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May 11, 2018 | www.npcainc.com
In This Issue
Quick Links
GLW Scholarship
Skimmer Training Presentation
Nebraska UST Operator Training
 2015-2016 GLW Scholarship Winners
Upcoming Events

June 14, 2018

George L. Watters Memorial Scholarship Golf Outing

 

August 15 &15, 2018 Fairway N Friends- Wilderness Ridge, Lincoln, NE
October 3 & 4, 2018 2018 NPCA & NPGA Joint Convention

The Marketer- NPCA's Quarterly Magazine

Catch up on 
The Marketer Magazine

Click here to view digital copy
YOUR WEEKLY MEMBER NEWS LETTER: is a service provided only to members of the Nebraska Petroleum Markers & Convenience Store Association (NPCA). If you have any key personnel that would like to be added at no additional charge, please feel free to reply to tkeigher@npcainc.com, katie@npcainc.com or call (402)-474-6691.
 
Thank You to NPCA's Partners

  
  
  
  
  
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Want to be an NPCA Partner, Contact  Katie Navratil  for details    Click here  for more information.
NACS: Plenty of Price Elasticity Before Consumers Curtail Driving Habits 


As pump prices rise, so do industry concerns that consumers will drive less. But
prices at the gas island still have a way to go before hitting the threshold at
which consumers cut back on travel, based on a recent report from NACS, "How
Consumers React to Gas Prices."

The report noted that in January, the mean price at which consumers said they
would "drive less" was $3.37/gal and the mean retail gas price was $2.30/gal --
a difference of $1.07/gal. At that time, the mean price at which consumers said
they would drive "drastically less" or "seek alternative to driving" was
$4.43/gal, a difference of $2.13/gal from the $2.30/gal mean street price.

The chart's closest comparison is February 2017. NACS charted a $3.44/gal mean
price threshold at which consumers said they would "drive less" and a $4.45/gal
mean price at which consumers said they would drive "drastically less," while
the mean retail price sat at $2.25/gal. That's a wider gap of $1.19/gal and
$2.18, respectively.

The association's data suggest that as fuel prices tend to climb going into the
driving season when demand rises, consumers also expect higher prices and seem
to be willing to pay more. The point at which consumers balk at fuel prices can
be higher during the summer and even into the fall, based the NACS chart.

In May 2017, the mean price at the pump was $2.35/gal and the mean price at
which consumers would "drive less" was $3.49/gal, a $1.14/gal gap. During that
month, the threshold at which consumers would drive "drastically less" was
$4.53/gal, a $2.18/gal difference.

--Donna Harris, dharris@opisnet.com

Measure retail profit performance against key competitors in the U.S. and Canada
with OPIS Retail Fuel Watch newsletter. Learn more and start a free 4-week trial
at https://www.opisnet.com/product/news/retail-fuel-watch/

Copyright, Oil Price Information Service 


EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is setting in motion plans to review and set six new National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) required under the Clean Air Act. The review is important to petroleum marketers because two of the standards under review involve ground level ozone and particulate matter, both of which could impact gasoline and diesel fuel use and formulation requirements.

In a memo released this week, Pruitt laid out five "principles" for determining NAAQS which are aimed at streamlining EPA review and approval process and easing of scientific standards to determine if current standards are adequate to protect human health and environment. The memo also set out an ambitious goal to quickly finalize new NAAQS standards for ozone by 2020 and particulate matter by 2022. Pruitt also seeks to streamline procedures for evaluating scientific research used to determine whether current or proposed standards are adequate to protect public health and give greater weight to the economic costs when determining new pollution control measures.

The goal for the agency is to ease NAAQS standards issued under the Obama Administration that significantly increased non-attainment areas for ozone and particulate matter. The new standards are likely to reduce the number of counties in nonattainment requiring RFG and slow the switch from diesel to natural gas-powered diesel vehicles in counties in nonattainment for particulate matter. The planned changes come less than a month after the Administration ordered EPA to revamp the NAAQS review process and just two years after the Obama Administration lowered the ozone standard from 75 ppb to 70 ppm, greatly expanding nonattainment areas nationwide.
GLW Scholarship Golf Outing


Register Here
June 14- York, NE
Come network with members of the industry and raise money for the George L. Watters Memorial Scholarship Golf Outing 11:30 Lunch 12:00pm Shot Gun Start Dinner to follow



Beverages on the Course & Dinner Sponsor:

Shrimp & 2 Hole Sponsor:           19th Hole Sponsor:
        
