Dates

Class 9 - Wednesday, 6/2

Class 10 - Thursday, 6/3

 

Prices:

NJGCA Members: $1,995.00 (plus the price of books)

Non-Members: $2,195.00 (plus the price of books)

Email Training@njgca.org if you are interested in signing up

 

Two-Day Emissions Inspector Training Class
April 27th & 28th, 2021

If you, a colleague, or an employee technician wishes to become a NJ Emissions Inspector, now is your chance! NJGCA will offer a two-day class with all the information and training you need to become a NJ Emissions Inspector.
 
On day one you will receive in-class instruction from NJGCA's instructor. We will break for lunch (provided), and the State will administer the written test in the afternoon.
 
On day two will go over the hands-on test at an emission inspection location to fully prepare you for the hands-on test.

We are offering the class: 
Tuesday, April 27th, 7:00am to 4:00pm & Wednesday, April 28th, 12:30

Email Training@njgca.org if you are interested in signing up



Contact Nick De Palma at Nick@njgca.org to inquire about additional class dates

 

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  News Around The State  
 

4/7/21

Oil Falls On Surge In U.S. Gasoline Stocks

Crude oil prices fell on Thursday after official data showed a big increase in U.S. gasoline stocks on the back of higher refinery runs, while demand remained subdued compared with pre-coronavirus levels. Brent crude fell 32 cents, or 0.5%, to $62.84 a barrel by 1013 GMT. U.S. oil fell 45 cents, or 0.7%, to $59.32 a barrel. While crude oil stocks in the United States fell more than forecast by analysts, gasoline inventories jumped sharply, the U.S. Department of Energy said on Wednesday. [EIA/S]

 

4/7/21

Potential Roadblocks for Biden's EV Charging Plan

President Biden's proposal for an electric-vehicle (EV) charging station network could invigorate the EV industry, but roadblocks include legal, budgetary and technical challenges, the Wall Street Journal reports. The president's plan for half a million new EV charging stations-a fivefold increase in the national EV network-is wrapped into a $174 billion measure to help the electric vehicle industry under the White House's $2.3 trillion infrastructure bill.

 

4/5/21

Your Summer Road Trip Is A Factor In Whether Gas Prices Top $3 A Gallon

What might push gas prices over the $3 a gallon level for regular? It might depend on how many more people take that traditional road trip to the Jersey Shore this summer, experts said. Prices have taken a steady walk upward in the past 30 days, which have been blamed on a variety of reasons including a large container ship blocking the Suez Canal for close to a week. The real factors will be supply, affected by OPEC oil ministers decision to increase crude oil production at a meeting Thursday, and demand, if traffic bounces back to 2019 traffic volumes, said Tom Kloza, Oil Price Information Service global petroleum analyst.

 

4/5/21

Summer Drive Predicted To Be Near 'Normal' Levels

Convenience retailers anticipate that leisure travel and routine customer trips will return to pre-pandemic levels this summer, according to the results of a new survey of U.S. convenience store owners by NACS Research. Convenience stores, which sell 80% of the fuel purchased in the country, experienced a 13% decrease in fuel sales and less customer traffic throughout the pandemic. However, most (52%) say that summer travel and commuting patterns will be close to pre-pandemic levels. However, this is not shared optimism: 28% don't expect to see traditional travel patterns emerge until 2022.
 

 

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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  
 


Property For Sale: Gasoline Retail and Auto Repair Facility. Family Owned and Operated Since 1976. FOR SALE - Inquire via EMAIL for details:
MontvilleValero@gmail.com


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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