MEMA MAG
CDL CLASS B PROGRAM
PILOT PROGRAM HELPS CHART COURSE FOR IMPORTANT BENEFIT OF MEMA MEMBERSHIP
+ Janet Mills Returns to Blaine House
+ Maine Housing Issues $11 Million in Early Heating Assistance Help
+ Energy PAC For Maine Golf Tournament Highlights
Cavagna DSS7 Regulator
As the exclusive master distributor in the Northeast, F.W. Webb offers fuel dealers and contractors the complete range of Cavagna products, including their popular Kosan regulator.
Features & Benefits:
The DSS7 regulator will slam shut, shutting off the gas supply when the pressure falls below (UPSO) or above (OPSO) the set point. This safety is activated when the outlet pressure decreases / increases due to:
• Low regulator outlet pressure (out of gas situations)
• Blockage in the regulator valve seat (overpressure)
The device will shut down preventing gas to flow either downstream or through the vent when activated. It can only be manually reset by a qualified technician after the condition causing the device to activate is resolved. It will not allow large volumes of gas to be released as traditional relief valves do, primarily avoiding a release until the source container can be shut off. We have 12 convenient wholesale locations in Maine! Visit fwwebb.com/locations to find the nearest to you.
LEANING FORWARD
Energy and the American economy, a phrase that was heard nonstop during this past campaign season. While Democrats proffered arguments for total electrification over traditional sources of energy as a means to stave off “Climate Change,” most Republicans offered an “All of the Above” approach which included the use of, in an environmentally responsible manner, conventional fuels, BioFuels, nuclear, and solar as a way to address our immediate and long-term energy needs. Now that the elections are over and the next Maine Legislature and U.S. Congress prepare to convene, the debate surrounding access to cheap reliable energy and its nexus to a strong economy will take center stage in Augusta and Washington, once again thrusting our industry into the crosshairs of policy makers and regulators. Fortunately, your MEMA team began leaning forward last spring when we launched our Energy Choice Pledge effort which ultimately was signed by Governor Mills, Congressman Golden, the entire leadership of the Maine State Senate (Democrat and Republican), the Republican leaders in the House, and many other rank and file legislators. The pledge, which states: “I will oppose and vote against/veto any and all efforts that restrict the ability of Maine citizens to choose the source of energy for their homes, businesses and vehicles” will prove critically important to MEMA’s efforts as we work with these leaders, on the state and national level, to preserve in law not only Mainers ability to choose the sources of energy that work best for them, but to make higher blends of BioFuels available, and enact common sense liquid fuel safety measures.
As MEMA continues to lean forward, I traveled to Washington a few weeks ago and met with Senator Collins and Representative Pingree as well as staff from Senator King’s office to urge their support, this year, of the Credit Card Competition Act (S.4674). MEMA has joined forces with the Merchants Payments Coalition, a nationwide group, to support this legislation which will require two network routing options on a credit card, like what already happens for debit cards. With this bill enacted, networks will then compete for the merchant to use their network giving retailers a choice and saving Americans $11 billion annually.
Swipe fees being the second highest operating cost for U.S. retailers, nearly $140 billion last year, are ultimately borne by the consumer. This market-based solution will save consumers $11 billion annually - nearly $1,000 for the average American family. I strongly urge you to contact each member of Maine’s Congressional delegation and ask them to vote in favor of this commonsense measure.
Finally, many of you know that this past November MEMA launched its first ever Class B Commercial Drivers License (CDL-B) class! This program, designed as a direct - no costbenefit of MEMA membership, has three primary goals: 1) to satisfy the classroom portion of CDL Class B training, 2) provide students with the necessary Hazmat endorsement, and 3) prepare students for and schedule an appointment to take the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles Class B Commercial Learner’s Permit test. One of the best features of this class is that students return to their employer, who by registering online with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (https:// tpr.fmcsa.dot.gov/provider) as a “Training Provider”, is able to provide the requisite behind the wheel training. This one week class will not only save MEMA members thousands of dollars in ELDT costs, but will allow you to give your drivers behind the wheel training. I want to thank Steve Whitcomb, Irv Smith, and Colleen Ege for all their time, energy, and effort in getting this program off of the ground and teaching our inaugural class. If you would like to learn more about this exciting benefit of MEMA membership - and the date of our next class - please contact Colleen at: (207) 729-5298.
As always, your MEMA team will continue to lean forward. See you in the field!
Best,
MEET OUR TEAM
CHARLIE SUMMERS PRESIDENT
MEGAN DIVER VICE PRESIDENT
DAN WEBER MTEC DEAN
HANNAH ESTES BUSINESS MANAGER
COLLEEN EGE ADMIN ASSISTANT
SARAH NADEAU INSURANCE & OFFICE ADMINISTRATOR
JON GREEN MTEC INSTRUCTOR
NICHOLAS SCARFO MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
EXECUTIVE BOARD
MARC LACASSE | AUGUSTA FUEL COMPANY
MATT POOLE | COLBY & GALE
ROGER ARSENAULT | COMMUNITY ENERGY
CARTER VAILLANCOURT | DAIGLE OIL COMPANY
MICHAEL MCCORMACK | DOWNEAST ENERGY
MICHAEL ESTES | ESTES OIL & PROPANE
MAX MARSTON | FABIAN OIL
JONATHAN MAPES | H.A. MAPES INC. - ALT.
TIM HEUTZ | IRIVING OIL
MARK GAGNON | P. GAGNON & SONS INC.
MARK ST. GERMAIN | ST. GERMAIN
ROBERT LUCE | VALLEY GAS & OIL COMPANY
ASSOCIATION BOARD
JAMIE ROBINSON | A.E. ROBNSON OIL CO.
DAVID BABCOCK | ADAMS & FOGG OI EQUIP, CO.
ROBERT SHIBLEY | BOB’S CASH FUEL LLC
PETER BUOTTE | COMMUNITY ENERGY CO. - ALT.
JEFF WEBB | EASTERN PROPANE & OIL, INC.
JIM PIKE | ENERGY KINETICS
JUDY DELANEY | GLOBAL PETROLEUM CORP.
BRIAN HOLMES | GLOBAL PETROLEUM CORP. - ALT.
TOM SCHWARM | GOULD TECHNOLOGIES
MATT HARRISON | GULF OIL, LP
CARRIE TOMFORDE | IRVING OIL - ALT
CHARLIE BURNHAM
CHAIR OF THE BOARD
CHARLIE BURNHAM ENERGY
JIM CARROLL | J. P. CARROLL FUEL CO.
