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November 10, 2003
ENERGY BILL COMPROMISES ON-AGAIN, OFF-AGAIN
In what has become a recurring theme with the Energy Bill, yet another “agreement” was reached between key conferees last Thursday, only to have that agreement appear to unravel on Friday. The issue this time was ethanol tax provisions (moving the cost of the tax incentives from the Highway Fund to the General Fund) – the most contentious of the remaining issues, according to insiders.
Earlier in the week, President Bush had issued a second call for conferees to resolve their disputes. Vice President Cheney had become directly involved in the negotiations between Sen. Grassley (R-IA) and Rep. Thomas (R-CA), chairmen of the two tax-writing committees. The White House had put forward a compromise proposal on several provisions for the bill, including the ethanol tax provision, which formed the basis for the reported agreement. In essence, the agreement (if it sticks) would have given the ethanol and highway lobbies the tax provisions they seek, but would have delayed the effective date of the changes until a 6-year Highway Bill is enacted – presumably early next year.
That delay in the effective date is what raised the hackles of the highway lobby. They apparently feared substantial losses of revenue to the Highway Trust Fund in the short run, and possible impediments to enactment of a long-term Highway Bill at all, if the ethanol tax issue isn’t already settled. Given the general dysfunctionality of Congress’s processes in recent years, their fears are not entirely ungrounded. Sen. Baucus (D-MT), ranking Democrat on the Sen. Finance Committee, is reportedly taking the lead in insisting on a re-examination of the ethanol tax deal.
Remember, this stage of the process is just trying to work out differences between Republican leaders of the Senate and House. Democrats have been pretty much excluded from the process. While House rules are such that Democratic votes are not necessary for final passage, in the Senate there is always the possibility of a filibuster that must be confronted. And Democratic Senators are increasingly talking about using such a tactic on several possible provisions of the bill.
As late as Friday, many were predicting that the Conference Committee would actually meet (novel idea!) this coming Wednesday, Nov. 12, for its second and last time, to endorse the compromise Energy Bill. But that is looking less and less likely, since Republicans have promised Democrats the actual text of the bill will be made available at least 48 hours before a vote. Democratic Senators have used the filibuster threat to insist that Republicans honor that commitment. As we go to press, it looks very unlikely that a bill could be finalized and made available by early in the day Monday, Nov. 10. With Congress slated to adjourn for the year by Friday, Nov. 21, that leaves less than 2 weeks for action on energy to be completed if it is to be done at all this year.
GOVERNMENT FUNDING BILLS
With the 2004 Fiscal Year already more than 10% over (41 days since 10/1/03)), Congress has passed only 4 of 13 FY2004 appropriations bills. Most agencies are being run on “continuing resolutions” (CR), which fund at the prior year’s level. The current (3rd) CR, passed last week, runs to Nov. 21, when Congress plans to adjourn for the year. Any funding bills not passed by then will be wrapped into a gigantic “omni-bill”. Of key interest to marketers will be what happens with the Labor Department’s bill. If it is passed as a stand-alone bill, it will probably include a provision blocking enforcement of new overtime rules supported by business groups; Republicans are thought to be more likely to be able to strip that provision from the bill if it ends up part of an omni-bill.
HIGHWAY BILL DELAYED (AGAIN)
The Senate Committee markup of a 6-year highway bill scheduled for last week was not held, officially due to a hectic work schedule. Instead, the first markup will be held this Wednesday. The House plans to begin work on its highway bill next week – the final week of the session. The bill will then be carried over to the next session beginning in January.
SIGMA IN SAN FRANCISCO
Most of the SIGMA staff will be there – hope to see you! We will maintain a skeleton staff at the office from this Tuesday through next Monday.
CORRECTION & UPDATE
Sen. Graham (D-FL) announced on Monday he will not seek re-election to the Senate. Our report last week noting his impending announcement incorrectly stated that it might have something to do with his run for the Presidency. Of course, he had already withdrawn from that race. Our apologies for the error.
CDL BACKGROUND CHECKS
The Transportation Security Agency has delayed for at least 5 months, and up to 13 months, the deadline for states to conduct background checks on all Commercial Drivers License (CDL) holders with a hazardous materials (hazmat) endorsement. The old deadline was Nov. 3, 2003. The new deadline is April 4, 2004, but individual states can apply for an extension until 12/1/04. The background checks will be required not only for new applicants, but also for renewals and transfers of hazmat endorsements.
