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New Yorks Vending Trade Gathers For Annual Luckower Golf Outing And Dinner Meeting

BRONX, NY The New York State Automatic Vending Association held its seventh annual Herb Luckower golf tournament and dinner meeting on Sept. 26 at the Pelham Bay & Split Rock Golf Courses here. The golfing and dinner event is one of NYSAVA's main fundraising programs, which support its advocacy efforts on behalf of the vending trade in the Empire State. The golf tournament honors a late vend product broker who was active in industry affairs and a longtime director of NYSAVA. Herb Luckower's wife, I...

October 16, 2017 by Emily Jed

BRONX, NY – The New York State Automatic Vending Association held its seventh annual Herb Luckower golf tournament and dinner meeting on Sept. 26 at the Pelham Bay & Split Rock Golf Courses here.

The golfing and dinner event is one of NYSAVA's main fundraising programs, which support its advocacy efforts on behalf of the vending trade in the Empire State. The golf tournament honors a late vend product broker who was active in industry affairs and a longtime director of NYSAVA. Herb Luckower's wife, I.D., was the meeting's guest of honor. 

NYSAVA president John Murn of RSA Management Group introduced vending operators and suppliers attending the meeting to the association's new lobbyist. Danny Frank's first assignment is to lead the charge in Albany to raise the current $1.50 sales tax exemption, for drinks and food sold through vending machines, to $2. Frank also is the executive director of the Amusement and Music Owners Association of New York. 

In 2014, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill that increases the state's tax exemption for goods sold through vending machines to $1.50. Thevictory followed years of tireless lobbying for the legislation.

"There's a lot of support in the state Assembly and Senate for the bill and they're pushing for it to be included in Gov. Cuomo's 2018 budget proposal," Frank reported.

NYSAVA is a state council of the Chicago-based National Automatic Merchandising Association. Jason Eberstein, who recently joined NAMA as director of state and federal affairs, attended the NYSAVA event for the opportunity to introduce himself to the association's members. He emphasized to New York operators the importance of their being involved on the local level as advocates for the industry. 

"With gridlock in Washington under the new administration, health advocacy groups are more likely to pursue regulations at the city and county level, including soda taxes and nutritional rules for vending," he said. "Meet with your councilmen and mayors and borough presidents and make sure they understand what you do and how regulations impact your business. They can become your congressmen."