At the request of the Obama administration transition team, the Renewable Fuels Association last week submitted discussion ideas for an economic stimulus package partially designed to create green jobs and spur the green economy.

According to a statement from RFA, “Some have misconstrued this communication as a request for federal assistance or a bailout. To the contrary, the RFA recognizes that by stimulating increased production, innovation, and investment in new technologies and cellulosic feedstocks, a revitalized renewable fuels industry can help bail out the flagging US economy and lessen America’s dependence on foreign oil.”

RFA says the ethanol industry has helped support the creation of more than 238,000 “green” jobs last year alone as well as helping to revive struggling rural economies.

Organization representatives say they will continue to have discussions with the Obama team on how ethanol fits into a green stimulus package. “America’s ethanol producers share the vision of President-elect Obama of a domestic industry that is innovating to include ethanol production from a wide array of materials including switchgrass, wood chips, and municipal solid waste. That vision can only become a reality if today’s ethanol technologies and producers are successful.”