Barring any surprise procedural snag (House Rules Committee), the House is on track to vote on year-round E15, May 13. Passage odds in the House look decent, but the Senate would be the bigger hurdle later. Please reach out to your U.S. Representatives today and ask them to vote YES on H.R. 1346, the Nationwide Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act.
The bill would prevent the emergence of fragmented “boutique” gasoline markets in Midwestern states that have opted out of the E10 waiver. Such boutique markets could disrupt gasoline supplies, raise costs, reduce fuel fungibility, and ultimately drive-up prices at the pump for consumers.
As a reminder, the EMA Board of Directors voted in favor of supporting a 1-pound waiver for E15 to enable year-round sales via a permanent legislative fix at our Fall Meeting in Chicago last October.
Click here to urge your House lawmaker to vote yes on H.R. 1346.
Meanwhile, nineteen members of the House, led by Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC), have sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Dr. Martin Makary urging them to take aggressive action against the proliferation of illicit vapor and nicotine pouch products. The legislators highlight a crisis in which the U.S. market is currently overwhelmed by unregulated products, primarily originating from China, while the FDA's own approval process remains significantly delayed. Despite receiving over 26 million applications for review, the FDA has authorized only about 60 products to date. This regulatory bottleneck has resulted in a market where an estimated 85% of products are currently illicit.
To combat this issue, the congressional letter outlines three specific strategies: improving regulatory clarity, addressing the massive backlog of premarket applications, and strengthening enforcement efforts. The members of Congress argue that the lack of clear information regarding product denials makes it difficult for retailers and consumers to make informed decisions, while the slow pace of authorizations, which includes only 39 vapor and 26 pouch products, fails to meet demand and drives illegal behavior. Furthermore, the letter recommends that the FDA collaborate with the Department of Justice’s multi-agency task force to utilize every available tool to remove illegal products from the marketplace. This push for swifter action is supported by groups like NACS, which noted that the influx of illicit products has grown out of control.
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has reached a bipartisan agreement on a topline funding figure for the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization bill, setting the amount between $550 and $600 billion. This consensus brings the committee closer to finalizing the legislative text and moving toward a markup, which is tentatively scheduled for the week of May 18. Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-MO), despite his upcoming retirement, remains committed to seeing the reauthorization signed into law before current programs expire.
However, significant challenges remain as lawmakers work toward the September 30 deadline to avoid a simple clean extension of existing programs. Even if the committee successfully advances the legislation this month, there is limited floor time available for debate. Furthermore, the bill must still navigate input from several other key bodies, including the House Ways and Means Committee and various Senate panels, many of which have not yet scheduled markups or released their own legislative.
Trump Administration Withdraws Appeal of Biden-Era Overtime Rule, Delivering Relief to Energy Marketers
In a swift and decisive move welcomed by business advocates, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) under the Trump administration has formally withdrawn its appeal of the Biden-era 2024 overtime rule. The action, taken via a joint stipulation filed yesterday in Flint Avenue LLC v. DOL before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, ends all litigation over the rule and confirms that the more stringent salary thresholds will never take effect. The Biden-era rule is dead, not enjoined.
The Biden administration’s April 2024 final rule would have dramatically raised the minimum salary level required for executive, administrative, and professional (EAP) employees to qualify for exemption from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). It set the weekly threshold at $844 ($43,888 annually) effective July 1, 2024, with a further increase to $1,128 ($58,656 annually) scheduled for January 1, 2025. The highly compensated employee (HCE) threshold would also have risen. Federal district courts in Texas had already vacated the rule, determining that the DOL exceeded its statutory authority by relying too heavily on salary levels rather than job duties.
With the appeal now withdrawn, the salary thresholds established by the 2019 rule remain firmly in place: $684 per week ($35,568 annually) for standard EAP exemptions and $107,432 in total annual compensation for HCE exemptions. Employers must continue to meet the applicable duties tests for each exemption category.
Why This Matters for EMA Members
Energy Marketers of America represents family-owned and independent businesses that keep America’s fuel supply chain moving—from wholesale distribution and heating oil delivery to propane marketing and convenience store operations. Many of our members employ salaried managers, dispatchers, sales professionals, and administrative staff who routinely work variable and often extended hours to meet customer needs, especially during severe weather events, supply disruptions, or peak demand periods.
