Gasoline to be tested

Under strenuous lobbying last week from AAA Oregon, the Oregon Legislature's Emergency Board has approved spending a $292,600 grant to establish a statewide gasoline testing program. Oregon is currently the only western state that does not test its gasoline.

Some local gas dealers feel the testing could benefit the consumer, while others feel it is a waste of money.

Money for the testing comes from an $8 million settlement Oregon received from major oil companies which were sued for conspiracy, price fixing and creating an artificial gas shortage, according to AAA Oregon.

Central Oregon figured heavily in the November 17 decision to approve testing, with Emergency Board Chairman, Senator Neil Bryant of Bend and House Speaker Beverly Clarno, also of Bend, both favoring the gas testing program.

Bryant could not be reached for comment. Representative Clarno said she received more than 260 phone calls in two days in favor of the testing program.

Clarno said that everyone on the emergency board voted in favor of gas testing.

AAA Oregon had alleged that since Oregon was the only West Coast state without gas testing and one of only four nation-wide, it had become a "dumping ground for substandard and contaminated fuel."

"I believe if we are just one of three or four states not doing it, we have to take a strong look at it," Clarno said after the vote.

AAA said that the "federal government estimates that we are being overcharged to the tune of more than $15 million a year. In Oregon, more that half of the gas tested was up to 4 octane points below that posted." AAA also alleged that tests in Oregon found 30 percent of the gas substandard."

These charges have been disputed by the petroleum industry, which said that the study was unscientific and did not meet industry standards for the testing of gasoline fuel.

Dick Davis, owner of Davis Oil and Davis Tire & Towing, feels the testing was a waste of money.

"Where there are problems, it is not the fuel, 90 percent of the time it is the driver's negligence in maintaining their vehicle," Davis said.

Davis acknowledged he is taking his distributor's word that the gas he is buying for resale is what the distributor says it is, but in 45 years of selling gasoline, Davis does not believe he has received a tank of gas with mislabeled octane.

In his own vehicles, which include tow trucks that consume thousands of dollars of gas in a month, Davis says he has had no problems.

Brad Rossa, owner of the Sisters General Store and the Shell station at the west end of town, said he felt testing "could be a good thing."

Rossa said he did not expect testing to have any impact on his operation or that of his distributor, Capitol City Companies, based in Salem.

Capital City Companies owner Bill Loch said that "we are very fortunate in that Shell gasoline is the best in the market place. We are delighted that they are going to test. Testing will help us."

Loch did not know of any cases of mislabeled octane in Oregon, but said that the whole industry will benefit "if they test and find people who are violating the rules, and they can clean it up."

Tom McMeekin, owner of the Sisters Pump House, said he was new to the petroleum business and not too familiar with the history of gasoline quality in Oregon.

"Our gasoline comes from Alaska through Tesoro in Washington state, where they do have fuel testing," McMeekin said. "Our distributor feels that fuel testing is something the industry should have taken care of, instead of placing the burden on the citizen."

Operators of the Sisters BP and Sisters Chevron could not be reached for comment.

The proposed testing program has been scaled back considerably from what was originally proposed by AAA.

According to an analysis prepared for legislators, fuel quality testing was the "subject of both a February 1994 Secretary of State's audit and of 1995 proposed legislation. The audit found that in 1993 Oregonians paid $762 million for substandard fuels and concluded there was a need for a fuel quality program."

However, while the measure was approved by a four to one vote of the Senate Transportation Committee, it did not receive a hearing in the Joint Ways and Means Committee "to which it was subsequently referred."

According to Rep. Clarno, this was because of the "tightness of funding. There was not the willingness to spend the money." That program was estimated to cost from $368,000 to $638,000.

The approved testing program will be more limited. Most of the $292,690 will be used to purchase portable testing units, with $63,000 for sample purchase, storage, shipping and testing.

Another $130,000 grant will be needed to continue the program from 1997 through 1999.

The extent of the testing has also been cut back. Where the original proposal would have tested for octane, oxygenates (added to fuel to reduce air pollution), sediments and corrosive agents, under the new program "only violations of octane and oxygenate labeling requirements will be referred for enforcement. All other data will be used solely for analyzing future program options," according to the government analysis.