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The
J “Lifeline of the Gasoline Industry, the Independent Gasoline Dealer.” J
CLXXII Edition March 2014
Gasoline Retailers Association of Florida
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Pat Moricca President Member Service Station Dealers of America
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Gasoline Retailers Association of Florida is a non-profit association representing Independent Gasoline Retailers, Convenience Stores, Gasoline Service Stations, Repair Shops, Tire Retailers, Truck Stops and Associates throughout Florida. Our goal is to improve the interests of these independent businesses and the motoring public. Cooperation with insurance companies provides benefits for our members. These benefits include money-saving programs for AFLAC, group health, workers' compensation, casualty and property and gasoline tank liability insurance. Benefits also include financing to purchase your gasoline station property and much more.
The problems facing our industry today affect every dealer, no matter how large or small. And, since no one individual could possibly begin to solve these problems alone, it remains that each should joinin a collective effort to protect his/her business investment.
Join the Gasoline Retailers Association of Florida and help in the fight to keep the
Florida Motor Fuel Marketing Practices Act (Below Cost) law.
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High Gasoline Prices Increases Theft
Customer credit-card numbers are stolen with the help of accomplices who place skimming devices on the dispensers that capture credit-card numbers.
ZIP codes are not included in the data in the mag stripe on the back of credit cards, asking the purchaser to enter their ZIP code at the gasoline pump stops thieves, the industry says. If the ZIP code entered does not match that of the legal card owner, service is denied and the theft is stopped.
Don’t let this happen again! Conserve, Conserve, Conserve, GASOLINE!!!
Wholesale fuel prices are increasing sharply due to rising crude oil prices and a drop in U.S. supplies.
When inventory declines, the oil companies should increase the output at their refineries! When inventory is down it still remains healthy. There hasn’t been a refiner built in approximately 35 years?
2014 average wholesale gasoline prices have changed up or down 33 times from 1st of year to date.
ExxonMobil fourth-quarter earnings
HOUSTON — Exxon Mobil Corp., the world’s largest oil company by market value, said its fourth-quarter earnings net income for the fourth quarter 2013 was $8.4 billion
“Over the next two years, ExxonMobil will start up numerous major projects delivering profitable new supplies of oil and natural gas while strengthening our refining and chemicals businesses.” Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson said in a statement. For the full year of 2013, net earnings were $32.6 billion,
Chevron fourth-quarter net income
Chevron Corp., the world’s third-largest oil company by market value, said fourth-quarter net income $4.93 billion profit.
Commentary: Keystone XL — the cost of politics and illusion
Key questions are will Keystone increase energy security, will it increase domestic investment, will it create jobs, will it harm the environment, and will it have an adverse impact on climate?
It has been estimated that completion of the pipeline would result in over 800,000 barrels of oil flowing from Canada into the lower 48 states. That is an increase of about 500,000 barrels being transported by rail into the US. Additional oil from Canada is oil that we don’t have to import from the Middle East or Venezuela. That is clearly in the national interest.
Completing the pipeline would result in an additional investment of about $4 billion by TransCanada and create 40,000 new jobs during the construction phase and upwards of 120,000 indirect jobs. That is clearly in the national interest at a time of stubbornly high unemployment and the lowest labor participation rate in many decades.
Completing the pipeline will not have a significant impact on the environment according to the State Department environmental impact analysis. That conclusion is consistent with other studies, especially one last fall by IHS CERA that also concluded GHG emissions when looked at on a “wells to wheels” basis have been grossly overblown. Oil that does not come to the US will most likely go to the far-east, primarily China. It will be shipped by tankers, refined in refineries that are not as environmentally advanced as ours, and burned in vehicles that do not meet our emission requirements. That alternative is clearly worse for the environment.
If the pipeline is not completed, oil will continue to be shipped to the US by rail which is neither as safe nor efficient as the pipeline. The State Department in its analysis concluded that shipping oil by rail “would result in an estimated 49 additional injuries and six additional fatalities” for the no action scenario. That compares with an estimate of one additional injury and no fatalities if the pipeline is completed. Oil spills would also be greater if oil is shipped by rail by more than a factor of 4—1200 barrels versus 250.