The withdrawn rule would have forced many marketers to either raise salaries for exempt employees, reclassify them as non-exempt and pay overtime, or absorb significant new labor costs. In an industry already operating on thin margins amid volatile fuel prices and rising operational expenses, those changes would have been particularly burdensome. By preserving the current, more flexible thresholds, the Trump administration’s action provides immediate regulatory certainty and helps control payroll costs for small and mid-sized energy businesses nationwide.
This outcome aligns with EMA’s long-standing advocacy for practical, business-friendly labor policies that recognize the unique demands of energy marketing and distribution. We will continue to monitor any future DOL rulemaking on overtime exemptions and stand ready to provide member input.
Next Steps for Members
While the Biden-era expansion is now permanently off the table, employers should:
Review current employee classifications to ensure they satisfy both the salary and duties tests under the 2019 rule.
Stay alert for any new DOL proposals that could adjust thresholds in the future.
Consult with legal counsel or HR professionals regarding compliance with both federal FLSA requirements and any applicable state overtime laws. For example, California, New York, Washington, Colorado, Alaska, and Maine all have state salary thresholds that exceed $35,568, and several index annually. EMA members operating in those states must comply with the higher state floor regardless of federal law.
This development underscores the value of proactive engagement with policymakers to protect the operational flexibility our industry needs to deliver reliable, affordable energy to American consumers and businesses.
FDA Issues PMTA Authorizations for Glas Vapor
Products
*First PMTA MGOs for Flavored Vapor
Products*
The FDA issued PMTA Marketing Granted Orders (MGOs) for four Glas vapor pods, Classic Menthol, Fresh Menthol, Gold (Mango), and Sapphire (Blueberry) – all with 5% nicotine content. These authorizations are the first for flavored vapor products. The FDA also recognized the Glas G2technology, which includes Bluetooth-enabled device-level age verification and access controls.
In March, FDA issued MGOs to the Glas G2 device and a Blonde Tobacco 5% pod. With these recent authorizations, the FDA has now issued MGOs for 45 vapor products:
Vapor Products Authorized by the FDA
SEC Moves to Rescind Biden-Era Climate Disclosure Rule
The Trump administration is taking formal steps to permanently eliminate the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) climate disclosure rule — a regulation that, had it been implemented, could have imposed compliance burdens on energy marketers throughout the fuel distribution supply chain. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) received a formal SEC proposal to rescind the rule on May 4, 2026, marking the most concrete administrative action toward permanent elimination since the rule was adopted in March 2024.
Background: Why Energy Marketers Were Concerned
The Biden-era rule would have required publicly traded companies to disclose material climate-related risks and, critically, greenhouse gas emissions from their entire value chain — including Scope 3 emissions generated by downstream customers and business partners. For fuel marketers, the “knock on” implications were that oil majors and other public company suppliers would have been required to track and report data from their downstream customers' day-to-day operations — data that most energy marketers, as small and family-owned businesses, neither collect nor can afford to compile.
EMA raised these concerns directly with the SEC in comments submitted in June 2022, noting that energy marketers lack the compliance infrastructure of large public companies, and that the reporting burden would effectively be passed down the supply chain to businesses that are not even subject to SEC jurisdiction. EMA also flagged significant privacy concerns — including the exposure of competitively sensitive sales volumes — and warned that marketers unable to provide Scope 3 data to their suppliers could lose business entirely, threatening the viability of smaller operations.
A Tortured Legal and Regulatory History
The rule never took effect. Within days of adoption, a myriad of legal petitions were filed challenging the rule, including a lawsuit by 25 Republican state attorneys general and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Even environmental groups filed challenges, arguing that the final rule was not as protective to investors as initially proposed. The challenges were consolidated in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. The SEC voluntarily stayed implementation in February 2025 due to the pending litigation; thus, the rule never took effect.
In March 2025, the SEC voted to withdraw its defense of the rule entirely, with Acting Chairman Uyeda stating the goal was to "cease the Commission's involvement in the defense of the costly and unnecessarily intrusive climate change disclosure rules." The Eighth Circuit, however, declined the SEC's subsequent request to simply rule on the merits, instead holding the case in abeyance and directing the Commission to either formally rescind the rule through notice-and-comment rulemaking or renew its defense in court.
The OMB submission represents the SEC's response to that directive — initiating the formal rulemaking process needed to permanently rescind the rule.
What Happens Next
Once OMB completes its review, the proposal returns to the SEC for a commissioner vote before public release. A standard notice-and-comment period will follow before a final rescission rule can be adopted — a process that typically takes several months. EMA will monitor these developments and engage in the public comment process as appropriate.
