NGVAmerica Call to Action: Support the NCWM DGE Proposal This July

Paul Speraw• May 16, 2016

This July, the National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) will vote on the diesel gallon equivalent (DGE) standard. The vote will take place at the NCWM Annual Meeting being held July 24 – 28 in Denver, Colorado. It is critical that natural gas advocates reach out to their state regulators in time between now and the summer meeting in order to encourage them to support this important vote.

For regulators located in regions that are holding spring meetings, it would be helpful to reach out to them in advance of those meetings. The Central Weights and Measures Association meets May 23 – 26 in Rapid City, South Dakota and the Northern Weights and Measures Association meets May 16 – 19 in Portland, Maine. Details on these meetings are available here.

NGVAmerica will attend the July meeting to speak in support of the DGE proposal. However, state regulators need to hear from businesses in their affected states. NGVAmerica members, trade allies, and other affected businesses are urged to:

Attend the NCWM Meeting and testify during the open session; this involves speaking from the floor during the open session; remarks are often given informally and do not have to be technical or detailed;
Contact state NCWM officials and urge them to vote for the DGE proposal;
Write a letter to your state representative urging them to support the DGE proposal and copy the NCWM Executive and others (we have prepared a sample draft letter – see attached);
Contact officials in states where you operate and urge them to contact the states voting representative;
Let NGVAmerica know if your state regulators have indicated how they plan to vote; and
Let NGVAmerica know if you will be attending the meeting in Denver.

The DGE standard compliments the gasoline gallon equivalent (GGE) standard that has been in place for more than 20 years. Under the proposal that will be voted on, LNG retailers will now be able to offer LNG in diesel gallon equivalent units since virtually all LNG is sold for trucks. CNG retailers would continue to be able to sell CNG using the GGE unit, but also would have the option of using the DGE unit for certain sales. Some regulators may propose that the NCWM consider an alternative approach that includes mandated that natural gas sales only be in mass units (pounds or kilograms). It is important that we support the GGE and DGE standards and be prepared to push back against other alternatives.

Below are links to more information on state representatives and details on the upcoming Annual Meeting. If your state is represented on the L&R or S&T Committees, it would be helpful to also write those officials.

To download a draft letter, click here.