STEVE NESS | NESS OIL COMPANY
ROBERT TRACY | R.H. FOSTER ENERGY. LLC
SEAN LYNCH | SID HARVEY’S
ELWIN SCOTT| SIMARD & SONS, INC.
KRISTYN SCHWEITZER | SPRAGUE ENERGY
PAULA PALMER | SPRAGUE ENERGY - ALT.
MICHAEL TAMMARO | V.L. TAMMARO OIL
MEMA LAUNCHES
CDL CLASS B PROGRAM
Pilot Program Helps Chart Course for Important Benefit of MEMA Membership
The week of November 7th, MEMA hosted its first ever CDL Class B Program! The program, a benefit of MEMA Membership, is designed to address the real needs of the Liquid Fuels Industry. The one-week pilot program launched by MEMA will give members a beneficial resource to allow their drivers to meet classroom qualifications for the CDL exam and road-test, that are required to obtain their CDL Class B license. Students are taught and apply the material from the J.J. Keller Entry-Level Driver Training Manual, the Maine State Commercial Driver License Manual, and the Hazardous Materials Compliance Pocketbook, to ensure the students are familiar with all the topics that will make up the CDL exam as well as the road-test.
“The class has value as the need for licensed drivers is in high demand,” said Instructor Steve Whitcomb. “Companies need a resource to be able to replace those drivers who are heading towards retirement and the class certainly will help with that. The class will also help proactively develop the workforce and allow employers to engage in a more active role in developing drivers.”
MEMA’S COLLEEN EGE EARNS CDL LICENSE!
Getting your CDL is nothing like getting your typical driver’s license, but that doesn’t mean you can’t prepare for it. In fact, you can pass on the first try if you really apply yourself.
Colleen Ege, MEMA’s very own Administrative Assistant did just that. Colleen recently completed CDL-B Training, spending 80 hours learning safe operating procedures and working knowledge of the industry, honing her skills behind the wheel in rural and city environments. She even took it upon herself to attend additional practice driving sessions that were available.
Colleen passed the written test and the road test with flying colors on her first try!
This wasn’t her first introduction to the hands-on component of the industry. Prior to MEMA Colleen worked as a service dispatcher and office manager for Fielding’s Oil & Propane. Before that, she worked as an oil burner apprentice technician. She joined MEMA at the end of 2021 with a great deal of knowledge and experience in the industry and she continues to grow this knowledge and experience every day.
She will continue to serve as MEMA’s Administrative Assistant and will now assist in MEMA’s new CDL Program offered to MEMA members.
Congratulations Colleen!
2022 GOVERNMENT RELATIONS SUMMARY MEMA WORKING FOR YOU
The Maine Energy Marketers Association (MEMA) works tirelessly on behalf of its members and the public to ensure Maine policy goals reflect the interests of the local petroleum industry. We’re your voice on the state-level as well as the national stage, identifying specific legislative and relevant regulatory issues, campaigning for laws that will allow energy marketers and affiliates to advance their businesses and helping guide Association professionals as they communicate the industry’s concerns to lawmakers, regulators, and the general public. We frame our arguments with facts, emphasizing honesty, transparency, and education in order to best represent our membership.
During the past decade, your membership investment dollars have generated a direct return to your investment.
ADVOCACY
During the First and Second Regular Sessions of the 130th Legislature, MEMA worked tirelessly on behalf of our member businesses of all sizes and in every region of our state. Each session’s legislative outcomes were affected by pandemic restrictions and partisan politics. We at MEMA are always ready regardless of any challenges presented or the complexity of the issue or proposal. Examples of key successes in the last legislative session include:
HUMAN RESOURCES LEGISLATION
Through the effort of many Maine business association’s grassroots efforts, LD 607, An Act to Restore Overtime Protections for Maine Workers, was greatly amended into a less harmful version of the bill. The bill originally proposed increasing the salary threshold between salaried employees and hourly employees in the state of Maine. The bill would have increased the current threshold from its current amount of $38,250 to $58,000 by 2024 – not accounting the yearly CPI adjustments. LD 607 would have increased the cost of doing business on small and large employers by thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars each year, and made our state an outlier, discouraging employers from coming to or remaining in Maine.
ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, & UTILITIES LEGISLATION
MEMA was influential in the defeat of LD 1532, An Act to Protect Maine’s Air Quality by Strengthening Requirements for Air Emissions Licensing. This bill would have increased the fees for new air emissions licenses or renewals. It also would have required them to be renewed every two years, instead of every 10 years. It also would have required a public hearing be held every time one was renewed as well as notice given to every resident in a five-mile radius. The cost of fees and the public forum would have increased costs of doing business on small and large employers by thousands, even tens of thousands, of dollars each year..
MEMA initiated the bill LD 1896, An Act To Allow Heating Fuel and Motor Vehicle Fuel Customers To Opt Out of Paper Delivery Tickets. This bill allows liquid fuels customers to Opt into receiving an electronic delivery ticket instead of a paper copy. With on board computing becoming widely used, it’s redundant for many customers to get a hard copy ticket and saves pretty significant time and reduces risk of injury for drivers, when the delivery driver can make fewer trips in uncontrolled environments. The requirement for a “meter stamped” ticket be left that is supposed to prove that the customer received the gallons they were being billed for used to be the primary practice for companies. A large majority of the meters in trucks are electronic now and when combined with in truck computing, the gallons delivered are emailed almost immediately. The law change allows our members to decrease their delivery time and be more efficient.
TAXATION LEGISLATION
MEMA helped defeat numerous anti-business bills that would have resulted in higher taxes on Maine businesses.
As originally drafted, LD 428, An Act to Prevent Tax Haven Abuse, would have required corporations that filed unitary income tax returns in Maine to include income from certain jurisdictions outside the United States in net income when apportioning income
among tax jurisdictions. This would have resulted in potentially double taxation of these corporations’ income. The bill was amended to require a study of what it would take for Maine to convert to worldwide combined reporting.
MEMA’s great efforts helped in the defeat of LD 1423, Act To Align Tobacco Use Prevention and Cessation Funding with Recommendations of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Don’t be mistaken by this title, this bill would have doubled the cigarette tax, from $2 per pack of 20 cigarettes to $4 per pack of 20 cigarettes. It would also require funding for the DHHS’ Tobacco Prevention and Control Program to match, at minimum, the revenue collected by the sale of all tobacco products in the state plus the available funds in the Fund for a Healthy Maine. Unfortunately, State law mandates that when cigarette taxes are increased, taxes on all other tobacco products, including moist snuff and vapor products – which are substantially safer than cigarettes – must also be increased by the same percentage.
