The stations would likely be sold to out-of-town buyers and could be forced to close, raise gasoline prices to pay for acquisition costs or "be converted into a mini-mart," according to a message in a newspaper advertisement signed by "local Exxon and Shell dealers."
According to the Gazette, the ad urges people [image-nocss] to support state Senate and House bills that would prohibit a gasoline producer or refiner from transferring or assigning an interest in a gas station without offering a right of first refusal to the dealer who leases the premises. The legislation is led by State Delegate Mary Ann Love (D) and State Senator Catherine E. Pugh (D) and has attracted numerous co-sponsors.
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday in the state House Economic Matters Committee, said the report.
"I have a lot of concerns about making sure that the existence of small businesses and mom-and-pop shops remain viable in our community and ensuring that small business still has a place in this industry," said State Del. Herman L. Taylor Jr. (D). "We need to make sure they have opportunity."
A spokesperson for Exxon Mobil Corp. referred to a statement made in June about the oil company's intention to "transition out of the direct served (i.e., dealer, company operated) retail business" across the nation, calling the move "the best way for ExxonMobil to compete and grow in the future." ExxonMobil stations will be converted in many markets to branded distributorship network over several years, executives said.
In Maryland, many stations are owned by Exxon Mobil but operated by dealers as franchises. Royal Dutch Shell stations are also affected, dealers said.
A spokesperson for Shell's U.S. operations in Houston told the newspaper that she did not have an immediate comment as executives needed to review the legislation.
The selloff of service station properties by oil companies has actually been going on for some time across the country, Paul Fiore, director of government affairs for the Washington, Maryland, Delaware Service Station & Automotive Repair Association, told the paper. "One could say the major oil companies are essentially out of the retail business," he said. "Shell has, more than likely, completed the sale in the mid-Atlantic area, leaving Exxon and Sunoco."
The association "definitely" supports the Maryland gas station legislation, Fiore added.
But the Maryland Chamber of Commerce does not, the report said. Chamber officials called the legislation "an unwarranted intrusion of government into the commercial transactions of private parties. By attempting to force owners of gasoline stations to offer a right of first refusal to tenants, this bill would inhibit the property owners from obtaining market value for their properties, or bundling multiple properties for sale as a package."
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