This is a significant development in a long-running battle that EMA has been part of from the beginning. While formal rescission is not yet final, the regulatory trajectory is clear. EMA will continue to advocate for energy marketers' interests throughout the rulemaking process.
Securing Automatic Tank Gauge Systems -- Courtesy of Federated Insurance
Federated Insurance’s Association Risk Management Services team is
actively monitoring the recent cybersecurity activity targeting
Automatic Tank Gauge (ATG) systems, and we want to ensure your members
have timely, practical guidance to reduce risk and prevent
disruption.
As part of Federated’s ongoing commitment to your association and its
members, and in response to this emerging threat, Federated partnered
with our cyber expert, Hartford Steam Boiler (HSB), to quickly develop
practical, best-practice risk management guidance tailored specifically
to ATG systems.
Why this matters to your members
ATG systems are increasingly network-connected and are being actively targeted
Many incidents stem from default passwords, lack of network isolation, and exposed internet access
Organizations with ATG deficiencies often have broader vulnerabilities across other operational systems
Federated’s value to your association
Federated is not simply forwarding an alert—we are helping
associations translate risk intelligence into action.
Click
Here to read the resource guidance which provides:
Clear, step-by-step actions operators can take immediately
A concise verification checklist to support compliance and consistency
Access to complimentary cyber risk resources included with Federated policies
This guidance is applicable across major ATG platforms and reflects
the same safeguards DOE and CISA are urging in response to these
attacks.
In addition to cyber risk resources like the above, Federated is proud
to offer members complimentary access to our Risk
Management Academy SM (RMA). The key to a successful business is
implementing and leading a strong risk management culture.
Designed for business owners, Federated's Risk Management Academy provides a unique opportunity for businesses to learn best practices and network with industry peers through 2.5- and One-Day risk management academies.
Academy topics target specific risk management exposures for the petroleum industry.
As your risk management partner, Federated remains closely engaged in supporting associations with credible expertise, timely intelligence, and actionable solutions.
Announcing Our Washington Conference Speakers!
EMA is thrilled to announce multiple speakers who will address energy marketers attending EMA's Washington Conference and Day on the Hill.
The Opening Session will feature Andrea Pavon of National Propane Gas Association (NPGA) followed by the Northeast Region will feature Larry W. Minor of U.S. Department of Transportation (FMCSA) and the Southern Region Committee will feature Phil Squair of Colonial Pipeline and Wednesday evening Chris Elliott of BP AMOCO Marketers Association (BPAMA) will give brief remarks during the Washington Salute to EMA Chairman Glenn Hasken.
All EMA Operational Committee Meetings will take place on Friday, May 15 from 8:30 am - 10:45 am at The Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC. The Heating Fuels Committee will feature Chris Brennan of Sprague Energy and Michael Devine of the National Oilheat Research Alliance (NORA). The Motor Fuels Committee will feature Holly Alfano of Independent Lubricant Manufactures Association (ILMA) and Chris Laux of BP Products North America. The Convenience Store Committee will feature Jim Duke of PMI US and Chris Semrau of Worldpay. The Board of Directors Meeting will feature Jon Medo and Dave Syzmanski of Federated Insurance, Amber Moore of Altria Group Distribution Company, and Chris Jones of Main Street Competition Coalition (MSCC).
Federated Insurance, Altria Group Distribution Company and PMI US are Partners in EMA's Board of Directors Council. BP Products North America is EMA Executive Committee Council Partner. Colonial Pipeline Company is EMA Gold Corporate Partner. Worldpay is EMA Silver Partner.
Further speaker information is located here.
Energy Marketers of America Small Business Committee (SBC) PAC Co-Chairs Mike Downs and Tim Keigher would like to thank Kris DeLair and Empire State Energy Association, Inc. (ESEA) for donating a bottle of Clase Azul Reposado and a Beautiful Handmade Flag Quilt.
ESEA generously contributed the Clase Azul Reposado, it is a statement piece for any collector or connoisseur. Don't let the ornate silhouette fool you, however, this reposado tequila (meaning rested or calm) is one of the most luxurious and well-appointed agave spirits found anywhere in the world. Handcrafted and painted with painstaking detail, no bottle is alike, yet the spirit is consistently magnificent. A truly remarkable reposado tequila, aged in American oak barrels for 8 months, this is a must-try for anyone with a penchant for tequila.
This Beautiful Handmade American Flag Quilt crafted by Vincenza Bick
of Bick & Heintz, was made especially for this year's Day on the
Hill.
A striking and meaningful addition to any home, this heirloom-quality
piece brings warmth, craftsmanship, and a touch of Americana to any
space.