So, the 100 percent increase in the cigarette tax would have meant the taxes on both moist snuff (oral tobacco) and vapor products were also doubled. This would have made the tax on all e-cigarette or vapor products 86 percent of their wholesale cost: the second highest tax on nicotine vapor products in the country. The passage of this bill would not only hurt C-Store business but would reduce State revenue and undermine safe alternatives to cigarettes.
BUSINESS
Monitored and lobbied until the very last day of session by MEMA, was LD 1550, An Act To End the Sale of Flavored Tobacco Products. This bill would have banned the sale of flavored tobacco products, including cigars and electronic smoking products, in the state. The fiscal note attached to the bill’s original text projected a roughly $15 million reduction in General Fund revenue in fiscal year 2021-2022 and a roughly $23 million reduction in fiscal year 2022-2023 if it had become law. Again, this bill would have not only hurt C-Store business but would reduce revenue.
MILLS RETURNS TO THE BLAINE HOUSE, DEMOCRATS RETAIN CONTROL OF THE LEGISLATURE
The anticipation of the 2022 election is behind us. For months Mainers have seen political ads take the space of most commercials, seen political signs line the roadways and seen the local newspapers giving a daily play by play.
The Gubernatorial election between Mills and LePage took center stage this midterm election.
The two have a deep and contentious shared history, dating back to when Mills served as Maine’s attorney general for much of LePage’s two terms as governor.
In fact, LePage has said he decided to run for a third, nonconsecutive term explicitly to unseat Mills. A key issue for the Lepage campaign and many Maine Republicans was inflation and increasing energy prices.
Mills made history as Maine’s first female attorney general and then first woman governor. She largely campaigned on her administration’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, such as its high vaccination rates (some argued this was due to certain vaccination mandates) and low death rates despite having the nation’s oldest population. She has also pointed to the $850 relief checks for taxpayers repeatedly in debates and stump speeches.
Democrats also portrayed LePage and a Republican majority in the State House as a dire threat to Maine’s nearly 30-year-old law protecting women’s access to abortion in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. Mills made abortion access a topic for debate throughout the campaign.
At the end of the campaign, costs came back into focus. LePage seemed to have some success by harnessing anger from lobstermen over the governor’s support for offshore wind in the Gulf of Maine.
The third candidate on the ballot was independent Sam Hunkler, a semi-retired physician from Washington County offering himself up as the collaborative consensus-builder not beholden to the major parties. Hunkler ran an almost-zero-budget campaign, pledging not to accept any donations and aiming to spend just $5,000 of his own money. He did not clearly outline many policy specifics, insisting instead that he would listen to Mainers about the issues. However, Hunkler struggled to break through in the campaign that drew national interest and tens of millions of dollars in spending from the national parties to support Mills or LePage.
It was a hard-fought battle with tens of millions of dollars in advertising by the candidates and other political groups. Nearly $28.2 million was spent between the candidates and outside
groups in the race, with Democrats spending $16.5 million of that. The Mills and LePage campaigns themselves accounted for most of that gap, with the governor outraising LePage by $3.1 million.
Janet Mills campaign raised over $5 million and spent over $5 million, while Paul Lepage’s campaign raised just over $2.5 million and spent just over $2.2 million. LePage’s campaign relied on the Republican Governors Association and the Maine Republican Party to run ads for him in the early part of the campaign. As momentum shifted toward his party nationally, Democrats rushed ad money in on Mills’ behalf in early October to stifle any uprising.
According to unofficial results, Mills won with about 55 percent of votes to LePage’s 42 percent. Independent Sam Hunkler was a nonfactor in the race, pulling 2 percent of votes after a low-key run.
In the end, LePage had a hard road to a third term as governor, which would have been unprecedented in the modern era. The Portland suburbs he was able to win or keep close in his 2010 and 2014 elections have grown and shifted left in the last few years.
After a first term shaken by the COVID-19 pandemic and shaped by the billions in federal aid that Maine received for Mills to distribute, there will be pressure to provide relief to Mainers facing another spike in heating and electricity costs. The week prior to the election, heating oil was nearing $6 per gallon in parts of Maine, which is the state most dependent on it.
THE MAINE HOUSE AND SENATE
State lawmakers are up for reelection every two years and the composition of the Legislature determines what state laws will be passed, what’s in the state’s two-year budget and often whether the sitting governor will be able to advance their policy agenda.
That means, all 186 seats in the Maine Legislature – 151 in the House and 35 in the Senate –were up for grabs. Democrats currently control both chambers, but since the spring, national observers were placing Maine on a short list of states with tight legislative races. The House was seen as the chamber that was
most likely to flip and some were thinking the Senate could as well. This was not the case.
Democrats regained majorities in both chambers of the Legislature and will continue to hold full control of Augusta after the 2022 election in which they spent nearly three times more outside money than their Republican counterparts. The massive level of spending was a factor in the outcome. Outside groups spent $4.7 million to boost Democrats candidates with nearly $780,000 of that dedicated to Jackson’s race alone, with $1.7 million spent by Republican groups across both chambers.
Election officials across the state were tallying not only the ballots that were cast in person on election night, but also a record number of absentee ballots for a midterm election. On the afternoon of election day, 251,967 absentee ballots were requested and 235,164 had been returned. Roughly half of those absentee ballots were cast by Democrats.
Going into Election Day, Democrats had a 76-63 majority in the House (with three independents and nine vacancies) and a 2213 majority in the state Senate. According to unofficial results, Democrats claimed at least 82 seats plus two liberal-leaning independents in the 151-member House and Democrats held a 22-13 Senate advantage going in the Senate.
The biggest contest was in the upper chamber, where Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash, was locked in the Legislature’s most expensive race in history with Rep. Sue Bernard, R-Caribou, which drew more than $1 million from campaign and allied interest groups.
Democrats won other seats at the center of that map. In the Senate, David LaFountain, a former Waterville and Winslow fire chief, narrowly beat Rep. Mike Perkins, R-Oakland, in an open Republican seat. Rep. Jessica Fay of Raymond beat Republican Greg Foster by 81 votes in a third-straight campaign that drew $80,000 in outside spending, the most in that chamber.
