When new neighbors move in, maybe you bring brownies to introduce yourself and set the relationship off on a sweet note. After all, you never know when you might need a cup of sugar or a couple of lemons.

For c-store operators who may eventually ask state leaders for a hand, the approach is similar.

Eva Rigamonti, RaceTrac’s associate general counsel and executive director of public policy, said educating and connecting with lawmakers is key.

“You need to make friends before you need them,” she said. “It can be a mistake to wait until you have a problem to get engaged. … You need to get to know lawmakers and their staff before you actually need them.”

Most legislators don’t want to make life difficult for businesses.”

Rigamonti said reaching out early on can be a kind of “defensive action” because you never want to put the business in a position where—either because of ignorance or inaction—a legislator helps pass a law that drastically and negatively affects your business.

“Most legislators don’t want to make life difficult for businesses,” she said. “They just don’t understand the nuance, the ins and outs of a particular business. So you have to educate them. You have to help them understand that doing ‘X,’ which seems like a small thing, is actually a really big thing.”

Although c-stores need to be careful because of antitrust laws, they are permitted to collaborate on public policy.

“What I think is wonderful about this industry is that we all compete on the street for business, but when it comes to policy, we tend to collaborate,” Rigamonti said. “We all want to row in the same direction. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. It’s rare that companies truly disagree on policy because certain things impact us all similarly.”

Alessandra Magnasco, the governmental affairs and regulatory director for the California Fuels and Convenience Alliance (CFCA), said every c-store owner should know their state legislators and make it a goal to meet with them once a year. That way, there’s a preexisting relationship, and the legislator will already know your name when an issue arises that you want to share your perspective on.

She said to reach out to your representative’s district office (not their Capitol office) and tell them you’re a constituent who would like to request a meeting with your representative to discuss specific topics. Make sure, she said, to include any relevant addresses—such as your home address and all your business locations.

“By getting involved and meeting with your representatives, you are giving yourself a seat at the table; [it’s] an opportunity to tell your story as a constituent and employer to the folks who were elected to represent you,” Magnasco said. “Being able to explain how policies will play out in the real world, and how they affect your business, your customers and your employees is invaluable knowledge to share.”

While it can be intimidating to reach out to state legislators, Magnasco said that shouldn’t be the case: “You are the subject matter expert, not them. … You are their constituent—and a voter—[so] they should want to hear from you.”

A call or meeting is good, she said, but bonus points if you can get your representative to visit your business or store so they can get a feel for your operation and the issues that exist or could arise.

Working With State Associations

CFCA meets regularly with state legislators and regulators, testifies at hearings, submits comments on bills and regulations and sets up opportunities for its members to engage with their representatives.

Magnasco said c-stores should reach out to their state association and ask if there are legislators whom they should prioritize meeting with or if there are topics that should be highlighted.

Rigamonti is RaceTrac’s in-house advocate overseeing all federal and state policy. In addition, she is on the board of directors for the Florida Petroleum Marketers Association. She relies on state associations, too, because RaceTrac operates in many states.

RaceTrac is a member of almost every relevant association in the states where it operates, though, and, regardless of whether Rigamonti gets involved in the specific policy, the company always works in tandem with the state association.

RaceTrac has even hired lobbyists in certain states.

“We’ve made that choice because we believe that certain states, from a business perspective, are really important,” Rigamonti said. “And it’s hard for one state association lobbyist to stem the tide of a really big policy issue. You need boots on the ground. You need people to be there and paying attention.”

Drilling Down Into State Issues

CFCA’s Magnasco said, “States tend to be much more active than the federal government, which means a lot more [legislation] gets passed in a single year. If you are looking for an avenue for change, the state level can, oftentimes, be an easier hurdle to overcome because you have to convince a lot fewer people. Depending on the topic, there may be more regional support for a particular idea, which allows you to be more successful in getting the legislation across the finish line.”

For example, at the moment, CFCA is working to allow ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails in all c-stores and grocery stores. Right now, those stores need a unique and expensive license to be able to carry the product.

Magnasco added that, on the flip side, you have to pay close attention to the state level, “because a lot more gets done in a single year.” For example, the California state legislature introduced over 2,600 bills in the 2023 legislative session.

Rigamonti has found that “state legislators really want to get things done. It’s a shorter legislative calendar, so there’s a much more direct connection to constituents. So in some ways, even though [the legislature can be] polarized by party, they all can get more done, and they do work across the aisle better.”

