The ethanol industry could hardly be more pleased with the president’s call for increased use of the fuel in his State of the Union address.

In a news release, the American Coalition for Ethanol praised the president “for setting visionary goals for ethanol in his State of the Union address and the bipartisan leaders in Congress who are working to implement long-term plans for the increased production and use of homegrown renewable fuels.”

“President Bush’s call to increase the use of renewable and alternative fuels, including ethanol, to 35 billion gallons by 2017 sends a very powerful signal that an ambitious yet attainable Renewable Fuels Standard goal is the ideal strategy to strengthen energy security and independence in the U.S.,” said Brian Jennings, ACE Executive Vice President. “An RFS level of 35 billion gallons by 2017 is consistent with ACE’s call for an RFS of 60 billion gallons by 2030, and we are pleased that this and other important aspects of ACE’s legislative plan have already been included in S. 23, the Biofuels Security Act introduced in the 110th Congress by Senators Harkin and Lugar.”