Lunch Co-Sponsors:
  

Hole Sponsors:
Altria, Bosselman Energy, Cenex, Cubby's, 
ET Products,Federated Insurance, Farner Bocken
Flint Hills Resources, Growmark, Hartland Fuels, LSI, 
Midwest Pump & Equipment, Musket Oil (Love's), Phillips 66, 
RDG Geoscience & Engineering, RJ Reynolds, Shell Oil, Sinclair Oil, Western Oil

Tentative Deal Reached on RFS Reform
On Tuesday, reports began emerging that the Trump Administration had reached a deal on the RFS in a White House meeting with Senators representing corn and refining states, as well as the Secretary of Agriculture and the Administrator of EPA.

Since then, it has been clear that the regulatory deal is not yet complete and there are still more negotiations to come. Under the tentative agreement that was reached this week, the ethanol industry would receive a year-round RVP waiver for E15 blends, while biofuels exports would qualify for RINS generation. The White House also agreed to not pursue an artificial cap on RINs prices. The ethanol industry had already pushed back against any effort to cap RIN values and/or allow ethanol exports to qualify for RINs generation since any reduction in RINs will likely hurt E15 sales. In other words, for E15 to become a viable "new fuel" in the marketplace, the ethanol industry needs the 15-billion-gallon ethanol mandate to stay intact which maintains RIN values. Attaching RINs to exported ethanol would likely provide relief to refiners by reining in the cost of RINs.
New Guidance Released Regarding Menu Labeling Requirements
On Monday, the FDA released new guidance for the implementation of the menu labeling requirements that also went into effect on Monday.

This guidance updates the guidance document that was released last year and includes new examples of alternatives to aid in compliance. It also identifies places where FDA intends to be more flexible in its approach. The guidance reflects input from stakeholders in response to an interim final rule (IFR) (82 FR 20825, May 4, 2017), as well as comments received on the draft guidance document.

Enforcement of the menu labeling requirements began on Monday, May 7, 2018. For information on which establishments are required to comply with the menu labeling rule, see PMAA General Counsel Al Alfano's detailed explanation.
This week, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA), along with Rep. David McKinley (R-WV), introduced a House resolution aimed at putting lawmakers on the record as opposing a carbon tax. H. Con. Res. 119 "expresses the sense of Congress that a carbon tax would be detrimental to American families and businesses and is not in the best interest of the United States."

The resolution finds that a carbon tax would have detrimental effects on businesses and families, arguing that it would increase the price of gasoline and home heating fuel, and therefore increase the cost of food, transportation and other necessities to consumers. Furthermore, the resolution claims that a carbon tax would negatively affect businesses and force many jobs overseas. The resolution also highlights that a carbon tax would hit the poor, elderly and other people on fixed incomes the hardest. Majority Whip Scalise also said that a carbon tax would threaten America's energy security.

The idea of a carbon tax has been floating around D.C. for years and Majority Whip Scalise wants to have GOP lawmakers on the record as opposing a carbon tax. In 2016, the House approved a similar carbon tax resolution, with all Republicans and six Democrats supporting it. Conservative groups including Americans for Tax Reform, FreedomWorks and Tea Party Nation recently said in a letter that a carbon tax would eliminate many of the benefits of the GOP's new tax law. PMAA firmly opposes the introduction of a carbon tax.
On Tuesday, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment held a hearing titled "Sharing the Road: Policy Implications of Electric and Conventional Vehicles in the Years Ahead" that examined policy implications for electric vehicles (EVs) and conventional vehicles in the future. Witnesses included: Mr. Mitch Bainwol, President and CEO, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers; Mr. Bob Dinneen, President and CEO, Renewable Fuels Association; Ms. Genevieve Cullen, President, Electric Drive Transportation Association; Mr. Frank Macchiarola, Group Director, Downstream and Industry Operations, American Petroleum Institute; Ms. Megan McKernan, Manager, Automotive Engineering, Automobile Club of Southern California, on behalf of AAA; Mr. Dylan K. Remley, Senior Vice President, Global Partners LP, on behalf of the National Association of Convenience Stores and the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers; and Ms. Geisha Williams, President and CEO, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, on behalf of Edison Electric Institute.