State Department Releases Environmental Analysis on Keystone XL Pipeline
A new report says that the pipeline will not significantly worsen climate change.
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WASHINGTON – A new U.S. State Department report concludes that the Keystone XL pipeline will not significantly worsen climate change, marking a disappointment to pipeline foes.
The Wall Street Journal writes that the report “triggers a final review to determine whether the pipeline is in the national interest,” which includes a 90-day comment followed by President decision on whether to construct the pipeline. During that 90-day period, eight separate agencies will weigh in, “potentially injecting the pipeline issue into the midterm election season,” writes the newspaper.
The report found that the “approval or denial of any single project is unlikely to significantly affect the rate of extraction of the oil in the oil sands, or the refining of heavy crude on the U.S. gulf coast,” a State Department official told reporters on Friday.
A spokesman for TransCanada told WSJ late Thursday: "Fifteen thousand pages of scientific and technical study published in four environmental analysis reports since 2010 have all concluded this project would have minimal impact on the environment. We don't see how the final report would come to a different conclusion."
World Hot Spots Hiking Pump Prices
But retailer's slice of price pie is skinnier
CAMARILLO, Calif. --The U.S. average retail price of regular grade gasoline increased to $3.411.
Conflagrations in Venezuela, Ukraine and South Sudan spooked oil prices, translating to large wholesale gasoline price hikes that have been just partially passed through by retailers on to the street. Higher ethanol prices also contributed to wholesale gasoline price increase.
If the oil market perception of threat to world petroleum supply worsens from here, then oil prices would continue rising, adding to the already likely few more cents at the pump. And if oil price hikes were to continue through mid-April, when U.S. refiners will be rolling out higher-cost, lower-vapor-pressure summer gasoline for their May 1 deadline to meet the June 1 retail deadline, then the two developments would coincide for a double whammy gasoline price jump.
However, for now, the crude oil market hasn't freaked out, gasoline supplies are abundant and higher summer formulation costs do not yet apply.
U. S. Chamber Of Commerce Supports Raising Gas Tax
Tom Donohue, President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told Congress that increasing the gas tax is the best way to strengthen the Highway Trust Fund and develop the Nation's infrastructure.
Donohue also reported to members of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee that the Chamber supports H.R. 3636, the Update, Promote, and Develop America's Transportation Essentials Act, that would raise the gasoline excise tax to 33.3 cents per gallon.
'Hot Fuel' Cools Down
In major victory for gasoline retailers, plaintiffs voluntarily dismiss claims
KANSAS CITY, Kansas -- After seven years of litigation in more than 20 states, plaintiffs' lawyers in the "hot" fuel temperature multi-district litigation dismissed claims against 15 of the defendants in the litigation. They had claimed that gasoline retailers shortchanged motorists in the summer by selling warm fuel that had expanded, resulting in less fuel being dispensed.
As reported in a 21st Century Smoke/CSP Daily News Flash, the dismissals mark a substantial victory for 7-Eleven, Circle K, Mac's, Kum & Go, Marathon Petroleum, Murphy USA, Pilot Travel Centers, Flying J, PTCAA Texas, QuikTrip, RaceTrac, Sheetz, Speedway, The Pantry and Wawa.
Plaintiffs bringing class-action claims for damages and injunctive relief against motor fuel retailers have been filed in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, the District of Columbia and Guam.
The plaintiffs claim that because defendants sell motor fuel for a specified price per gallon without disclosing or adjusting for temperature expansion, they are liable under state law theories which include breach of contract, breach of warranty, fraud and consumer protection.
A federal judge threw out three cases against Chevron Corp. in July 2013. BP Products North America Inc., ConocoPhillips Co., Shell Oil Products US, Casey's General Stores Inc. and Valero Marketing & Supply Co., as well as Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Sam's Club and Costco, settled earlier in the year regarding their sales practices.