The majority party prevailed in other key races. In Wells, former Rep. Dan Hobbs, D-Wells, beat Rep. Tim Roche, R-Wells. Former
Rep. Mike Lajoie, a Democrat, beat Rep. Jon Connor, a freshman who had been the first Republican to hold a Lewiston House seat in years.
Republicans did flip some seats, including a symbolically important one based in the St. John Valley and occupied by the former House Speaker John Martin, D-Eagle Lake. The district will now be represented by former NASCAR driver Austin Theriault, a Republican from Fort Kent.
What’s next? The Democratic-led legislature will have to address many challenges plaguing many Mainers, such as the rising cost of housing, food and other basic needs, an overdose epidemic, increasing homelessness, as well as a lack of childcare, our education system and of course climate change.
Republican’s face an uphill battle and are likely to be playing defense for the next two years.
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 1
In Maine’s 1st Congressional District, voters had the choice to either reelect Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree or her opponent, Republican Ed Thelander.
Pingree was first elected to represent the more left-leaning, southern part of the state in 2008, defeating Republican Charlie Summers by about 9 percentage points. And her support has grown over the years, winning by 13 or more points in every general election since.
There wasn’t a lot of outside spending in the race from either side, as the race wasn’t seen as competitive.
Thelander, a former Navy SEAL, has never held political office and polls indicated that he’s relatively unknown to voters. He ran a somewhat conventional campaign against Pingree, he also drew criticism for his comments about the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines and discredited conspiracy theories. Pingree and Thelander met for the first time on the debate stage on October 12th. The two clashed over the economy and inflation,
as well as the Russian invasion of Ukraine and immigration.
Rep. Chellie Pingree won her reelection bid in Maine’s 1st Congressional District, earning her eighth term in office.
According to unofficial election results, Pingree won with about 63 percent of the vote, with Thelander receiving about 36 percent of votes.
Pingree was first elected to Congress in 2008 and has easily defended her seat since then. In 2020, she won reelection with 62 percent of the vote. Pingree’s district is heavily skewed toward registered Democrats.
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 2
Voters in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District were asked to choose between incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, former Republican U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin and independent Tiffany Bond, a near-perfect rematch of the 2018 race.
The state’s northernmost district is a bit of an anomaly, going for President Donald Trump in both 2016 and 2020, but putting Golden in office in 2018 (and keeping him in power in 2020).
Poliquin did not run in the 2020 race after a defeat decided by ranked-choice voting — the first time it was employed in a federal election. He previously won the 2nd District seat in 2014 and 2016 and, before that, was state treasurer under the LePage Administration.
Golden, a military veteran, served two terms in the Maine House before his election to the U.S. House. And although ranked-choice voting came into play in the three-way 2018 race, Golden won the 2020 race outright against Republican challenger Dale Crafts.
Poliquin’s campaign focused on issues, such as inflation, government spending, immigration, drugs coming across the southern border and energy prices.
Golden, a moderate Democrat campaigned on the fact that he
has opposed the Pelosi and Biden agendas more than any other Democrat. In fact, he has repeatedly frustrated his Democratic House colleagues and many progressives in Maine with his votes against his party on gun control, COVID-19 relief packages, police reform and Biden’s Build Back Better plan. But he is also a staunch supporter of abortion rights and voted to impeach former President Trump.
Bond is a family attorney who ran a low-budget campaign, encouraging supporters to donate money to charities or spend it with local businesses. Her odds of winning this year’s race were very low, however, Bond is likely to influence the outcome through ranked-choice voting, as she did in 2018.
Ranked Choice voting muddies the water here a bit. Unofficial results have Golden ahead with roughly 48 percent of the vote, Poliquin with 44 percent and Bond with 6 percent. But with neither candidate receiving 50 percent of the votes in the three-person contest, the race appears headed for a ranked-choice runoff for the second time in four years.
Absent a major shift in voter preferences in the outstanding precincts, the race will be officially declared by the second-choice preferences of Bond supporters using the ranked-choice voting process.
That’s what happened in 2018 when the same three candidates faced each other for the first time. Four years ago, Poliquin was a two-term incumbent who had a narrow lead after Election Day
but not enough to win the race outright. But when the votes were retabulated nine days later, Bond supporters tipped the scales for Golden, allowing the Democratic state lawmaker to surge past Poliquin.
It was the first time in U.S. history that a congressional race had been determined by the ranked-choice system, which only comes into play in races involving three or more candidates when no one receives a majority of the votes in the first count.
The race was the most expensive one of its kind in Maine history, drawing nearly $21 million in outside spending as of Monday. That was more than all but four House races in the country. Polls going into Election Day showed Golden with a lead that tightened in the last month.
Many voters went for both former Gov. Paul LePage and Golden. The town of Jay, for example, backed LePage in the gubernatorial race but Golden in the congressional contest.
Congressman Golden declared victory the Thursday following the election, without waiting for the ranked choice voting process. Golden held an 11,000 vote lead over Poliquin at the time he declared victory and there was no doubt that Congressman Golden would win his reelection when looking at these numbers.
*Neither Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins nor independent U.S. Sen. Angus King are up for reelection. They next face voters in 2026 and 2024, respectively.
CUSTOM PROPANE BODIES
ISSUES $11 MILLION IN EARLY HEATING ASSISTANCE HELP
In October, MaineHousing announced it has released $11 million in Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) benefits.
This funding is being released nearly a month ahead of the typical HEAP schedule allowing fuel vendors across the state to deliver heating assistance quickly to 10,814 eligible households including nearly 17,000 people.
This first round of funding administered, in collaboration with Maine’s community action agencies, prioritized households with members aged 65 or older with more than 7,200 households in that category being served.
To achieve this MaineHousing was able to advance $10.5 million of funding enabling the early payment of benefits to our fellow Mainers.
This allowed HEAP benefit payments to begin a month before the agency receives its actual HEAP funding allocation from the Federal government.
These funds have been transferred to the qualified heating fuel vendors and recipient households will soon be seeing letters notifying them of their benefit amount.
For the 2022-2023 heating season, based on income and heating needs, most eligible households will receive a benefit amount of between $800 to $1,100.
At the time, the statewide average price of No. 2 heating oil, the most commonly used type of heating fuel in Maine was $5.43 a gallon, according to the Governor’s Energy Office.
