Senate Passes Energy Bill

After stripping the bill of a $21 billion tax package, he U.S. Senate has passed an amended energy bill that includes an expansion of the Renewable Fuels Standard to 36 billion gallons of annual renewable fuel use by 2022. The bill now goes back to the House of Representatives for approval before it can be sent to the president for his signature. Removal of the tax increases for oil companies should remove the threat of a presidential veto.

Following Senate passage of this energy bill, Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen issued the following statement:

“For too long, traditional energy companies have told us everything we can’t do with respect to our energy future. This bill, and the Renewable Fuels Standard specifically, is an affirmation of what is possible when we work together to achieve a common goal. By relying more heavily on domestically produced renewable fuels, including next generation technologies such as cellulosic ethanol, we can begin the hard work necessary to mitigate the impact of global climate changes, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and leave a more stable and sustainable future for generations that follow.�

Senate to Change Energy Bill

The Senate fell one vote short in a procedural vote to move the Energy Bill passed by the House that includes tax increases for oil companies. The White House had threatened to veto the bill over that issue.

Majority Leader Harry Reid now says they will eliminate the tax title to get a revised energy package approved later today. “We must begin to break our country’s addiction to oil,” Reid said.

The bill will still include an increased Renewable Fuels Standard and higher CAFE standards.

Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky predicted the revised bill would be approved with wide bipartisan support.

The legislation, if passed by the Senate, would have to be voted on by the House.

Energy Bill Moves Forward and Stops

The U.S. House of Representatives took another important step Thursday toward making America more energy stable and sustainable. Of particular note, this energy bill responsibly expands the Renewable Fuels Standard by requiring 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel be used annually by 2022. Importantly, 21 billion gallons of that goal must come from advanced biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol.

Commending those supporting this shift in energy policy direction in this country, Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen issued the following statement:

“The House of Representatives took an important step forward today in ensuring a stronger and more sustainable energy and environmental future for this country. This bill recognizes the critical importance of diversifying our nation’s motor fuel supply by increasing the use of renewable fuels like ethanol.

“Importantly, the renewable fuels provisions of this bill take a pragmatic approach to ensuring that the promise of advanced biofuels like cellulosic ethanol is realized. By requiring that nearly two-thirds of the new 36 billion gallon goal must come from advanced biofuels, House leaders have provided the necessary market to foster the continued investment and development of the cellulosic arm of the U.S. ethanol industry.

“Additionally, this bill moves ethanol and renewable fuels beyond being just a blending component in gasoline. It guarantees that sufficient volumes of ethanol will be available to support the meaningful expansion of E85 and flexible fuel vehicle technology. And, it puts America in a stronger position to weather the antics of despots in oil-rich nations because we are no longer so heavily reliant on their petroleum for our energy needs.

“I strongly encourage the Senate to continue its leadership, ignore the taradiddle coming from opportunistic ethanol critics, and ensure this important piece of America’s energy strategy becomes a reality. The price of waiting any longer to address our nation’s energy crisis is too great. The time for action is now.�

However, the Senate Friday failed to on a vote to cut off debate on the Energy Bill passed by the House. The tax and renewable electricity provisions of the bill raised the threat of a veto from the White House and Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico, the ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said, “This is not a good bill, but it can be turned into a great bill.”

RFS Supporters Rally in DC

Members of Congress and representatives from a variety of organizations held a media event Wednesday morning in support of an increased Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) in the Energy Bill.

House Ag Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN) says House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is in full support of the RFS.

“The speaker understands that this is critical for this industry,” Peterson said. “She gets it and she understands what the problem is and she understands why this needs to be done.”

Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY) described his conversion to being an ethanol supporter. “As a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee for many years I voted against the ethanol mandate,” Engel said. “I changed my position 180 degrees, and I changed my position because it’s good for America.”

All of the speakers noted the importance of the RFS to cellulosic ethanol development, which is still in its infancy. In the meantime, Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD) said, “Conventional corn ethanol is the bridge we need to move forward.”

It was a long press conference, which got underway late, and the lawmakers had to leave by the time the supporting organizations got to give their statements - which meant many of the media who were there also left. But, those who did stick around heard first from the unusual suspects in the lineup of those supporting the RFS. They were the AMVETS, the Jewish Council for Public Affairs and the Truman National Security Project.

RFA President Bob Dinneen was among the “usual suspects” supporting the standard - biofuels and agricultural organizations. He congratulated the media that remained for the press conference after more than an hour, “Now you get to write that ‘dog bites man’ story that you’ve been waiting to write because the Renewable Fuels Association supports this bill.”

