As President Obama was preparing to outline his vision for America’s energy future in Washington this week, the president of the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) sent a letter to Obama urging him to reaffirm his commitment to the continued evolution of America’s ethanol industry.
In this “Ethanol Report” interview, RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen notes that no other energy technology can match today’s domestic ethanol production. “You have to reflect on the fact that ethanol is not radioactive, it’s not going to damage the ecology on the Gulf coast, ethanol doesn’t even need a no-fly zone! And yet the only energy that’s really under attack today is ethanol,” he said.
Dinneen encourages the President to continue working with the industry and Congress on efforts to transform existing ethanol policies to address fiscal concerns while still helping ethanol grow and evolve. “The ethanol industry has stepped up to the plate and said we’re willing to reform our tax incentives so we can reduce costs,” he said. “I hope we’re looking more deeply at what we want our energy future to be. I hope we’re looking at all energy tax incentives – do we still need to be subsidizing petroleum, for example?”
President Obama is scheduled to outline his vision for America’s energy future in a speech in Washington tomorrow morning.
Listen to the Ethanol Report here: Ethanol Report on Energy Future