FMI Year in Review from Washington: 2018 Accomplishments and Next Steps

Promoting and Advancing Petroleum Marketing, Retail Grocery, and Convenience Stores in West Virginia

Driving Local Business and Community Growth Across West Virginia

Our Purpose and Commitment

OMEGA is a West Virginia-based organization dedicated to supporting and advancing the business interests of the state’s petroleum marketing, retail grocery, and convenience store industries.

As a network of over 225 locally owned businesses, OMEGA actively promotes cooperation, advocates for favorable legislation, and provides education and resources to its members. With over 50,000 employees, OMEGA members significantly contribute to the state’s economy, generating more than 10% of all state taxes and supporting local communities through scholarships, charitable donations, and civic involvement.

OMEGA is committed to fostering industry growth while serving West Virginians with essential services like fuel, food, and convenience.

who frontpage

member frontpage

Join a Community that Champions, Connects, and Elevates!

Your Essential Connection in West Virginia

OMEGA offers three types of membership: Convenience Store Members, Petroleum Marketer Members, and Grocer Members, all of which play a vital role in providing fuel, food, and essentials across West Virginia. As a liaison with state and national agencies, OMEGA works closely with organizations like NACS, PMAA, FMI, and the N.G.A. to advocate on behalf of its members.

We keep members informed through newsletters, legislative updates, an online resource hub, and educational seminars. Additional member benefits include access to the Encova Workers’ Compensation Discount Program and participation in our annual Trade Expo and fundraising efforts for children’s charities. OMEGA is here to support, advocate, and enhance the success of our industry members.

While we help our members navigate through the effects of the government shutdown and meet with the newly elected members of Congress, we also wanted to look back and highlight the industry’s achievements from 2018 in our recently released 2018 FMI government relations end of year report.

By: Steven Harris, Director, Policy Development and Regulatory Compliance, Food Marketing Institute <img src="https://www.fmi.org/images/default-source/blog-images/screen-shot-2019-01-22-at-3-05-33-pm.tmb-large-350-.png?sfvrsn=e474c6e_1" data-displaymode="Thumbnail" alt="GR Year End Report" title="GR Year End Report" style="float: right; margin-left: 10px;" />2019 started off a little differently than most years in Washington with a partial government shutdown underway, while the 116thCongress gaveled in with dozens of new lawmakers and new leadership in the House. While we help our members navigate through the effects of the government shutdown and meet with the newly elected members of Congress, we also wanted to look back and highlight the industry’s achievements from 2018 in our recently released <a href="https://www.fmi.org/docs/default-source/gr/fmi-year-end-gr-report-2018.pdf?sfvrsn=cd824c6e_4">2018 FMI government relations end of year report</a>. Our report highlights our efforts on many different types of issues throughout 2018, including the passage of a multi-year Farm Bill, a USDA rulemaking to establish a national bioengineered food disclosure standard and the ongoing trade negotiations in North America and among our trading partners across the globe. Our ongoing push to protect confidential store-level business information has made it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, with oral arguments and a decision expected later this year. We also engaged with the administration and member companies to ensure a fair and effective implementation of the landmark tax reform law. The list of topics goes on in large part because of the challenges and complexities of this industry. Regardless of the high or low-profile nature of these issues, each success makes a difference. Each success will help companies make new investments in their businesses and their workforce, hire new employees and continue to pursue new innovations. Thank you to our members for their hard work and achievements in 2018; and we look forward to working together on many new challenges and opportunities in 2019. We anticipate creating new working relationships with the new Congress and hope to strengthen our connections with policymakers in the regulatory agencies when the government shutdown is resolved.

Read full article on FMI

Menus

Some of the main menus of the template are now set via the template parameters saving you having to set up menu modules for each menu. From this section you can choose what menus you would like connected with these pre assigned menu areas of the template.

Copyright Information

Enter the copyright information that will appear in the footer area of your template.

Supporting West Virginia Communities

OMEGA members play a vital role in West Virginia, supporting communities through substantial tax contributions and a wide-reaching presence across the state. With over 55% of the population living in border counties, our members are dedicated to serving both local and regional needs. Beyond business, we’re proud to give back, having contributed over $3.1 million to children’s charities since 2003, reflecting our commitment to making a positive difference.