(June 16, 2011)  Washington - Responding to the Senate vote to end the federal tax incentive for the use of domestic ethanol, known as VEETC, the Renewable Fuels Association issued the following statement:

"We are disappointed in the shortsightedness of this vote, particularly as this same body voted less than one month ago to preserve billions of dollars in taxpayer handouts to the oil industry. As the underlying bill to which this amendment is attached is unlikely to make it to the president's desk, this vote was a freebie with no real consequences. With this theater now in the past, the ethanol industry stands ready to work with the Senate, House, and the Obama Administration to enact thoughtful policies that responsibly address fiscal concerns while moving American ethanol production forward. America needs an energy agenda that embraces the energy technologies of the future, not the energy politics of the past. Our industry is ready to work in good faith to pass legislation like that proposed by Senators Thune and Klobuchar that achieves immediate budget savings, pays down the federal debt by $1 billion, and continues the expansion and evolution of America's ethanol industry."