MaineHousing was able to make this early release of benefits by using discretionary funds that have been committed to multifamily construction projects, where the cash will not be needed until December, or later. The agency will then repay these funds to its multi-family program when it receives its federal HEAP funding, expected later in November.
“The decision to move these funds and release them in the HEAP program to vendors means as temperatures begin to drop some of our most vulnerable neighbors will have heating fuel in their tanks,” said MaineHousing Director Daniel Brennan. “We know staying warm this coming winter will be a challenge for many households and by releasing these funds early we are hoping to alleviate at least one worry for them while we await additional heating help from our federal government. While this payment will help, MaineHousing remains deeply concerned about the current price of heating fuels especially kerosene and No. 2 heating oil.”
Charlie Summers, President of the Maine Energy Marketers Association, which represents more than 300 heating fuel vendors in Maine, also welcomed the early delivery of funding for HEAP. “I’m confident that this will be welcome news for Mainers on fixed-incomes across the state,” Summers said, “as well as and fuel retailers who have been working tirelessly to ensure all who they serve have the heating fuels they need this winter season. As we navigate our way through these challenging times, the men and women of the Maine Energy Marketers Association remain steadfast in their commitment to provide the citizens of Maine with safe, reliable, liquid heating fuels.”
MaineHousing each winter distributes approximately $40 million in HEAP benefits to nearly 40,000 households and more than 60,000 people.
New MEMA Members
our Association. The education, on the strong support we receive
NEW MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
New MEMA Members
American Petroleum gas and oil industry, by a growing grassroots members produce, process, and in API Energy Excellence® , which new technologies and transparent organization and has develo ped environmental safety, efficiency,
Please join MEMA in welcoming our newest members. Our members are the backbone of Association. The education, services, programs, and events we provide are successful on the strong support we receive from both associate members and members.
Please join MEMA in welcoming our newest members. Our members are the backbone of our Association. The education, services, programs, and events we provide are successful based on the strong support we receive from both associate members and members.
Please join MEMA in welcoming our our Association. The education, services, on the strong support we receive from American Petroleum gas and oil industry, by a growing grassroots members produce, process, and distribute in API Energy Excellence® , which is new technologies and transparent organization and has develo ped more environmental safety, efficiency, and
Although its focus is primarily domestic, growing international dimension, range of programs. For more information www.api.org, or contact Michael
American Petroleum Institute - API represents all segments of America’s natural gas and oil industry, which supports more than 11 million U.S. jobs and is backed by a growing grassroots movement of millions of Americans. Its nearly 600 members produce, process, and distribute the majority of the nation’s energy, and participate in API Energy Excellence®, which is accelerating environmental and safety progress by fostering new technologies and transparent reporting. API was formed in 1919 as a standards-setting organization and has developed more than 800 standards to enhance operational and environmental safety, efficiency, and sustainability.
Please join MEMA in welcoming our newest members. Our members are the backbone of our Association. The education, services, programs, and events we provide are successful based on the strong support we receive from both associate members and members.
Although its focus is primarily domestic, growing international dimension, and range of programs. For more information www.api.org, or contact Michael Giaimo
American Petroleum Institute - API represents all segments of America’s gas and oil industry, which supports more than 11 million U.S. jobs and is by a growing grassroots movement of millions of Americans. Its nearly 600 members produce, process, and distribute the majori ty of the nation’s energy, and participate in API Energy Excellence® , which is accelerating environmental and safety progress by fostering new technologies and transparent reporting. API was formed in 1919 as a standards -setting organization and has develo ped more than 800 standards to enhance operational and environmental safety, efficiency, and sustainability.
American Petroleum Institute - API represents all segments of America’s natural gas and oil industry, which supports more than 11 million U.S. jobs and is backed by a growing grassroots movement of millions of Americans. Its nearly 600 members produce, process, and distribute the majori ty of the nation’s energy, and participate in API Energy Excellence® , which is accelerating environmental and safety progress by fostering new technologies and transparent reporting. API was formed in 1919 as a standards -setting organization and has develo ped more than 800 standards to enhance operational and environmental safety, efficiency, and sustainability.
Gaftek Inc. - Gaftek England. The company upgrades, and facility inspections offers full-service construction opportunities projects to tank removal or upgrades. turn it into a reality. Gaftek can consultations that will make sure state or federal regulations. For www.gaftek.com or contact Scott
Although its focus is primarily domestic, in recent years API’s work has expanded to include a growing international dimension, and today API is recognized around the world for its broad range of programs. For more information about the American Petroleum Institute, visit www.api.org, or contact Michael Giaimo at giaimom@api.org.
Gaftek Inc. - Gaftek, LLC is the premiere petroleum services company in New England. The company provides 24-hour emergency service, tank installations, tank upgrades, and facility inspections for Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts. It offers full-service construction opportunities for you and your company, ranging from concrete projects to tank removal or upgrades. The team will work with you to realize your vision and turn it into a reality. Gaftek can even provide you with tank testing and compliance consultations that will make sure your petroleum equipment is in working order and meets state or federal regulations. For more detailed information on Gaftek services, visit www.gaftek.com or contact Scott Allocca at sallocca@gaftek.com.
Although its focus is primarily domestic, in recent years API’s work has expanded to include growing international dimension, and today API is re cognized around the world for its broad range of programs. For more information about the American Petroleum Institute, visit www.api.org, or contact Michael Giaimo at giaimom@api.org.
Although its focus is primarily domestic, in recent years API’s work has expanded to include a growing international dimension, and today API is re cognized around the world for its broad range of programs. For more information about the American Petroleum Institute, visit www.api.org, or contact Michael Giaimo at giaimom@api.org.
Gaftek Inc. - Gaftek, LLC England. The company upgrades, and facility inspections for offers full-service construction opportunities projects to tank removal or upgrades. turn it into a reality. Gaftek can even consultations that will make sure your state or federal regulations. For more www.gaftek.com or contact Scott Allocca
Haffner’s Energy - Haffner’s AC Service to nearly 50,000 fill up and wash their vehicles car washes. To learn more about or contact Russ Freeman at rfreeman@haffnersenergy.com.
Haffner’s Energy - Haffner’s AC Service to nearly 50,000 fill up and wash their vehicles car washes. To learn more about Haffner’s or contact Russ Freeman at rfreeman@haffnersenergy.com.
