A bill was introduced today in the Senate that would modify the current ethanol blender’s tax credit set to expire at the end of this year.

Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen says the bipartisan Domestic Energy Promotion Act of 2011 introduced by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) already has a number of co-sponsors. “Senators Conrad, Johanns, Klobuchar, Franken, Tim Johnson, Senator Harkin and Ben Nelson of Nebraska, so it is a bipartisan bill,” said Dinneen.

The bill modifies the current Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC) by tying the tax incentive to the price of oil. “This proposal would continue to provide a demand driver for ethanol when oil prices are low, while not requiring the taxpayer to subsidize gasoline marketers when the marketplace is already providing an incentive to blend,” Dinneen said.

The bill includes two other provisions that would help increase ethanol infrastructure and investment in next generation technology. “The reform of the existing tax incentive to be a variable incentive, infrastructure tax incentives that will encourage marketers to invest in blender pumps, and cellulosic tax incentives to allow the industry to continue to evolve sets up a policy that we think is fiscally responsible and makes great sense for this nation’s energy and economic future.”

Listen to or download an interview with Dinneen about the bill here: Ethanol Report on Domestic Energy Promotion Act