Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) this week introduced the Open Fuel Standard Act (H.R. 2493) in the House, legislation which would require 30 percent of new automobiles in 2016, 50 percent in 2017, and 50 percent in each subsequent year, to operate on non-petroleum fuels in addition to or instead of petroleum-based fuels. “This could include …
House Subcommittee RFS Hearing
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power held a hearing Wednesday on the
House Subcommittee Hearing on RFS Today
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power is holding a hearing today in Washington on “Overview of the Renewable Fuel Standard: Government Perspectives.” The hearing features testimony from the Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency. The hearing was scheduled to begin on 1:30 eastern time but has now been postponed until …
Ethanol Industry Bites Back at Restaurant RFS Attack
The National Council of Chain Restaurants (NCCR) today announced a new campaign focused on repealing the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and the ethanol industry is biting back. Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen says the restaurants just want to fatten profits while denying that it is energy that supersizes food costs. “Here’s a hot, heaping serving of …
Ethanol Report on RFS-Food Price Study
In this Ethanol Report, John Urbanchuk of ABF Economics talks about a new study, commissioned by the Renewable Fuels Association, that shows no direct correlation between the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and the overall increase in food prices since 2008. Listen to or download the Ethanol Report here: Subscribe to “The Ethanol Report” with this link.
USDA Report Increases Corn for Ethanol Use
The latest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report from USDA lowers forecast corn production for the U.S. this year but increases corn for ethanol use estimates. Stressing right up front that because planting is still underway projections are “highly tentative,” the report lowers the projected corn production number due to delayed plantings by 135 million bushels to 14.0 …
New Study on Food Prices and the RFS
ABF Economics released a new, detailed analysis showing no direct correlation between the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and the overall increase in food prices. The study, commissioned by the Renewable Fuels Association, specifically examined “the relationship between the RFS and recent changes in consumer food prices. Specifically this includes an examination of the relationship between corn prices and consumer food …
Senate Passes Farm Bill with Energy Funding
By a vote of 66 to 27 on Monday evening, the full Senate passed its version of a 2013 Farm Bill which includes mandatory funding for renewable energy programs. “Specifically, the $900 million in mandatory funding to critical rural energy programs will help provide the certainty investors and businesses need to keep making renewable fuels from diverse feedstocks, from corn …
RFA Releases Rail Transportation Information
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) has released the “Guidelines for Hinged and Bolted Manway Assembly” in conjunction with the start of the 2013 Fuel Ethanol Workshop. The publication is a powerful resource for ethanol shippers to ensure the safe transport of ethanol through the rail system. The guidelines explain in detail the correct assembly of a manway, the proper steps …
USTR Nominee Answers EU Ethanol Export Question
The issue of the European Union’s treatment of ethanol imports from the United States came up during a Senate Finance Committee nomination hearing Thursday for U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) nominee Michael Froman. Sen. John Thune (R-SD) noted that he and a number of other senators sent a letter in April to the Acting USTR asking for an investigation into the …