Gaftek Inc. - Gaftek, LLC is the premiere petroleum services company in New England. The company provides 24 -hour emergency service, tank installations, upgrades, and facility inspections for Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts. offers full-service construction opportunities for you and your company, ranging from concrete projects to tank removal or upgrades. The team will work with you to realize your vision turn it into a reality. Gaftek can even provide you with tank testing and compliance consultations that will make sure your petroleum equipment is in working order and meets state or federal regulations. For more detailed information on Gaftek services, visit www.gaftek.com or contact Scott Allocca at sallocca@gaftek.com
Gaftek Inc. - Gaftek, LLC is the premiere petroleum services company in New England. The company provides 24 -hour emergency service, tank installations, tank upgrades, and facility inspections for Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Massachusetts. offers full-service construction opportunities for you and your company, ranging from concrete projects to tank removal or upgrades. The team will work with you to realize your vision and turn it into a reality. Gaftek can even provide you with tank testing and compliance ions that will make sure your petroleum equipment is in working order and meets state or federal regulations. For more detailed information on Gaftek services, visit www.gaftek.com or contact Scott Allocca at sallocca@gaftek.com.
Haffner’s Energy - Haffner’s is a regional leader in Heating Oil, Propane, Burner, and AC Service to nearly 50,000 customers while offering consumers the opportunity to fill up and wash their vehicles at one of their many Haffner’s branded gas stations and car washes. To learn more about Haffner’s and the services they offer, visit www.haffners.com, or contact Russ Freeman at rfreeman@haffnersenergy.com.
Sid Harvey Industries South Carolina on the Mountain region. The a continual basis from plant in Andrews, SC is the source new and remanufactured. To learn www.sidharvey.com, or contact
Sid Harvey Industries - Sid South Carolina on the East Mountain region. The branches a continual basis from its plant in Andrews, SC is the source for new and remanufactured. To learn www.sidharvey.com, or contact Sean
Haffner’s Energy - Haffner’s is a regional leader in Heating Oil, Propane, Burner, AC Service to nearly 50,000 customers while offering consumers the opportunity fill up and wash their vehicles at one of many Haffner’s branded gas stations car washes. To learn more about Haffner’s and the services they offer, visit www.haffners.com or contact Russ Freeman at rfreeman@haffnersenergy.com.
Sid Harvey Industries - Sid Harvey’s operates a network of 76 branches from Maine to South Carolina on the East Coast, moving west throughout the Midwest to the Rocky Mountain region. The branches are supplied with more than 50,000 SKU products on a continual basis from its distribution center in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Its manufacturing plant in Andrews, SC is the source for more than 1,700 Sid Harvey brand name products, both new and remanufactured. To learn more about Sid Harvey’s and its products, visit www.sidharvey.com, or contact Sean Leach at sleach@sidharvey.com.
Haffner’s Energy - Haffner’s is a regional leader in Heating Oil, Propane, Burner, and AC Service to nearly 50,000 customers while offering consumers the opportunity to fill up and wash their vehicles at one of their many Haffner’s branded gas stations and car washes. To learn more about Haffner’s and the services they offer, visit www.haffners.com or contact Russ Freeman at rfreeman@haffnersenergy.com.
Sid Harvey Industries - Sid Harvey’s operates a network of 76 branches from Maine South Carolina on the East Coast, moving west throughout the Midwest to the Mountain region. The branches are supplied with more than 50,000 SKU products a continual basis from its distribution center in Wilke s-Barre, PA. Its manufacturing plant in Andrews, SC is the source for more than 1,700 Sid Harvey brand name products, new and remanufactured. To learn more about Sid Harvey’s and its products, visit www.sidharvey.com, or contact Sean Leach at sleach@sidharvey.com
Sid Harvey Industries - Sid Harvey’s operates a network of 76 branches from Maine South Carolina on the East Coast, moving west throughout the Midwest to the Rocky Mountain region. The branches are supplied with more than 50,000 SKU products on a continual basis from its distribution center in Wilke s-Barre, PA. Its manufacturing plant in Andrews, SC is the source for more than 1,700 Sid Harvey brand name products, both new and remanufactured. To learn more about Sid Harvey’s and its products, visit www.sidharvey.com, or contact Sean Leach at sleach@sidharvey.com.
MTEC UPDATE
END OF YEAR WRAP UP
Although the year is winding down, the MEMA Technical Education Center has been busy both in the classroom and on the road. In the classroom, there is steady enrollment for the remaining courses in 2022, and many students have graduated just in time to help service their respective employers and communities, as we are right on the doorstep of Winter. The MTEC schedule for 2023 is complete and classes are open for registration. The first classes of the new year will be the Oilheat Technician Training Course, and Propane Appliance Installation and Service starting January 17.
On November 10th, MTEC hosted a demonstration of a Limpsfield Burner. The burner demonstration was presented by Allen Merritt, Chris Green Jr., and Travis Wheeler of Mechanical Services, and included a live fire using #2 oil and propane. These demonstrations are beneficial for MTEC students to get a first-hand look at the different products they will encounter and work with, to see how they should operate correctly. Starting in 2023, MTEC will begin a new course, Introduction to Flammable Refrigerants, and will begin incorporating the commercial kitchen into the Propane and Natural Gas curriculum.
On the road, Nicholas, MEMA’s Marketing and Communications Coordinator, has been travelling around the state bringing MTEC awareness to various high school career fairs and events. In the last few months, MTEC has been present at Freeport High School, Leavitt Area High School in Turner, Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School, and Sanford High School/Sanford Regional Technical Center. MTEC values these high school Junior and Senior specific events to bring awareness about the industry and to show students that there are options other than attending a two or four-year college program. We encourage students to schedule tours to meet the instructors, ask questions and see the labs for themselves. If you know of any upcoming career fairs or know of someone who may be interested in a tour, please contact Nicholas at nscarfo@maineenergymarketers.com.
MTEC INTRODUCES FLAMMABLE REFRIGERANTS COURSE
Starting in 2023, the MEMA Technical Education Center introduce a new course in the AC and Refrigeration Program. The course, Introduction to Flammable Refrigerants, will be a five-day class that will cover the following topics, both in the classroom and hands-on in the MTEC lab:
• Understanding requirements for maintaining and servicing systems for flammable refrigerants. The refrigerants that will be worked on are approved by the EPA SNAP Program
• Handling and transport of refrigerants as well as leak testing
• Safety procedures review
• Properties and characteristics of refrigerant systems
• Installation and service
• Codes and standards explanation.
