View From the Hill
August 1, 2006
BY Bob Dinneen
As the last traces of life flee Capitol Hill for the August recess, it provides a much-needed opportunity to take a deep breath and put into perspective everything that has happened under the dome so far this year.
While ethanol has certainly been a popular topic of discussion in the media, the level of renewable fuels activity in Congress has been at a fever pitch. No fewer than four dozen separate pieces of legislation were introduced this spring.
Everyone in the ethanol industry is aware of the tremendously successful legislative year 2005 turned out to be. But 2006, to the credit of ethanol's friends in the U.S.
Congress, has seen its fair share of innovative and creative approaches to increasing renewable fuel production and use. While there is not space to list them all, the following are a few examples of what Congress has been up to:
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., introduced legislation requiring all new vehicles sold in the United States to be flexible-fuel vehicles (FFVs) within a decade. This year, only about 800,000 of the 17 million vehicles sold in the United States will be FFVs.
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., introduced bills to expand E85 infrastructure by providing tax credits for installation to be paid from the interest accrued by the Leaking Underground Storage Tank trust fund. The bill would provide gasoline retailers a 30 percent tax credit up to $30,000 for installing E85 pumps.
Rep. Gil Gutknecht, R-Minn., and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, called for an increase of the renewable fuels standard (RFS) to a full 10 percent of the gasoline market by 2010. Federal government officials estimate that the United States may consume some 160 billion gallons of gasoline annually by 2010. Other bills would increase the RFS to 60 billion gallons by 2030.
Reps. Kenny Hulshof, R-Mo., and Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., proposed making the tax incentives for both ethanol and biodiesel permanent. Also, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has proposed a renewable diesel standard to compliment the RFS.
Polls suggest that nearly 80 percent of Americans want more ethanol and other biofuels in this country. Judging by the activity in Congress so far this year, that message is being heard. Now that's a breath of fresh air!
A complete list of all renewable fuels legislation is available at www.ethanolRFA.org/policy/actions/federal.
While ethanol has certainly been a popular topic of discussion in the media, the level of renewable fuels activity in Congress has been at a fever pitch. No fewer than four dozen separate pieces of legislation were introduced this spring.
Everyone in the ethanol industry is aware of the tremendously successful legislative year 2005 turned out to be. But 2006, to the credit of ethanol's friends in the U.S.
Congress, has seen its fair share of innovative and creative approaches to increasing renewable fuel production and use. While there is not space to list them all, the following are a few examples of what Congress has been up to:
Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., introduced legislation requiring all new vehicles sold in the United States to be flexible-fuel vehicles (FFVs) within a decade. This year, only about 800,000 of the 17 million vehicles sold in the United States will be FFVs.
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., introduced bills to expand E85 infrastructure by providing tax credits for installation to be paid from the interest accrued by the Leaking Underground Storage Tank trust fund. The bill would provide gasoline retailers a 30 percent tax credit up to $30,000 for installing E85 pumps.
Rep. Gil Gutknecht, R-Minn., and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, called for an increase of the renewable fuels standard (RFS) to a full 10 percent of the gasoline market by 2010. Federal government officials estimate that the United States may consume some 160 billion gallons of gasoline annually by 2010. Other bills would increase the RFS to 60 billion gallons by 2030.
Reps. Kenny Hulshof, R-Mo., and Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., proposed making the tax incentives for both ethanol and biodiesel permanent. Also, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has proposed a renewable diesel standard to compliment the RFS.
Polls suggest that nearly 80 percent of Americans want more ethanol and other biofuels in this country. Judging by the activity in Congress so far this year, that message is being heard. Now that's a breath of fresh air!
A complete list of all renewable fuels legislation is available at www.ethanolRFA.org/policy/actions/federal.
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