June 1, 2016 | Vol. 66, No. 10

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Dear PEI Member:

An ad hoc committee appointed by the PEI Board of Directors to help the industry recruit, assess and train new service technicians has completed its work. As a result, PEI recently released two new tools. A third is expected in July.

First, PEI members may use three free recruitment videos to attract service technician candidates. Each 90-second video shadows a real technician as he services petroleum equipment and talks about his long-term career opportunities. PEI member companies are welcome to post the videos on their websites or use them as paid placement ads on YouTube. A PEI webinar that will help you make the most of the videos will be available later this month. The videos may be viewed at www.pei.org/careers and on the PEI YouTube channel. PEI thanks the following PEI member companies for the use of their facilities and personnel during filming: McCon Building and Petroleum Services Inc. of Irving, Texas; SouthEastern Petroleum Systems Inc. of Charlotte, North Carolina; and Western Pump, of San Diego, California.

The second tool is The Entry-Level Service Technician Training Course, which is designed for new hires within the first few months of their jobs. PEI member companies are encouraged to augment their existing new service technician training with the 52-page manual. Cost of the copyrighted manual is $25 for members ($250 for nonmembers) and is available for purchase online. A separate 50-question online test of the material may be accessed as part of the annual online test subscription product at no additional charge, or as a $10 individual purchase.

The third tool, expected in July, is an industry-specific skills aptitude test for service technician job applicants. The online test, developed by a professional testing organization, will measure the range of abilities, talents and proficiencies that service technicians should have to succeed.

Members of the ad hoc committee are: Dan Battist, Strenstrom Petroleum Service Group, Rockford, IL; Bridgett Clancy, Gilbarco Veeder-Root, Greensboro, NC; Phil Farrell, Double Check Co. Inc., Kansas City, MO; John Keller, Petroleum Solutions Inc., San Antonio, TX; Edward S. Kubinsky Jr., Crompco LLC, Plymouth Meeting, PA; Ingacio “Nacho” Moreno, BC & C LLC, Winchester, VA; J.J. “Jody” Porter, E.O. Habhegger Co. Inc., Yeadon, PA; Ryan Rethmeier, Western Pump Inc., San Diego, CA; Robert J. Stenstrom, Stenstrom Petroleum Service Group, Rockford, IL; and Steve Wilkening, P.B. Hoidale Co. Inc., Oklahoma City. Alex Ralston, Petcon Inc., Brandon, MS, served as consultant to the committee for the training course and test.

PEI Releases Service Tech Tools

DOL: Overtime Rule Released

PEI Board Elections

Kemp Scholarship Recipients

Two New UST Publications

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DOL ANNOUNCES FINAL OVERTIME RULE
The Department of Labor (DOL) announced its final rule May 17 that raises the minimum salary threshold required to qualify for the Fair Labor Standards Act’s “white collar exemption” to $47,476 per year, substantially greater than the yearly salary of $23,660 contained in the current regulations. You can access the full 500+ page rule here. DOL expects the final rule to extend overtime protections to nearly 4.2 white collar workers within its first year of implementation.

The rule doubles the salary threshold, without any consideration to the differences in regional economic realities. If you have been following the rule as proposed by DOL on July 6, 2015, you will note several modifications in the final rule:

Bonuses and commissions will be allowed to satisfy 10 percent of the minimum salary threshold.
The bonuses and commissions can be paid quarterly, which is an improvement from the proposed rule; and catch-up payments can be made within one week of the end of the quarter.
The rule will take effect December 1, 2016. That’s a 6-month effective date rather than the proposed 60 days.
The rule provides that the salary threshold will increase automatically every three years, not annually as originally proposed, and it will be tied to the 40th percentile in the lowest wage region of the country.

DOL has posted extensive information about the rule on its website, including useful fact sheets on various aspects of the rule. The site also contains, in the words of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW), which represents distributor-based associations—including PEI—in Washington, “a lot of propaganda and claims that are dubious at best.” NAW’s overtime attorneys are reviewing the rule now, and we will share their analyses with you as soon as we receive them.

EPA RELEASES PROPOSED 2017 RENEWABLE FUEL VOLUMES
On May 18, the U.S. EPA released proposed volumes for renewable fuels for 2017 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), and proposed volumes for biodiesel for 2018. The total proposed volumes for all fuel categories in 2017 are 18.8 billion gallons, a modest increase over 18.11 billion gallons in 2016. Total biofuel volumes are proposed at 10.44 percent of the gasoline supply, as opposed to 10.10 percent in 2015, a critical threshold in moving beyond the current E10 “blend wall.”

Reaction to the proposed volumes from the renewable fuels industry was somewhat positive, with groups thanking EPA for an expedient release of the 2017 rules, and for an increase in the volumes. But the biofuels industry claims it can do more, and complains that the numbers don’t reflect the production capacity of the industry. On the other side, the petroleum industry stated that moving renewable fuel volumes past 10 percent of the fuel supply, however marginally, will increase their operating costs. The American Petroleum Institute is advocating a full repeal of the law.