In his opening statement, Environment Subcommittee Chairman John Shimkus (R-IL) stated, "Battery electric vehicles are gaining in market share, and the internal combustion engine has significant competition for the first-time in a long-time." He continued, "As the nation's vehicle mix changes, we may need to rethink past fuel and vehicle policies. For example, the Renewable Fuel Standard was last amended back in 2007 when we assumed that gasoline demand was on a one-way trip higher. We now know that those assumptions were overstated and will be even more so if EVs continue to gain market share. This doesn't necessarily mean the RFS needs to be amended in light of EVs, but Congress should at least look at the matter."

In his testimony, Frank Macchiarola stressed the need for Congress to support America's energy security when examining transportation policies. He stated that Congress should implement "policies that strengthen our energy security, improve our standard of living and protect our environment. In creating transportation policy, Congress should acknowledge that consumers are purchasing vehicles today, and those vehicles are staying on the road longer and going further on a gallon of fuel. New transportation policies that incentivize shifts in consumer behavior should be considered with caution as they may impose undue costs on consumers with diminishing environmental benefits and unintended consequences."

Dylan Remley, representing the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) and the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers Association (SIGMA), spoke about the role of the private marketplace for refueling. In his testimony, Remley stated that members of NACS and SIGMA are "consumer-facing businesses and are constantly adapting to changing consumer demands. Fuel retailers will continue to invest in equipment to support renewable and alternative fuels, whether it is biofuels, compressed natural gas, or electricity, if our customers demand it-and presuming a return on investment is possible. The single greatest concern that many of the Associations' members have with the push to transition to EVs arises from efforts by state public utility companies to enter the alternative fuel recharging space with an unfair market advantage. To be clear, we have no problems with a public utility company entering the electric fuel recharging business provided it is competing for that business on equal footing with the private sector."
Summer Work Environment: Working in the Heat on May 15, 2018 AT 2:00pm EST

As we move from spring to summer, many of us are thrilled to enjoy the summer heat and sunshine while it lasts! That same heat, however, can have catastrophic or even deadly consequences if not managed properly by employees working in it every day. This 30-minute webinar will discuss the risk factors aligned with extreme heat conditions, how to identify heat related illness, and training to help employees make good decisions while working in the heat.

What you will learn:
  • Which workers are at risk and why
  • Heat Illness Development and Risk Levels
  • Heat Illness Prevention
  • Planning and Resources to keep employees safe
Advance Registration is required. A recorded version of the webinar will be available here for 60 days approximately one week after the live session if you are interested, but unable to attend.

For additional information or to discuss this in further detail, please contact your Federated regional representative or PMAA's National Account Executive Jerry Leemkuil at 800.533.0472. Federated is a PMAA Corporate Platinum Partner.
Purchase PAC Raffle Tickets for a Chance to Own a Jordan Spieth Golf Collage
Purchase your PMAA Small Business Committee (SBC) PAC raffle tickets now for an opportunity to win your own Jordan Spieth Golf Collage.

Spieth is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour and former world number one in the Official World Golf Ranking. He is a three-time major winner and the 2015 FedEx Cup champion. Time magazine named Spieth to its list of the "100 Most Influential People," noting that he "exemplifies everything that's great about sports."

The collage is 23"x 25" and each photo is from Jordan's major wins. The logos and lettering are laser cut and laser engraved detailed nameplates with authenticity guarantee. This piece is great for any fan!

The PMAA SBC PAC will hold the raffle during the Day on the Hill Meeting in Washington, DC next week on May 16-18 and the raffle winner will be identified during the Board Meeting on May 18. The winner does not have to be present to win. If you are not attending the conference, you will be notified the week following the May drawing if you are the fortunate owner of the Jordan Spieth Golf Collage.

The proceeds of the raffle will benefit the PMAA SBC PAC. The money distributed to the PAC is used to benefit federal legislators who support the industry and have a solid record on key industry legislative issues. Tickets are $25 each or five for $100. Advanced tickets are available until May 15 by contacting Sabrina Pitcher at 703-351-8000. Ticket sales will continue at PMAA's Day on the Hill Meeting in Washington, DC until the drawing on May 18. Tickets must be paid for with personal funds by MasterCard, VISA, American Express, cash or check (checks should be made out to the PMAA Small Business Committee).
PMAA Small Business Committee (SBC) PAC Co-Chairs Brad Bell and Tim Keigher thank Philip Chamblee and the Mississippi Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association (MPM/CSA) and John Hill and the Utah Petroleum Marketers & Retailers Association (UPMRA), for their unique contributions for the PMAA SBC PAC Silent Auction.