Students must have their Universal 608 Certification to attend the Introduction to Flammable Refrigerants course. The first course offering is scheduled for March 20 – March 24.
You can register for the course and other MTEC classes at mtecenter.com/courses, or you can call the office at 207-7295298 with questions about the course and requirements.
2023 COURSE SCHEDULE
HVAC PROFESSIONAL SEMESTER CLASS
Member $13,750 Non-Member $15,200 (includes tool bag valued over $1500)
Jan 17 – May 19 (Winter A)
Jan 17 – May 17 (Winter B)
May 22 – Sep 2 (Summer A)
Jun 6 – Oct 6 (Summer B)
Sep 25 – Feb 2, 2024
OIL HEAT TECHNICIAN TRAINING
Member $3,775 Non-Member $4,175
Jan 17 – Mar 1
Apr 5 – May 17
May 22 – Jun 30
Jul 10 – Aug 18
Sep 25 – Nov 3
Night Class TBD
MAINE STATE OILBURNER EXAM PREP (JOURNEYMAN & MASTER)
Member $199 Non-Member $299
Mar 11, Jun 10, Sep 9
EPA CERTIFICATION & INTRO TO AC
Member $1,000 Non-Member $1,150
Mar 7 – Mar 10
Apr 25 – Apr 28
Jun 6 – Jun 9
Aug 28 – Aug 31
Nov 6 – Nov 9
BASIC SERVICE PROCEDURES FOR AC & REFRIGERATION
Member $1,050 Non-Member $1,200
Mar 13 – Mar 17
May 1 – May 5
Jun 12 – Jun 16
Sep 1 – Sep 8
Nov 13 – Nov 17
INTRODUCTION TO FLAMMABLE REFRIGERANTS
Member $1,050 Non-Member $1,200
Mar 20 – Mar 24
May 8 – May 12
Jun 19 – Jun 23
Sep 11 – Sep 15
Nov 20 – Nov 28
40 HOUR HEAT PUMP TRAINING
Member $1,050 Non-Member $1,200
Mar 27 – Mar 31
May 15 – May 19
Jun 26 – Jun 30
Sep 18 – Sep 22
Nov 29 – Dec 6
PROPANE/NG:
APPLIANCE INSTALLATION & SERVICE w/ Basics
Member $3,225 Non-Member $3,525
Jan 17 – Feb 17
Mar 2 – Apr 5
Jul 10 – Aug 11
Aug 21 – Sep 29
Sep 6 – Oct 7
Nov 13 – Dec 18
Night Class TBD
EXAM PREP-APPLIANCE CONNECTION & SERVICE, NFPA#54
Member $199 Non-Member $299
Mar 18, Jun 17, Sep 16
TANKSETTER & OUTSIDE PIPING w/ Basics
Member $1,400 Non-Member $1,600
Feb 21 – Mar 3
Apr 6 – Apr 19
Aug 14 – Aug 25
Oct 2 – Oct 13
Oct 30 – Nov 10
Night Class TBD
DELIVERY TECHNICIAN w/ Basics
Member $1000 Non-Member $1200
May 22 – May 26
Oct 23 – Oct 27
EXAM PREP-TANK SETTER & OUTSIDE PIPING AND DELIVERY, NFPA#58
Member $199 Non-Member $299
Mar 25, Jun 24, Sep 23
MEMA HEALTH INSURANCE TRUST - FAQ
I’VE BEEN BALANCE BILLED OR I’VE RECEIVED A COLLECTION NOTICE... WHAT DO I DO?
Don’t panic!
When you receive a balance bill from a hospital, send it to ELAP right away so they can dispute the excess charges. Whether you receive a notice from the hospital directly or from a collection agency, the process for you is the same. Simply forward any communications to ELAP (address and contact information below) and they will handle any further communication on your behalf.
Receiving a balance bill can be stressful, especially when a hospital involves a collection service. That is why MEMA uses the most experienced vendors in the country. Although it often takes longer than anticipated to settle balance bill issues, the process ultimately works.
WHAT IS BALANCE BILLING?
Balance billing is when you are billed for the difference between the hospital’s charge and the allowed amount the health plan has determined to be fair and reasonable based on the cost of the service you received. For example, if the provider’s charge is $100 and the allowed amount for the service is $70, the provider may bill you for the remaining $30. Sometimes providers will charge amounts upwards of 100% over the allowed amount. Often a hospital or provider does not even bother to submit a claim to your insurance carrier for a service they have provided and bill you directly instead. That is a “balance bill”.
When you receive a bill from any provider it is important to review it closely to confirm that a claim has been submitted to Diversified. Compare your invoice to the Explanation of Benefits (EOB) you receive from Diversified which corresponds with that bill to verify that the amount the provider claims you owe aligns with the amounts shown on the Explanation of Benefits. The amount shown on the Explanation of Benefits is the actual amount owed to the provider.
MEMA thanks the following for their contributions in 2022
PLATINUM SPONSORS:
H.A. Mapes Inc.
Atlantic Heating Co., Inc.
GOLD SPONSORS:
Augusta Fuel Company
Colby & Gale
Downeast Energy
Dead River
Charlie Burnham Energy Services
Eastern Propane Gas, Inc.
HO Bouchard
Adams & Fogg Oil Equipment
Freightliner
Blue Flame Gas Co.
SILVER SPONSORS
Valley Gas & Oil CO.
Estel Oil and Propane
Rowe Ford QHT, Inc
JP Carroll Fuel Co.
Courtney Policy Group
St. Germain
Maine Auto Dealers Association
Energy Kinetics
OTHER
Community Energy
Blackline Midstream
Valley Gas
ENERGY PAC FOR MAINE
Whether it be Maine legislators or members of Congress, government intrusion into every aspect of our personal, business, and work lives is no longer a worry – it’s a fact. This, coupled with out-of-control tax and spending policies along with unprecedented efforts to eliminate the liquid fuels industry – i.e., your business – means that we can no longer remain on the sidelines or simply “sit this one out” - that luxury no longer exists. Our industry can deliver the cleanest, most cost-effective and energy-secure solution for Maine’s future, but electrification proponents want to put us all out of business today. To stop them, we will need every tool in our toolkit: advocacy, communications, education, and more. Help us bridge the gap by making a generous contribution now.
In 2022 MEMA contributed $25,000 to the Energy PAC for Maine knowing that a big election year was ahead of us. MEMA members contributed just over $30,000.