Amanda Gray, the executive director of Arizona Petroleum Marketers Association (APMA), said current congressional gridlock is pushing more and more policy down to the state level. But the strategy for working with state legislatures varies depending on the particular issue and what legislative opportunities there are.

“One of the reasons why advocacy is so interesting is because every issue is unique,” Gray said. “And there are a lot of, I’ll call them ‘colorful,’ personalities at the state capitol. Navigating even the same issue from year to year can look very different just because of the different mix of people involved.”

She said flexibility is key. “There are some groups of lawmakers who we’re very aligned with on some issues and not on others,” Gray said. “So you have to be willing to say, ‘We’re together on this, and we part ways on that.”

APMA works to build a coalition to show lawmakers that issues aren’t limited to c-stores, that there’s a broader impact for consumers or other businesses. Gray said an important aspect of influencing state policy is “partnering with like-minded groups.”

Because there’s disparate legislation across all 50 states, Gray thinks it important to pay attention to what policies are being enacted elsewhere and what strategies are being used to do so. Likewise, she said it’s helpful to know what bad legislation is taking off in other areas, because it “gives you a chance to contemplate arguments and strategies to defeat those bad ideas in advance.”

Tell your story as a constituent and employer to the folks who were elected to represent you.”

Timing Can Be Key

APMA’s Gray said, “Generally, regulations are not made to be quickly altered.” So it takes an extended effort to get a package through a state agency in Arizona. It can take 12 to 18 months.” Part of that time is because Arizona agencies have a robust stakeholder process, which gives APMA a chance to weigh in on legislation during the rule-making process.

It took three years for the legislature to pass a program Gray is particularly proud of: an underground storage tank revolving fund program.

“Some legislative efforts can get done in one session,” she said. “Sometimes it takes more than one year to get a bill through if there’s opposition or if the politics align against you.”

Rigamonti noted that in the states RaceTrac operates in, there are different windows in which legislatures operate—it might be January to March, or it could be January to May.

“You have a very short amount of time for your objectives, so you have to make the most of it,” she said. “A lot of times, stuff doesn’t happen because the clock runs out.”

If the clock runs out in a state such as Texas, with a state legislature that meets only in odd-numbered years, and you haven’t achieved what you want to, you have to go back to the drawing board and wait until the session convenes again—although that means, Rigamonti said, you have a chance “to really make it right.”

Look Local

Gaming has primarily been a state issue, and every state has different gaming laws. Utah has no gaming or lottery (although recently a state representative proposed changing the lottery law). South Carolina allows no gambling but does have the lottery. Pennsylvania has the second-largest gaming market in the nation.

One of the reasons why advocacy is so interesting is because every issue is unique.”

Pace-O-Matic Inc., a software company that produces skill games found in c-stores, has had to navigate that. The company has its ears to the ground across the country.

Michael Barley, the chief public affairs officer, said, “It depends on the state, and that’s really where we start. We look at state laws, we see how our games fit in. We approach the states where our games are legal, and then it’s a matter of education for prosecutors, for law enforcement and for legislators to let them know that, ‘Hey, we have a legal product, and we understand why there may be confusion or concerns. Here’s what we suggest, and here’s how we think we could get to a settlement that would put us in a regulated market.’”

While no two approaches in states have been the same, Pace-O-Matic has honed its message over time. Barley said the organization has had success when it shows its potential impact on small businesses.

“Bringing those stories up is important for the legislators,” Barley said. “We’ve really leaned on working with the small businesses and other folks in the industry [such as] some of the major players who are involved with us and who have our products or are benefiting from them.”

He added, “Using our customers to help us push that up, as well, is really helpful.”

Barley said, “It’s difficult to stand out sometimes” because legislators are seeing so many issues every day. “I think the best thing we can do is just continue to talk about how we do it and then also have constituents directly reach out to them to say, ‘Look, I know you’re working on a lot of things, but here’s something that works.’”

Barley said, “Quite frankly, you could hire every government relations professional and have the best one in the world come in, but if the local person down the street passes the Kevin Bacon test where [a legislator goes], ‘Yeah, I know that person,’ it makes a big difference because those are their constituents.”

“I tell them to tell their story,” Barley said. “That will be enough.”