LETTER TO REP. GILLMOR
SIGMA joined with a number of other national, regional, and state associations of marketers, as well as individual marketing companies, in sending a letter last week to Rep. Gillmor regarding H.R. 3335. We strongly endorsed the “Underground Storage Tank Compliance Act of 2003", thanked him for his leadership on it, and committed to continue to work with him not only for passage of the bill but also for the increased levels of funding from the LUST Trust Fund promised by the bill in future years.
ULTRA-LOW-SULFUR DIESEL
As we have reported previously, EPA has released a report summarizing what refiners and importers have told them about their progress toward meeting the 2006 deadline for 15 ppm ultra-low-sulfur diesel. A memo from our attorneys can be found by clicking here. The full report is at www.epa.gov/otaq/diesel.htm.
TRIBAL TAXES IN NY
Marketers in New York are not particularly surprised that the state tax department has extended the public comment period for proposed regulations governing taxes on sales by tribes to non-Indians. The delay means another 90 days for tribes to have a huge competitive advantage in sales to non-tribal buyers. “The earliest” the regulation could now take effect, and marketers can hope for relief, is March 1, 2004.
SIGMA ANNUAL MEETING
Total registration for the SIGMA Annual Meeting this weekend (Nov. 14-16) in San Francisco now stands at 569 – far ahead of the final tallies for the past two years, and on target to end up the 3rd, 4th, or 5th largest Annual Meeting in our history! It’s not too late to decide to attend – although you may have to hustle to find a place to stay. Here are some of the TOP 100 REASONS YOU SHOULD ATTEND: Mel Kleiman of Hire Tough, both at the General Session Sunday and a workshop on Friday . . . the All Industry Reception on Saturday evening . . . Paul Saffo of the Institute for the Future at the closing luncheon . . . a Wine Country Tour on Friday morning. . . Ben Brockwell of OPIS, John Kingston of Platt’s, and Dan Massey of Argus in a workshop on benchmarking contracts using indices . . . an evening at Teatro Zinzanni on Friday . . . the Legislative Committee meeting, with special guest Lewis Renjel . . . a tour of Valero’s Benecia Refinery . . . Walter Zimmermann of United Energy on fuel price technical factors . . . a panel of marketers on finding and selling to prospects at the Fleet Fueling Committee meeting . . . presentation of the Distinguished Marketer Award to Carl Bolch, Jr. at the closing luncheon . . . a workshop on GPS with Greg Brott of @Road and Mike Taylor of Boyett Petroleum . . . Contract Postal Units information from Dennis Kelly of the USPS . . . a late-night tour of Pubs and Clubs for the young-at-heart . . . John Ruddy on valuing properties from a refiner’s perspective . . . a spouse breakfast with author GraceAnn Walden . . . a presentation on leave of absence laws by Sheila Kiernan and Michael Mankes of Littler Mendelson . . . the Friday evening Supplier Welcome Reception . . . a workshop on spotting credit problems early with Kathleen Tomlin of Hansen Aggregates and John Ardoin of Wright Express’s affiliated Industrial Loan Corp. . . . a panel of 5 marketers (Tom Morrison, Bill Shipley, David Dwelle, Stewart Spinks, & Mike Rivalto) talking about Automated C-Stores & Solar-Powered Gas Stations & Static Electricity Fires during the General Session . . . election of SIGMA’s officers and directors for 2004 . . . a spouse tour of Victorian Homes . . . a presentation on changing fuel specs and boutique fuels with John Eichberger of NACS and Dave Hackett of Stillwater Associates at the Fuel Supplier Relations Committee. . . a presentation on gasoline-powered fuel cell vehicles by Mark Mauss of HydrogenSource . . .a spouse Champagne Jazz Breakfast and Fashion Show at Nordstrom’s . . . a workshop on age and ID verification by David Gaudet of the BARS Program . . . late-night Informal Gatherings each evening after dinner . . . Intranets . . . WANs . . . Insurance . . . Credit Card Processing . . . Security Plans for Fleets with Gary Bevers . . . a Lunch Cruise on San Francisco Bay with shopping in Sausalito . . . and EVEN MORE! (we’re running out of room here) . . . plus a 2-day SIGMA/EMI Masters Program for Fuel Buyers immediately preceding the convention! Don’t miss it!
SIGMA Weekly Report November 10, 2003 © Copyright SIGMA
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