MEMA sponsored and attended events on our members behalf and spent $42,000 from January 2022 to November 2022. It is imperative that MEMA is at these events to meet and talk with legislators about the new upcoming Legislature as well as to meet new candidates that are likely to be elected.
It is a scary thought, but the future of your company is in the hands of those elected to represent us – let’s make sure we support and elect legislators who support us and our industry.
We ask you for a 2023 contribution to MEMA’s ENERGY PAC for Maine. This can be a personal contribution or business contribution (at one of the donor levels listed below) by credit card and/or check:
Silver: $500
Gold: $1,000
Platinum: $2,500
Petroleum $5,000
Other: $___________
If writing a check please make it payable to:
ENERGY PAC for Maine
25 Greenwood Road Brunswick, ME 04011
If contributing by credit card, please call MEMA at 207-729-5298.
With all that you have on your plate we understand that we are asking a great deal. With your active support over the next year, we will turn the tide and chart a bright future for not just ourselves but, most importantly, our Maine and America.
ENERGY PAC FOR MAINE GOLF TOURNAMENT
The PAC event this year was a golf tournament at Boothbay Harbor Country Club, named one of America’s top 100 resort courses. We couldn’t have asked for a better fall day. The weather was gorgeous, sunny, not too hot and not too cold.
MEMA’s Energy PAC for Maine allows MEMA to be represented at necessary political events throughout the year, attending these events is crucial to MEMA’s mission and beneficial to our accomplishments.
MEMA sponsored and attended events on our members behalf and spent $42,000 from January 2022 to November 2022. It is imperative that MEMA is at these events to meet and talk with legislators about the new upcoming Legislature as well as to meet new candidates that are likely to be elected.
It is a scary thought, but the future of your company is in the hands of those elected to represent us – let’s make sure we support and elect legislators who support us and our industry.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Freeport Dealer Meeting & Holiday Party
December 14, 2022
Gritty McDuff’s Brewpub
Fuel Your Love
February 14, 2023
MTEC Propane Summit May 3, 2023
The Hilton Garden Inn, Auburn ME
Northern New England Energy Conference June 11 - 13, 2023
Omni Mt. Washington, Bretton Woods NH
J. Garrie Murray Golf Classic August 29, 2023
Location TBD AND MORE AT: maineenergymarketers.com/events
EMA FILES BRIEFS ON CHALLENGE TO EPA REINSTATEMENT OF CALIFORNIA WAIVER
Wednesday, October 26, 2022 – EMA, along with 14 other private petitioners and 17 states, filed their opening briefs this week with the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. on their challenges to EPA’s reinstatement last March of the Clean Air Act preemption waiver for California’s motor vehicle greenhouse gas emissions standards and zero-emission vehicle mandate to address climate change.
EMA, joined by NACS, AFPM, Valero, and renewable fuels groups, told the court that the waiver provision in the Clean Air Act does not permit California to have its own state standards for national and international problems like climate change. The brief details how the Clean Air Act’s text, structure, and history make clear that the “California waiver” is intended to address only unique and extraordinary conditions in the State that result from in-state emissions and local pollution concentrations and that global climate change does not qualify or fit into California’s particularized smog conditions.
“Congress has neither mandated a wholesale shift in the U.S. vehicle fleet from internal-combustion engine vehicles to electric vehicles nor given California the ‘pen’ to transform motor fuels retailing across the country,” said EMA President Rob Underwood. “Any effort to address and solve global climate change must come from Congress and not from EPA and certainly not from a single state, California.”
The brief submitted by EMA and the others points out that California does not “need” its own emission standards to “meet”
global climate-change conditions because, as EPA previously concluded in 2019, the State’s emission standards will make no meaningful difference in conditions in California related to climate change. In addition, the brief argues that EPA’s flip- flop in reinstating the California waiver based on the agency’s novel view of its reconsideration authority under the Clean Air Act cannot be legally sustained.
“EMA will remain fully engaged in fighting any bans on gasolinepowered vehicles, including from California,” Underwood said. “In addition to the legal challenges, there remain plenty of practical challenges to a transition to electric vehicles, including skeptical consumers about the performance and range of EVs, that the Association will continue to provide leadership within the industry.”
EPA and intervenors supporting the agency will now file their opposing briefs with the appellate court, followed by a reply by EMA and the other petitioners. In addition to asking the court to review the Biden administration’s restoration of the Clean Air Act waiver for California, EMA also is seeking review of EPA’s tailpipe emissions standards issued last December that would effectively mandate a percentage of EVs in order for automakers to meet the federal standards.
Published by The Energy Marketers of America (EMA)
BIDEN RELEASES 15 MILLION BARRELS FROM THE STRATEGIC OIL RESERVE TO TAME PRICES
President Biden announced in October that he is authorizing the release of 15 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The release will account for the last of the 180 million barrels President Joe Biden authorized the Energy Depart to disburse in March, leaving another 400 million barrels in the reserve. The administration will also look into a possible new authorization to ship more barrels after that depending on market conditions.
The administration will also soon set up a process to purchase oil from companies to refill the SPR at a price of $67 to $72 a barrel, the officials said. That level is more than $10 below current benchmark prices.
The move came as the administration had been meeting with oil company executives to negotiate ways to lower fuel prices ahead of the midterm elections in which inflation, partly driven by high energy prices, was the key issue.
The administration is also considering another release that would be separate from the previously authorized one, though a decision hasn’t been made on whether to do so.
The administration also intends to announce plans to refill the reserve. Details such as how much the administration would pay
for the oil and when it would buy were still being worked out in one-on-one meetings with industry representatives.
Oil prices shot higher the week prior to the announcement after the oil producing cartel OPEC and its allied countries announced they would cut their collective production by 2 million barrels a day.
Biden had promised a response to OPEC’s decision, though the administration’s options to lower fuel prices are limited. Prices had already come down from a recent high of $5.02 a gallon this summer, but started to increase in September amid refinery outages in California and Ohio.
A release from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve could also be authorized. That reserve, which holds about 1 million barrels of heating oil in New England, hasn’t been tapped since 2012, according to its website.
The Department of Energy has also raised the possibility of limiting fuel exports in a bid to force domestic gasoline prices lower, but the administration has in recent days toned down its rhetoric, according to two industry people. Oil company executives and analysts have said the move could backfire because it could cause producers to slow their drills if they no longer have access to foreign markets, increasing domestic prices.
Omni Mount Washington Resort
Bretton Woods, NH | JUNE 11-13, 2023