MPM/CSA donated a McCarty's Collectible Pottery Bowl and The Pottery book by John Ramsey Miller. Lee and Pup McCarty began making their famous pottery in 1954 concentrating on both artistic and functional pieces, and a large variety of sculptures are among pieces adorning homes across America and the world. The McCarty's unique style, again with the focus on the simple yet elegant, is one of the main reasons for the "collectability" of the pottery.

The Pottery book is about Lee and Pup McCarty who were from different backgrounds and who fell in love, almost accidently discovered their calling, and for sixty-four years amassed a body of creative work whose quality, aesthetics, diversity, and volume is staggering.

UPMRA contributed an exquisite Large Wooden Bowl from a 100-year old Mesquite tree carved by Utah/Arizona artist Ian Finley. Mesquite trees when cut to the ground level can often recover. It is one of the most expensive types of lumber in the US. It was a popular type of wood used by early Spaniards to build ships but is now used most commonly for high-end rustic furniture and cabinets.

The Auction will take place in conjunction with PMAA's Washington Conference next week on May 16 during the welcome reception. If you have items that you would like to contribute for the Silent Auction, please contact Sabrina Pitcher at 703-351-8000.

Please note that auction Items must be paid for with personal funds by MasterCard, VISA, American Express, cash or check (checks can also be made out to the PMAA Small Business Committee).
Get your PMAA Marketer Defense Fund (MDF) raffle tickets now for a chance to win the Garmin Approach X40 Smartwatch. This may be a "game changer" to help you improve your game. Garmin's Approach X40 combines daily activity tracking and heart rate data with golf data for more than 40,000 courses. The screen on the slim band shows distances for each green as well as hazards and shows a digital scorecard. AutoShot tracking measures and records shot distances for post-round analysis.

The MDF will hold a raffle next week during the Washington, DC May 16-18 conference and the raffle winner will be identified during the conference on May 18. The winner does not have to be present to win. If you are not attending the conference, you will be notified the week following the May drawing if you are the fortunate owner of the Garmin Approach X40 Smartwatch.

Click here for more information on the MDF and how to contribute.

Tickets are $25 each or five for $100. Advanced tickets are available until May 15. Ticket sales will continue at PMAA's conference in DC until the drawing on May 18. Tickets can be purchased with personal or corporate funds by MasterCard, VISA, American Express, cash or check (checks should be made out to the PMAA Marketer Defense Fund). To purchase tickets before May 15, please contact Susan Isard or 703-351-8000.

Make the Most of Your Investment in Key Employees

Many business owners train and mentor employees for the long term, only to have them leave in two or three years. Have you experienced the loss of a promising employee? If so, then you know the costs related to turnover are high and getting higher as jobs become more specialized. Even if you offer the usual employment benefits, and perhaps even a retirement plan, that may not be enough to retain these important employees in today's competitive job market. Younger workers, in particular, don't want to wait until retirement for a bonus -they often think in shorter terms. You also may have certain key employees who you want to let know how special they really are to your operation.

To learn more about investing in your key employees, please click here. For additional information or to discuss this in further detail, please contact your Federated regional representative or PMAA's National Account Executive Jerry Leemkuil at 800.533.0472. Federated is a PMAA Corporate Platinum Partner.
Basics of Equipment Financing

There are a wide range of equipment investments on the horizon, including EMV pumps and sump compliance upgrades. To help dealers understand the available options, PMAA Corporate Gold Partner Patriot Capital has developed a short video that explains the trade-offs of various financing options. View the video here.

For further information, please contact Richard Browne with Patriot Capital at 404-977-1251.

Where On Earth Did This Person Come From?

There used to be a time in this country when businesses would hire people they knew from around town. Or a job applicant was a trusted friend of an employee. Times are so different now. You have people from all over the nation and the world applying for jobs with you, and you don't know a thing about them.

To cover their bases, many employers are hiring third-party screening firms to do a background check that goes well beyond checking your references and verifying your employment history. To read more about CrimeChexPlus and their services in its entirety, please view here. Please note that the general information provided is not a substitute for legal advice. Please consult with your legal counsel regarding these topics and other general employment questions.

LaborChex, a PMAA Vendor and a PMAA Corporate Bronze Partner who has been serving clients nationwide since 1991, provides a program of background checks for PMAA members. For more information and to discuss your needs, please email PMAA's Account Consultant Ricky Rayborn or call him directly at 601.832.2174 or visit

Nebraska Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association | (402) 474-6691 | www.npcainc.com |
1320 Lincoln Mall, Suite 100B
Lincoln, NE 68508