Senators Introduce Renewable Fuels Legislation
- From: "Blue Ridge Clean Fuels" <brcfi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "VA Biofuels Forum list" <biofuels-forum@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 22 Mar 2006 21:08:18 -0500
March 21, 2006
http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=44399
Washington, DC
U.S. Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) recently
introduced comprehensive legislation in Congress that will use alternative
and renewable fuel technologies to greatly decrease America's dependence on
foreign oil.
?For all of our military might and economic dominance, the Achilles' heel of
the most powerful country on Earth is still the oil we cannot live without,"
said Obama. "I could give you all plenty of reasons why it's a good idea for
this country to move away from an oil-based economy, but all we really need
to know about the danger of our oil addiction comes directly from words
spoken by Osama bin Laden: 'Focus your operations on oil, especially in Iraq
and the Gulf area, since this will cause them to die off [on their own].'"
Obama and Lugar's bipartisan legislation, the American Fuels Act of 2006 (S.
2446), would take a four-step approach to reducing America's dependence on
foreign oil. First, the legislation would spur investment in alternative
fuels by increasing the production of cellulosic biomass ethanol (CBE) to
250 million gallons by 2012. It would also create an Alternative Diesel
Standard that will require 2 billion gallons of biodiesel to be mixed into
the 40 billion gallon annual national diesel pool by 2015. This proposal is
modeled on the Renewable Fuels Standard, which has proved successful in
increasing ethanol production and use.
Second, the legislation would help increase consumer demand for renewable
fuels by providing a short-term, 35 cents per gallon tax credit for E85 fuel
and by providing automakers with a $100 tax credit for every E85-capable
Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV) produced.
Third, it would require the U.S. government to lead by example and to
increase access to renewable fuels by allowing public access to fueling
stations located on federal government property and by requiring that only
clean buses be eligible for federal cost sharing. It would also create
establish a Department of Defense "fly-off competition" that would encourage
private sector companies to compete to find the most energy-efficient
alternatives fuels for defense purposes.
Finally, the legislation would create a Director of Energy Security to
oversee and keep America focused on its goal of energy independence. The
Director of Energy Security would serve as the principal advisor to the
President, the National Security Council, the National Economic Council and
the Homeland Security Council.
"This bill will help tilt our energy balance toward alternative fuels,
moving these fuels into additional markets and making them more widely
available for consumers," said Lugar. "We believe that U.S. national
security will be served by more robust coordination of all the elements that
contribute to energy security. Our policies should be targeted to replace
hydrocarbons with carbohydrates. Obviously this is not a short-term
proposition, but we can offset a significant portion of demand for oil by
giving American consumers a real choice of automotive fuel. We must end
oil's near-monopoly on the transportation sector, which accounts for 60
percent of American oil consumption."
Senator Obama said that while the reforms he and Senator Lugar have proposed
will require sacrifice, they are attainable if America truly commits to the
goal of energy independence.
"The President was absolutely correct when he said America is addicted to
oil, but we can't continue to settle for piecemeal, bite-sized solutions to
our energy crisis," said Obama. "We need a national commitment to energy
security. Now is the time for serious leadership to get us started down the
path of energy independence. The ideas Senator Lugar and I have proposed are
bipartisan and common-sense and would take an enormous step towards energy
independence."
**************************VIRGINIA BIOFUELS FORUM**************************
Your email address is subscribed to the Virginia Biofuels Forum mailing list.
The list is maintained by Blue Ridge Clean Fuels Inc. (BRCFI). To UNSUBSCRIBE
go to //www.freelists.org/list/biofuels-forum and select that option from
the menu.
PRIVACY POLICY: BRCF does not sell, rent or donate this mailing list to outside
parties.
List Administrator: BRCFI@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Other related posts:
- » Senators Introduce Renewable Fuels Legislation
