SALEM, Ore. & TRENTON, N.J. -- Only two states still prohibit self-service fueling, but now both of them are looking at proposals to lift their decades-old bans.
First up is Oregon, where a bill that would allow self-service fuel dispensing in rural locations is moving through the state legislature. Introduced in late April, the legislation would allow self-service fuel pumps in low-population counties—those with populations less than 40,000—to enable fueling during hours when gas stations may not be open. Most of these counties are in the eastern half of the state.
And now the second full-service state—New Jersey—is considering a proposal to entirely lift its self-service ban, which dates back to 1949.
New Jersey Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon (R) is introducing a bill in the General Assembly that would end the prohibition on self-service fueling, joining similar bills introduced last week in the state Senate by Sens. Gerald Cardinale (R) and Paul Sarlo (D). According to O’Scanlon’s website, his bill would:
- Decriminalize the act of pumping your own fuel, which the 1949 Retail Gasoline Dispensing Safety Act currently prohibits.
- Enable the installation of self-service islands at gas stations.
- Require each station to operate at least one full-service island for three years after enactment.
- Allow retailers to charge a lower price for self-service gasoline. Senior citizens and handicapped drivers could still receive full-service fueling without paying a premium.
The state has issued very few, if any, tickets over the past two years to drivers who have violated the ban by fueling up their own car, said NJ.com. It’s more likely that the gas station owner or attendant would receive a fine, which can range between $50 and $250, for not stopping the customer. But even this is rare, state officials said.
The New Jersey Gasoline, Convenience Store, Automotive Association also supports the current two bills ending the self-service prohibition, after opposing previous legislation. Sal Risalvato, executive director, told NJ.com that the bills would enable gas station owners to re-open dispensers that are currently shut down because they do not have enough staff to operate them.
“There are plenty of people who say it’s great and it's about time,” he said. “There’s people who don’t want to get out of the car. It’s a voluntary system.”
New Jersey Senate President Steve Sweeney, however, has said he would not take up the bills.
“There’s nothing wrong right now with our system," Sweeney The Belleville News-Democrat. "There's not a problem.”
Proponents of the prohibition on self-service fueling argue that it protects motorists from the hazards of fueling; Sweeney believes it is simply more convenient to let an attendant pump the fuel.
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