The auction will take place in conjunction with EMA’s Washington Conference May 13-15, and bidding and raffle purchase will close May 15 at 12:00 noon. The auction items will be displayed at the Welcome Reception on May 14. Last year, there was tremendous support in contributions for the auction and EMA SBC PAC Co-Chairs Mike Downs and Tim Keigher urge your participation this year as well! Please consider helping to grow the EMA PAC so that we can reach and support lawmakers that help you and the entire industry by contributing to the use of your vacation home or an experience for the auction. No value is too low to help generate funds for the EMA PAC during the 2026 Midterm elections.
If you have items that you would like to contribute for the Silent Auction, please click here or contact Sabrina Pitcher at 703-351-8000.
April 2026 Energy Marketers of America Small Business Committee (SBC) PAC Contributions
PAC Co-Chairs Mike Downs and Tim Keigher are grateful for the EMA Small Business Committee (SBC) PAC contributions from the following individuals during the April 1-30, 2026 time frame:
Arkansas: Steve Turner
Connecticut: Chris Herb
Georgia: Patrick Nesmith
Idaho: Brett Adams, Brad Bell, Jessica Berry, Matt Berry, Derek Brewer, Suzi Budge, Clint Burke, Tonya Charters, Ed Croymans, Brad Holland, Nancy Jones, Justin Kerr, Benjamin Roberts, Jeff Rouse, Jake Searle, Tony Stone
Michigan: Charles Burns, Tim Corrigan, David Coyne, John Foster, Mark Griffin, Robert Hohn, Loren Hoppen, James Linton, Brian McCarthy, Dennis McCarthy, William McCarthy, Frederick Miller, Bill Saad
Nebraska: Tom Lippincott
North Dakota: Matt Bjornson, Chris Fitterer, Andrew Fjeldahl, Mike Rud, Sean Slowinski, Deanne Svaleson, Cory Vorderbruggen, Jade Ziman
Oregon: Mitch Byrnes, Mark Fitz, Matthew Jubitz, Trent Tyree, Krista Williams, Blake Woodbury
Pennsylvania: Ted Harris
South Carolina: Eddie Parnell, Marvin Postell, Logan Rogers, Joseph Salerno
Washington: Brad Bell
Defenders of the Jones Act Have Lost | Bloomberg
Officials Say Shoring Up California’s Oil Supply Will Come ‘At a Price’ | KQUED
OPEC+ Decides to Boost Output | Rigzone
Federated Insurance Risk Management Academy Complimentary
Webinar
Understanding Artificial Intelligence [AI] in the
Workplace
Thursday, May 21, 2026 2:00 PM Eastern Time
This webinar will cover the rise of AI and its growing role in workplace tools and technology. Employers can benefit from this session by gaining an understanding of AI to help manage it in their workplaces. Topics that will be covered include opportunities and risks AI brings, how employees might use it, and the guidelines for using it responsibly.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
What are the types of AI and why does that matter?
Which laws govern the use of AI by employers and what are the limitations?
What are the main benefits and risks of using AI in the workplace?
What elements are essential for workplace AI policies?
Click here to Register Today!
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Business Owners/Operators
Risk Managers
Operations Managers
HR Professionals
For additional information or to discuss this in further detail, please contact your Federated regional representative or EMA’s National Account Executive Jack West at 262.719.7750 for any additional information or risk management questions. Federated is a Partner in EMA’s Board of Directors Council.
At Federated Insurance, It’s Our Business to Protect Yours®
EMA Member Services Spotlight Featuring: Hertz from National
Purchasing Partners (NPP)
Exclusive Discounts on Travel with Hertz and NPP
EMA’s members can now enjoy
big savings on Hertz car rentals—perfect for business trips, family
visits, or weekend adventures. Through NPP, you will get special
contract pricing on sedans, SUVs, trucks, EVs, 12-passenger vans, and
box trucks (where available).
And there’s more: once you activate the offer, you will enjoy free enrollment in Hertz Gold Plus Rewards® for added convenience and perks.
Make the most of this opportunity—add Hertz to your list of member benefits and start sharing today!
NPP provides special contract pricing on a wide selection of Hertz rental vehicles including sedans, SUVs, trucks, electric vehicles, 12-passenger vans, and box trucks where available. Choose from convenient airport or neighborhood locations, weekly or monthly rates, and more.
Enroll with NPP for free to save.
NPP is a member benefit provider of Energy Marketers of America.
Restrictions may apply.