Gas station owner told to raise prices

[Rodger Tellefson]

Gas station owner told to raise prices Wed May 9, 6:05 AM ET





MERRILL, Wis. - A service station that offered discounted gas to senior citizens and people supporting youth sports has been ordered by the state to raise its prices.



Center City BP owner Raj Bhandari has been offering senior citizens a 2 cent per gallon price break and discount cards that let sports boosters pay 3 cents less per gallon.



But the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection says those deals violate Wisconsin's Unfair Sales Act, which requires stations to sell gas for about 9.2 percent more than the wholesale price.



Bhandari said he received a letter from the state auditor last month saying the state would sue him if he did not raise his prices. The state could penalize him for each discounted gallon he sold, with the fine determined by a judge.



Bhandari, who bought the station a year ago, said he worries customers will think he stopped the discounts because he wants to make more money. About 10 percent of his customers had used the discount cards.



Dale Van Camp said he bought a $50 card to support the local youth hockey program. It would have saved him about $100 per year on gas, he said.

 

[Nelson Atwell]

Pretty interesting. Back when I worked in a convenience store, we were only making 1 cent/gallon profit. I guess the markup is much more now. Seems silly that a State would regulate such a thing, especially since it is to the detriment of its citizens.

 

[TrainTrac]

Hmmm... he was told by the state government, not the "big, evil, greedy" oil companies to raise his prices...



Who's really guilty of price gouging?:blink:

 

[Todd Z]

Drive around here, lower income neighborhoods price cheaper, Higher income neighborhoods, price higher.,... Some times the station could be 1 mile apart !!!!!!!!



and now "analysts" say it could go over $5.00 a gallon....

Bastards....



Todd Z

 

[Tom Schindler]

Todd Z,



Here in Ohio, it is opposite. Poor neighborhood, high gas prices, wealthy neighborhood, cheap gas.





Tom

 

[Jason Housman]

[Broken External Image]:

 

[TomT]

Here in Texas you can get discounts at certain grocery stores and warehouse stores like Sam's if you have a membership card. Would that be illegal in Wisconsin?

 

[Nelson Atwell]

It is illegal in Lexington, KY. They forced Wal-Mart/Sams to discontinue the 3 cents per gallon discount.

 

[Richard L]

Texas legislature just passed a bill that will remove the 20 cent per gallon state tax on gas for the 3 summer months. Not sure exactly what day it starts but they are saying June, July, and August. That works for me since I'm not planning on going anywhere outside of Texashis summer.



I think the Wisconsin politicians should hang their head in shame! I'm glad the gas station owner went public with this story. It just shows that the politicians are speaking out both sides of their mouth.



Funny thought... I think politicians get cheaper medical insurance because they only have two moving parts, their mouth and their bowels, and they're are both interchangable

:lol::lol::lol:



...Rich