Don't forget to book your room for the 2020 OPMCA Fall Outing before it is too late! The nightly rate at Shangri-La for OPMCA guests is $164.00 per night. Guests can reserve their rooms by calling (918) 257-4204 and referring to the OPMCA room block.

As the date approaches, we will continue to update our social media channels. Would you like more information on becoming an exhibitor or registering to attend? Visit our Website!

The artificial deadline of August 7 that Congressional negotiators had set for reaching a deal on the next round of COVID-19 relief legislation has come and gone. Unfortunately, with key sticking points, like funding for state and local governments and liability shields, still unresolved, the prospects of a comprehensive package coming together in the next few weeks are looking increasingly dim. Ongoing negotiations may be further complicated and polarized by the executive actions that the President took over the weekend which have already been the subject of significant criticisms and threats of legal actions, particularly from Democrats. Through PMAA’s participation with the Small Business Legislative Council (SBLC), we are able to share the following summaries of the orders.

Earlier in August, the White House announced four executive actions on payroll taxes, unemployment benefits, student loans and evictions. In particular, the actions on payroll taxes and unemployment are likely to raise some significant questions and issues for small businesses and their employees in the coming weeks.

In a Memorandum to the Secretary of the Treasury, the President directed the Secretary to defer the “withholding, deposit, and payment” of the payroll taxes that would otherwise be owed by certain employees between September 1 through December 31, 2020. As you may recall, pursuant to the CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act that were passed earlier this year, businesses have already had the option to defer (50% to Dec. 31, 2021, and 50% to Dec. 31, 2022). Specifically, the Memorandum would apply to payroll taxes owed by employees whose pre-tax bi-weekly pay is less than $4,000. While the Memorandum specifies that the taxes be deferred “without any penalties, interest, additional amount, or addition to the tax,” unless Congress takes further action on this point, these employee payroll taxes will ultimately still be due. The prospect of having to collect and remit these payroll taxes in the future, coupled with the concern about communicating to employees the distinction between a tax deferral and forgiveness, have many employers understandably very nervous. This is before even considering the logistics that would be involved in changing the way payroll is run for some but not necessarily for all employees.

The Department of Treasury is expected to be releasing further guidelines soon about how it will be implementing the Memorandum which will hopefully provide more direction.

Many businesses will be eagerly awaiting further clarifications on several key issues including:

On July 31, 2020, the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUC) program expired. The FPUC program was created under the CARES Act and provided an additional $600 per week benefit for individuals claiming unemployment (which in most states included individuals who had been furloughed). The continuation of enhanced unemployment benefits has been a key area of discussion as lawmakers have tried to negotiate the latest COVID-19 relief package. While the packages being promoted by both parties’ leadership include some form of extension of enhanced benefits, the details are very different. The HEROS Act, which was passed by the House in May, would simply extend the $600 per week benefit through January 31, 2021. The HEALS Act, which was introduced by Senate Republicans in late July, would provide an additional $200 per week through the end of September. Starting in October, states would be directed to provide benefits equal to 70% of an employee’s prior wages with the federal government providing a supplement of up to $500 per person per week to help the states hit that number. This effort to tie the benefits to prior wages is intended to address concerns that enhanced unemployment benefits have deterred employees from returning to work as businesses reopen.

In his Memorandum to the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Administrator of FEMA, President Trump directed the allocation of disaster relief funds to provide for additional unemployment benefits of $400 per week. Initially it appeared that to qualify for the additional federal funding, states would have to cover 25% ($100 per week) of the enhanced benefits, with the remaining $300 per week coming from federal disaster relief funds. After a number of states publicly indicated that they simply do not have the funds to satisfy such a match or would only be able to do so for a few weeks, the White House clarified that funds will be made available for a $300 per week enhanced benefit whether or not the states are able to chip in the additional $100. Click here for the latest federal guidance.

The 2020 Heavy Highway Vehicle Use (HHVU) tax reporting period runs from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021. The HHVU tax is paid on each commercial motor vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of 55,000 pounds or greater that travels 5,000 miles or more per year. The HHVU applies to most petroleum cargo tank vehicles and transports. Once the HHVU tax is filed and paid, the IRS will send back to filers a stamped IRS Form 2290 Schedule 1, proof of payment within 6 weeks.

The filing deadline for Form 2290 is based on the month the taxpayer first uses the taxable vehicle on public highways during the reporting period.

Click here for the full PMAA Compliance Bulletin.

