About the Illinois Petroleum Marketers Association

Located in Springfield, Illinois, the Illinois Fuel, and Retail Association has always believed in its slogan, which is ‘neighbors serving neighbors.’ The association was formed with the intent to foster a cooperative spirit between all petroleum marketers, owners, and operators of convenience stores and other relevant service providers doing business in the state of Illinois.

The association is the voice of the petroleum distribution industry in Illinois. It merged with the state trade association representing convenience store owners to form Illinois Fuel and Retail Association (IFRA) and is recorded in the business listing to have been established in 1921.

Organizational Structure and Leadership

An elected board of directors governs the association. The board is currently presided over by Holly Kreup as President; Rick Forth, Raleigh Kean Jr., and John McGovern as Vice-Presidents; Josh Sharp as Chief Executive Officers and Dawn Vaubel as Treasurer. Other members of the board include Troy Dietz, Bryan Hatfield, Todd Huels, Bill McCloskey, Brian Saunders, Gail Wade, Mark Gardner, and Tony Spuzello as Directors.

Mark Ivers, the Petroleum Marketers Association of America’s (PMAA) director, is saddled with the responsibility of presenting and protecting the interest of IFRA at the national level. In representing the interests of its members and leveraging on a collective buying power, the association has a standard partnership deal with some of its associate members. Burklund Distributing and South-North America Corporation are two of the most popular associate member companies of the association.

Advocacy Efforts

IFRA as a member of the Petroleum Marketers Association of America (PMAA), like most state trade associations, especially that of petroleum marketers, offers legislative coverage for its member firms and the industry at large through advocacy efforts and bill lobbying. The collective voice of the association is engineered towards providing a platform through which representatives of IFRA can work with federal, state, and local government bodies and other principal decision-making agencies to ensure the continued preservation and protection of the interest of the industry.

This proactive representation ensures that the benefits of IFRA and its partners are put in mind in the filing, processing, and passing of bills. Some of the laws advocated for by the association include; SB 787 Petroleum Clean Up, SB 1930 Electric Vehicle (2020), SB 2794 EPA Underground Storage Tanks, SB 150 Environmental Accountability (2020), SB 8743 Environmental Contamination (2020), HB 432 Electrical Vehicle Charging Stations, and HB 5625 INC TX-CDL Training Expenses.

Membership Benefits

In aiding facilitation of knowledge-gathering among its members, the association releases monthly publications known in the state of Illinois as Oil Can, which includes the latest industry trends as related to the regulatory changes made by government bodies and special editions of interviews with industry leaders. Additionally, members are provided with an annual IFRA directory, which includes contact information of the association’s members and associate members, as well as leadership information and congressional delegation contact information for the state of Illinois.

Furthermore, members are provided with access to a talented pool of resources for upcoming events, as well as industry-specific educational resources that aid business processes of member companies. Thereby ensuring the preservation of profitability and keeping the competitive edge needed to keep the business afloat.

The association also provides members with extensive networking opportunities through social events such as the IFRA Annual Convention and the Golf Outing and Clay Shoot. These events allow the members to have face-to-face discussions with industry leaders and to form potential partnerships and deals.