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SIGMA’s 2006 Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., on July 18-19, was a very busy 48 hours for the 75 conference attendees who traveled to D.C. to educate federal legislators on issues of importance to independent motor fuel marketers. From congressional briefings to committee meetings to SIGMAPAC events to meetings with House and
Senate legislators on the Hill, SIGMA members braved the 90-plus-degree heat of Washington in July to carry their message to these legislators.
The Legislative Conference started with the SIGMA Executive Committee conducting a lunch meeting with the Issues Committee of the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association. This meeting allows the volunteer leaders of both groups to have a full and frank dialogue on the legislative and regulatory issues on which both associations are working and to seek to achieve a consensus approach on these issues, if possible. As in past years, the leaders of both groups found more common ground on public policy issues than they did differences. Even on issues on which the groups are taking different approaches, the leaders agreed to continue future discussions in attempts to resolve these differences.
Next, all attendees of the 2006 Legislative Conference were invited to attend an extended meeting of the Legislative Committee, led by SIGMA First Vice President Paul Reid of Reid Petroleum. Reid led the Committee on a comprehensive review of SIGMA’s positions on biofuels issues, ranging from tax credits to mandates to incentives for marketers to sell biofuels. The Committee reconfirmed the public policy positions that SIGMA has advanced on Capitol Hill over the past five years: opposition to biofuels mandates, support for incentives to market biofuels, support for increased competition and increased overall motor fuel supplies, and a commitment to marketing liquid motor fuels, whether produced from hydrocarbons or from agricultural products.
The Committee also was briefed by Congressman John Sullivan, R-Okla., a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and a consistent supporter of the interests of independent marketers on legislative issues. Rep. Sullivan was introduced to the Committee by Mike Thornbrough of QuikTrip, which is headquartered in Rep. Sullivan’s district. Rep. Sullivan has been vocal on marketer issues ranging from reigning in the proliferation of boutique fuels to restraining state biofuel mandates to examining credit-card interchange rates. The meeting attendees enjoyed an opportunity to discuss with Rep. Sullivan his views on a wide range of topics, including the prospects for a switch in the party controlling the House after the November elections.
After the Legislative Committee meeting, SIGMAPAC contributors adjourned to a restaurant on Capitol Hill for the annual SIGMAPAC Congressional Reception. Over 25 members of the House joined SIGMA marketers at the reception for discussions of pending legislative issues and “back home” politics. Legislators attending the reception were pleased to receive the traditional SIGMAPAC “door prize” from their home state marketers: a SIGMAPAC contribution to their re-election campaigns. Once again, the SIGMAPAC Congressional Reception permitted marketers to talk informally with their home state legislators while supporting their re-election campaigns through SIGMAPAC. All attendees agreed that it was the best SIGMAPAC reception ever.
The second day of the Legislative Conference started early with a marketer briefing prior to meetings with House and Senate members. Congressman Roy Blunt, R-Mo., the Majority Whip of the House and a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, spoke to SIGMA members at breakfast. Rep. Blunt, a primary supporter of boutique fuels restrictions in the House, discussed a wide range of topics with the SIGMA marketers in attendance and urged them to carry their legislative agenda to legislators on both sides of the Hill. He provided an “insider’s” view of the Fall 2006 elections and predicted that the GOP would continue to control the House and Senate next year. His remarks were greeted warmly by the marketers attending and Rep. Blunt was thanked by all for his leadership on boutique fuels issues both in the past and the present.
After breakfast, 45 marketers fanned out across the Hill for meetings with legislators and staff on the following issues: credit-card interchange fees; federal price-gouging legislation; pending boutique fuels legislation; and increased appropriations from the federal LUST Trust Fund. Marketers had almost 200 meetings with legislators and staff during the day, urging legislators to support independent home state businesses on issues of importance to SIGMA members. Marketers reported back to SIGMA counsel on their meetings and it will be counsel’s job to follow up on the commitments made by these legislators.
Finally, after two busy days in D.C., marketers departed late on the 19th for a well-deserved rest after their legislative work on the Hill. And SIGMA staff and counsel began planning for the 2007 Legislative Conference with the goal of raising the bar even higher next year.
SIGMA expresses its sincere thanks to all who attended the 2006 Legislative Conference. As long-time SIGMA counsel Tim Columbus has remarked over the years: “Marketers are the ones with ‘clout’ with legislators, not lobbyists.” The attendees at this year’s conference moved SIGMA’s legislative agenda closer to its goals through their time commitment, work and energy. !
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