According to a press release issued by Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP, which represented the fuel sellers, the allegations in the litigation centered on the century-old, statutorily approved practice of selling gasoline and diesel fuel by the gallon. Regulators have long required motor fuel to be sold by the gallon because it creates a uniform standard and saves consumers money. Nevertheless, starting in 2006, plaintiffs filed 52 lawsuits around the country alleging that selling gasoline by the gallon was somehow a deceptive practice. Judges and jurors have rejected many of these claims, and now the plaintiffs' lawyers have voluntarily dismissed the remaining claims against these 15 defendants.
"I can say these companies are looking forward to putting these lawsuits behind them and getting back to the job of selling high-quality, affordable gasoline to the American people," said attorney Tristan L. Duncan of Shook, Hardy & Bacon.
Hess Station Manager Foils Skimmers
Devices found on pumps in Florida had captured 342 card numbers
BROOKSVILLE, Fla. -- A manager at a Hess station doing routine inspections found skimming devices placed within the pumps, apparently before data thieves were able to retrieve the compromised data, according to the local sheriff's office.
The devices, placed into pumps to steal credit-card information, were located on pumps at a Hess location in Brooksville, Fla.
The skimmers were "internal," which means there is no way they could have been detected by the customer. Hernando County Sheriff's detectives said the skimmers were placed within the pumps between 6:00 p.m. on Feb. 18, 2014, and 7:15 a.m. on Feb. 19, 2014, and placed only on pumps Nos. 1, 2, 7 and 8.
The sheriff's department said it was working with the U.S. Secret Service, which did an analysis of the four skimming devices. It identified a total of 342 card numbers captured by the devices, but officials said there is no evidence that the equipment had wireless capabilities. As a result, detectives believe that the suspect or suspects did not obtain the credit-card numbers that were on the devices.
"We have security measures and procedures in place to combat would-be intruders," Denny Moynihan, a spokesperson for Woodbridge, N.J.-based Hess, said. "Skimming is an issue that requires vigilance, and we take this issue very seriously."
In a statement to the public, officials with the sheriff's office asked the public: "If you patronized this particular Hess gas station during this time period, please check your receipt to determine which pump you used. If you used the pumps in question, contact your financial institution to cancel the card and have a new one issued."
In its statement, the local authorities said there are many ways that suspects can steal a customer's financial information. "Many of them are undetectable to you no matter how cautious you are," it said. "The best way to protect yourself is to check your financial accounts as often as possible to identify and report suspected fraud charges."
The statement emphasized. "
Most Small Businesses Don’t Report Employee Theft
A University of Cincinnati report finds that 64% of small businesses have experienced employee theft, while only 16% of those report the theft to the police.
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CINCINNATI – A new survey conducted by a University of Cincinnati criminal justice researcher reveals that only 16% of small businesses that have experienced employee theft actually report the theft to the police, Phys.org reports.
The numbers are striking, considering 64% of the small businesses surveyed reported experiencing employee theft.
"It's important to look at this topic because such theft represents a loss to the tax base and would also seem to put such businesses at risk, and so, put our overall economy at risk,” said Jay Kennedy, who conducted the research. “After all, small businesses with 100 or fewer employees comprise 97% of all businesses in the United States."
The survey’s other major findings include: Theft is a cash business: 40% of thefts in small businesses were of money, and the average amount stolen over time: $20,000.
Employees steal over time: most thefts are part of an ongoing scheme, like a bookkeeper that steals small amounts over many years. Most likely to steal: Roughly 60% of employees most likely to steal are first-line employees, those at the lowest hierarchical level.
Why the silence: One of the reasons that businesses do not report theft: They do not see the victimizations as serious enough to warrant involving police. It is far easier to simply fire the employee. "For instance, one company went through all the time and steps for a successful prosecution of an employee who stole $200,000,” Kennedy said. “The employee was convicted, put on probation and ordered to make restitution at the rate of $50 per month. In essence the small business will never recoup the stolen funds."