PEI BOARD ELECTION DEADLINE
It is time to begin the process of electing members to the PEI Board of Directors. Under PEI’s election procedure, the official representative or a duly appointed alternate must request to have his/her name included on the ballot. An email for that purpose was sent May 31 to the official representatives of PEI member companies from the even-numbered districts of PEI’s distributor and manufacturer divisions, as well as PEI’s affiliate division. The form must be received in Tulsa by the close of business on Monday, June 20, for a candidate’s name to appear on the ballot. To download the form, visit www.pei.org/election.

2017 PEI SERVICE & CONSTRUCTION MANAGERS CONFERENCE SEEKS PLANNING COMMITTEE VOLUNTEERS
PEI will offer its Service & Construction Managers Conference in the spring of 2017. The Thursday evening through Saturday noon conference will offer a combination of general session and roundtable discussion topics specifically geared to the needs of both service managers and construction managers. Conference dates and location are yet to be determined.

If you are interested in serving on the planning committee responsible for the 2017 PEI Service & Construction Managers Conference program, contact Bob Young at PEI, byoung@pei.org by Wednesday, June 22. All committee meetings will be held via conference calls, and it is essential that planning committee members attend the conference.

THREE CHARLES D. KEMP SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS NAMED
The PEI Foundation scholarship selection committee has named three entering college freshmen to receive Charles D. Kemp scholarships for the 2016-2017 academic year. Recipients of the $1,000 scholarships are:

Kyle Robert Foster, son of Jason Foster, RW Mercer Co., Jackson, MI
Matney Stropky, daughter of Joseph Stropky, Nwestco LLC, Kalispell, MT
Emily Taylor Wichmann, daughter of Kevin Wichmann, McKinney Petroleum Equipment, Mobile, AL

EPA’S OUST RELEASES TWO NEW PUBLICATIONS
EPA’s Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST) has updated one publication and written a new document on two subjects designed to help tank owners and others implement the 2015 federal UST regulations.

Release Detection Methods for Underground Storage Tanks and Piping: Straight Talk on Tanks is an update to OUST’s 2005 publication of the same name. The booklet provides easy-to-understand descriptions of several leak detection methods for tanks and piping, as well as explanations of the revised regulatory requirements for release detection.
Requirements for Field-Constructed Tanks and Airport Hydrant Systems summarizes the 2015 federal UST requirements specific to UST systems with field-constructed tanks and airport hydrant fuel distribution systems. It discusses installation, reporting, spill and overfill prevention, corrosion protection, release detection, walkthrough inspections, compatibility, operator training, repairs, financial responsibility, release response and closure.

BRIEFLY NOTED
Ryko Solutions has changed its name to National Carwash Solutions (NCS) to better align its brands. Ryko, MacNeil and CleanTouch now operate under the NCS brand. The Ryko headquarters in Grimes, Iowa, will become the NCS headquarters.
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad on May 16 signed into law H.F. 2464, a multifaceted bill that secures funding for the state’s highly successful biodiesel and ethanol blender program, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program, through June 30, 2017.

APPOINTMENTS AND PROMOTIONS
RDM Industrial Electronics, Inc., Nebo, North Carolina, has appointed Doc Boehme of Bottom Line of MN, Inc., as its representative for special accounts.
Liz McDermott has been named Acting Director of the Release Prevention Division at EPA’s Office of Underground Storage Tanks (OUST), effective immediately. She has served the last eight years as the team leader in OUST responsible for managing the revisions to the UST regulations.

MEMBERSHIP APPLICATIONS
Mexico software provider. HACSYS, Eduador 151-2, col. Vista Hermosa, Monterrey, NL, 64620, Mexico, has applied for affiliate division membership. Hector Huerta is CEO of the firm, which was established in 2003. The company provides software solutions designed to manage service stations. Sponsored for PEI membership by Juan Jesus Gutierrez Vega, Promoeco, Monterrey, N.L., Mexico. www.hacsys.com
New York contractor. Orchard Earth and Pipe Corp., 550 Charles Avenue, Solvay, New York 13209, has applied for service and construction division membership. Dan Clemmons is petro-environmental services manager for the firm, which was established in 1980. The company provides diversified construction services, such as site development, underground utilities, material processing, roadwork, paving, environmental remediation and tank installation/removal. Sponsored for PEI membership by Craig Williams, CortlandEq, Cortland, NY. www.orchardearthandpipe.com
Texas service and maintenance company. Bassco Services, 9219 Viscount Row, Dallas, Texas 75247, has applied for service and construction division membership. Phillip Brooks is president of the firm, which was established in 1981. The company installs and maintains aircraft refueling equipment and fuel storage systems. It also repairs industrial and petroleum meters. Sponsored for PEI membership by Ron McDowell, PECOFacet, Tulsa, OK. www.basscoservices.com

ADMITTED TO PEI

Galen James, Quick Fuel, Milwaukee, WI (O&E)
Debrah Carl, Circle K Stores, Inc., Charlotte, NC (O&E)

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The TulsaLetter (ISSN 0193-9467) is published two or three times each month by the Petroleum Equipment Institute. Robert N. Renkes, Executive Vice President, Editor. Opinions expressed are the opinions of the Editor. Basic circulation confined to PEI members.