The EPA will not extend its current enforcement discretion waiver beyond August 31, 2020, the agency announced. The EPA issued the open-ended general enforcement discretion policy on March 26, 2020 due to movement and work limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The enforcement discretion policy was open ended with no termination date when first issued. The EPA set the August 31 deadline this week due to the loosening of stay at home orders in many states nationwide. The enforcement discretion was designed to address difficulties regulated parties may have maintaining certain routine compliance requirements during the COVID-19 pandemic including routine monitoring and reporting; integrity testing; sampling; lab analysis; training; and certification.

The EPA enforcement discretion policy is beneficial to fuel marketers because it provided compliance relief and flexibility from UST regulations, SPCC regulations, fuel quality attest engagements sampling and testing, among many other EPA program requirements except spill and release cleanup related activities. The EPA said that as state and local restrictions are relaxed or lifted, the need for regulatory compliance flexibility has been significantly reduced. However, the EPA said it would continue to monitor COVID-19 developments and provide enforcement discretion on a case by case basis if necessary.

The PMAA Regulatory Alert explaining the EPA policy can be found here: Regulatory Alert.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has granted an immediate regional Hours of Service waiver in response to Hurricane Laura and Tropical Storm Marco for the following states: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas through September 23, 2020. Click here to read the notice. The waiver applies to all CDL drivers nationwide who deliver designated emergency supplies including fuel into the emergency areas covered by the declaration. FMCSA Regulations Exempted: Parts 390 through 399 of FMCSA regulations as limited by the waiver.

PMAA asked the FMCSA for the regional waiver last weekend before Tropical storms Marco and Laura moved closer towards landfall on the Gulf coast. PMAA will continue to work closely with the FMCSA and other federal agencies to ensure regulatory waivers important to petroleum marketers are in place throughout the duration of the storm related emergency.

PMAA is hearing from petroleum marketers that they are experiencing long delays in the processing of federal motor fuel excise tax (FET) ultimate vendor claims for sales of tax included motor fuels to state and local governments and nonprofit educational organizations, kerosene and av-gas used in aviation, undyed diesel fuel for use in intercity busses, tax included kerosene sales from blocked pumps and both retroactive and current year biodiesel blender and alternative fuel tax credits. Marketers are also reporting delays in processing heavy highway vehicle use tax (HHVUT) proof of payment certificates needed for state registration of cargo tanks and IRS 637 UV registrations. Both the U.S. Department of Treasury and the IRS say the delays due to COVID-19 related altered working conditions. While many of the claims pay interest after 60 days, PMAA is concerned if the delays continue, they could interfere with the daily operations of marketer operations.

In response to marketers’ concerns, PMAA sent a letter to IRS Commissioner Charles P. Rettig emphasizing that many small business petroleum marketer operations could be disrupted if the delays are not resolved quickly and asked for a return to timely processing as soon as possible. Click here to read the letter.

In the meantime, petroleum marketers experiencing delays in claim and paperwork processing should call the IRS Business and Specialty Tax Line at (800) 829-4933, M-F between 7:00am and 7:00 local taxpayer time. Be prepared to be placed on hold for an extended period. In addition, those filing the federal heavy highway vehicle use tax should do so electronically and use the IRS Electronic Federal Tax Payment System for direct debit payment. Credit and debit cards are not accepted for payment of the HHVUT until January 1, 2021. Paper filing with payment by check is also available but expect significant delays.

45 minutes | Complimentary | Advance registration required

In these uncertain times, it is more important than ever to be prepared for when your employees may need you the most. Workplace injuries can be devastating to a person’s life and their livelihood, and create a hardship for your business. The global pandemic has shown a light on how important it is to be prepared to manage workplace injury claims. Ryan Hayes, claims manager at Federated Insurance, will take you through the preparation and process of managing care for an injured employee and the potential impact on your business.

Owners/Officers 

Operations Management 

Risk Managers 

HR Professionals

  How to prepare for the possibility of a workplace injury 

How the workers compensation experience modifier works 

The importance of communication during a workplace injury claim

60 minutes | Advance registration required

In this webinar, we will address key issues such as returning to work after a pandemic related shutdown or slow down; adjusting to the shift to remote work; workplace violence and weapons issues; and how to avoid unexpected risks of discrimination claims as your organization navigates the impact of social justice issues and the pandemic on its workforce and customers. We will provide practical tips you can use today to lead from the front and reduce risk.

Recommended Participants: 

HR Professionals, Risk Managers, Managers, and Supervisors

Property/Casualty and/or Workers Compensation subjects

a Human Resources-related question and answer from independent HR legal professionals

Concepts related to Life and Disability insurance