|
January 31, 2005
WICKLAND PASSES AWAY
John A. "Al" Wickland, founder of Wickland Oil, passed away January 20, 2005, due to complications following a stroke. He was 84 years old. Starting with a single gas station, his Wickland Oil Co. ultimately owned and operated a chain of more than 90 Regal self-serve stations in Northern California, Nevada, and Oregon. His stations were among the first to offer low cost self serve fueling. From there, the company expanded to include international oil storage and distribution facilities. Wickland Oil was also the first company to import finished product from China into California.
back to top
ENERGY BILL COOPERATION
Because of Sen. Pete Domenici's (R-NM) promise to develop a more bipartisan energy bill this year, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) on Jan. 25 said that Democrats will work with Republicans to achieve this goal. However, the Democrats will continue to oppose the Bush Administration's plan to open part of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling. In addition to the ANWR drilling stumbling block, the bill also has other problems such as Senate opposition to a House proposal to assure that MTBE is not labeled a defective product. Despite statements from Senate and House leaders who say they want to move quickly on an energy bill, the congressional schedule may slow things down, as they will be in recess for the last week in February and the last two weeks of March.
back to top
2005 SPRING CONVENTION
Grab your sunscreen and swimsuit – SIGMA’s 2005 Spring Convention (May 3-6) is right around the corner! Sunny Amelia Island, Florida, is the tropical backdrop for this educational and networking event of the year! Come for the networking, business intelligence and strategic thinking, stay for the golf and special events! Plan now and save money with our advance rates. Go to SIGMA’s website for conference registration forms as well as hotel registration forms for the Ritz Carlton. Forms can be accessed directly at: www.sigma.org/meetings/2005_spring/05Spring.PDF
Don’t wait, register today! Remember, this meeting is mid week, not over the weekend!
ESTATE TAX REFORM
Included in the Senate Republican agenda for this year is a measure sponsored by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) to either repeal or reform the estate tax. Kyl sponsored a measure in the last Congress to make estate tax repeal permanent and accelerate full repeal in 2005. The estate tax is currently scheduled for a one-year appeal in 2010 before resuming in 2011. Responsible Wealth, a group made up of wealthy Americans advocating for fair taxes said that the votes among those who support and oppose estate tax repeal are very close in the Senate, but there are two issues (lost revenue and tax cuts during a war) are giving lawmakers pause about its repeal.
TAX CORRECTIONS BILL
Plans are in the works to introduce a tax technical corrections bill that is much broader than the one introduced in November. Senate Finance Committee Republican tax counsel Edward McClellan said he cannot predict a time frame for the introduction. He said the technical corrections bill will be a major priority and that the Finance Committee is well aware of the urgent and sensitive issues surrounding a one-year tax break for foreign dividends brought back to the United States under the recently enacted American Jobs Creation Act. Taxpayers are watching the bill with intense interest because it contains significant clarifications under the repatriations provision, especially language dealing with a gross-up of certain income under Internal Revenue Code Section 78, among other issues. Several companies have informed the Finance Committee that if the language now in the Jobs Act is not fixed, they will not be able to repatriate their foreign earnings. In addition to the corrections measure, a crowded tax agenda in the coming Congress is likely to include legislation to reauthorize federal highway funding, extend 34 expiring tax relief provisions and make pension changes.
JOHNSON NAMED ACTING ADMINISTRATOR OF EPA
Stephen L. Johnson has been named acting administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency while the White House considers who will lead the agency, an EPA spokesman said Jan. 27. Johnson was named to the acting position effective Jan. 26, filling the vacancy created by the departure of EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt, who had served as administrator since November 2003. Leavitt was named by President Bush as the secretary of health and human services and was confirmed to that position by the Senate Jan. 26. Johnson has been at EPA for 24 years. Prior to being named the agency's acting administrator, Johnson had served as deputy administrator since August 2004. He also served as acting deputy administrator beginning in July 2003. As the acting head of EPA, Johnson will administer an agency with more than 18,000 employees and an annual budget of about $8.6 billion. Johnson's previous management experience at the agency includes assistant administrator of the agency's Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances as well as various top positions in the Office of Pesticide Programs.
FOREIGN OIL RELIANCE
Citing threats to national security, the health of the U.S. economy and threats of climate change, a coalition of advocacy organizations asked Congress to rapidly improve the fuel efficiency of U.S. cars and trucks to achieve a 50 percent cut in current emissions from the transportation sector. The groups urged Congress to come up with a plan that would help decrease our independence on petroleum. With no new scientific advances, the coalition estimates it will cost as much as $12 billion over the next four years to make the U.S. economy less dependent on oil imports. One suggestion would be for the government to pay 25% of existing gas stations to install an additional pump to supply only alcohol based fuels.
CONOCOPHILLIPS TO CUT EMISSIONS
ConocoPhillips, the country's largest petroleum refining company, has agreed to spend more than $525 million to reduce emissions by 47,000 tons at nine refineries in seven states according to the Department of Justice and the Environmental Protection Agency. The agreement resolves allegations by EPA that Conoco Phillips violated new source review requirements of the Clean Air Act, leak detection and repair requirements, and hazardous air pollutant emission standards for benzene waste. The affected refineries are in Belle Chasse, LA; Linden, NJ; Borger and Sweeny, TX; Carson/Wilmington, CA; Ferndale, WA; Rodeo/Santa Maria, CA; Trainer, PA; and Roxanna/Hartford, IL.
LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MEETS IN DENVER
On Friday, January 28, members of the Legislative Committee met at SIGMA's Winter Leadership Conference in Denver, CO. The committee discussed several issues concerning our government relations program including lobbying efforts and SIGMAPAC, as well as other important legislative issues related to the industry. Items discussed included national energy policy legislation; motor fuel supply/fungibility; underground storage tanks, Native American excise tax; federal highway program reauthorization. The committee also discussed ways to improve SIGMA's communication to the membership with respect to important legislative issues that require marketer contacts with their House and Senate members.
SIGMA Weekly Report January 31, 2005 © Copyright SIGMA, 2005
|
|