Dinneen pointed out the diversity of the people speaking on behalf of the RFS in terms of geography, with lawmakers from Washington State to New York and Massachusetts to Florida. “They’re reflecting all of America today,” he said. “Seventy-four percent of Americans want to see us doing as much as we possibly can to reduce our dependence on imported oil and to promote renewables like ethanol and biodiesel and others that will be developed.”

“This bill is about stimulating the second generation of ethanol production. It’s about assuring that cellulosic production can be commercialized effectively.”

A vote on the Energy Bill could come as early as this afternoon in the House.

Listen to Bob’s statement here: Bob Dinneen (2:30 min mp3)

Ethanol Podcast From NAFB

Because of activity in the Senate, RFA President Bob Dinneen was unable to make it to the National Association of Farm Broadcasting (NAFB) annual meeting in Kansas City Thursday, but Matt Hartwig handled the interviews with dozens of farm broadcasters quite handily.

When I caught up with Matt around noon he had already done about 20 interviews on a variety of topics from legislation to the state of the industry and the future.

The lack of movement on the energy bill, and the potential for adding a Renewable Fuels Standard to the 2007 Farm Bill as an amendment, was a big topic of discussion.

“Our biggest concern is getting the RFS passed,” Matt says. “We think that’s very important not only to the industry, but also to the nation as a whole.”

“If the farm bill turns out to be the vehicle that moves the RFS, that’s okay,” he continued. “But we believe that the RFS should be part of an energy bill and it should be passed by Congress and sent to the president’s desk as soon as they can possibly get it done.”

Listen to all of Matt’s comments here in the “Ethanol Report” podcast.

Listen to the podcast here: Ethanol Report 2 (7:00 MP3 file)

House Ag Committee Continues Biofuel Support

Today the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) sent a letter to House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson and Ranking Member Bob Goodlatte thanking the Committee for its commitment to bring bipartisan legislation before the U.S. House of Representatives in the “Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007� (H.R. 2419).  The Act recognizes the important role of agriculture in the continued research and development, education and investment in our nation’s biofuels industry.

RFA President Bob Dinneen sent the following letter: 

“The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) thanks the House Agriculture Committee for its commitment to bring bipartisan legislation, the “Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007� (H.R. 2419), before the U.S. House of Representatives that recognizes the important role of agriculture in the continued research and development, education and investment in our nation’s biofuels industry.  Much of the growth of the U.S. ethanol industry to date has been supported by farmers and rural
America investing their hard-earned dollars in local biorefineries.  For the American farmer, the ethanol industry provides the opportunity to enjoy some of the value added to their commodity by further processing.  The programs included in the Energy Title of H.R. 2419 will greatly contribute to ensuring
America’s future energy security. 

Congress has a significant opportunity to advance the development and deployment of bioenergy, renewable energy and cellulosic ethanol technologies in the Farm Bill.  The House Agriculture Committee has crafted an Energy Title in H.R. 2419 focused on revitalizing rural communities, creating economic opportunity and good paying jobs for American workers, and expanding the role of U.S. agriculture in our movement to greater energy self-reliance.  The programs included in the Energy Title will promote Federal procurement of biobased products, provide loan guarantees for biorefineries and biofuels production facilities, expand research to better utilize ethanol co-products such as distillers grains, study the feasibility of a dedicated ethanol pipeline, and continue the Bioenergy Program to incentivize cellulosic and biomass feedstocks for ethanol production and energy production of ethanol plants. 

The RFA thanks the Committee for recognizing the potential of biofuels and providing the agriculture community, through H.R. 2419’s Energy Title, a pathway that will provide a more stable and sustainable energy future for all Americans.  The RFA applauds the Committee for their work on this carefully balanced legislation, and we look forward to working with you as H.R. 2419 comes to the floor of the House of Representatives later this week.

Ford Leases E85 Hybrid Escape to RFA

The next generation of flex-fuel vehicles (FFV) was on display today on Capitol Hill as Ford Motor Company turned over the keys to a new Ford Escape Hybrid E85, the world’s first flex-fuel hybrid vehicle, capable of operating on a mixture of gasoline with up to 85 percent ethanol, to the Renewable Fuels Association. 

One of only 20 Ford Escape Hybrid E85s, the innovative vehicle will be used by the RFA for real-world testing. The RFA is grateful to Ford for the extraordinary opportunity, and thanks the company for its continued dedication and commitment to the ethanol industry. (more…)