Page 6 - NPGA Annual Report 2019-2020
P. 6

COVID-19—NPGA Responds





        COVID-19 hit the nation hard and it’s changed the way we live and do business.
        NPGA acted quickly and comprehensively on behalf of the propane industry.          NPGA COVID-19 Resources on NPGA.org
        Below is a subset of NPGA’s actions and accomplishments in responding to           Member Dashboard
        the pandemic.                                                                            Š State Operating Status
             y Secured essential critical infrastructure worker status for propane workers       Š Federal Enforcement Discretion and Regulatory
            from the Department of Homeland Security, which many states adopted.                Guidance (DOT, FMCSA, TSA and PHMSA)

             y Secured inclusion of propane in the Federal  Motor  Carrier  Safety               Š Funding Resources Portal
            Administration’s emergency  declaration  waiving  hours  of service                  Š Marketers Guides for COVID-19 Operations
            requirements for the transportation  of essential supplies supporting                Š Event Cancellation Template
            emergency relief efforts.                                                            Š Preventative Practices Memo Template
             y Loosened  red  tape  and  secured  waivers for  the propane  industry  on         Š Workplace Exposure Notice Template
            matters relating to drug and alcohol testing, CDL-related matters, and               Š Identification of Essential Critical Infrastructure
            hazardous materials-related requirements.                                           Workers Guide
             y Secured  a  favorable  outcome for  the propane  industry  in the federal         Š Critical Industry Employee Authorization to Travel
            government’s  third stimulus  package,  including  an additional  $900              Templates
            million in funding for the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).            Š Paid Leave Guidance
             y Designed “rules of the road”  for NPGA members under dozens  of                   Š LIHEAP Summary
            governmental acts and guidance documents, including CDC and OSHA                     Š LIHEAP Customer
            guidance, the Federal Paycheck Protection Program and myriad other new              Mailer
            financial assistance programs, and provisions related to paid sick leave,
            extended family leave, and medical leave.                                   “We are living in difficult
             y Worked to provision cloth masks through FEMA at no charge for essential   times. The COVID-19
            propane workers (over 57,000 masks to over 1,200 locations requested)       crisis has created
            and  with NPGA  member  Rototherm  to  facilitate  the  availability  of  PPE   unprecedented health,
            facemasks to the United States propane industry.                            safety, and economic

        These actions supported  the industry’s resilience,  allowing  propane  to      challenges for the
        maintain up and running status and continue to provide most services to the     propane industry and
        customer base. But it is certainly not business as usual. There are a number    our families. It has put
        of technical resources, references, and template language on the Member
        Dashboard of NPGA.org to help navigate the new environment in which we          all of us in new territory with many unknowns and
        find ourselves operating. The NPGA staff are also resources for you; feel free   difficult decisions that must be made each day.”
        to reach out to them with questions or concerns.                                — Randy Thompson, NPGA Chair of the Board


                                                      6  National Propane Gas Association    2019 - 2020 Annual Report
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