Pending SOTU address prompts RFA letter urging White House action

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2012-American ethanol production is creating jobs, energizing rural economies, reducing oil imports, and helping all consumers save money at the pump, the Renewable Fuels Association said Friday in a letter to President Obama ahead of the State of Union address Tuesday night.

  “While renewable energy discussions have been few and far between on Capitol Hill and in the election this year, the upcoming State of the Union address offers the unique opportunity to remind lawmakers and the American public of the value of a strong domestic renewable fuel industry,” wrote RFA President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “The story of renewable fuels in America is good one. Domestic production of ethanol, the largest and most viable biofuel available today, was nearly 14 billion gallons in 2011. That represents ten percent of the nation’s gasoline supply. Even more impressively, ethanol represents one-quarter of all motor fuel used in gasoline engines that is produced from domestic sources.”

 Dinneen called on the president for action that would ensure that “the integrity and the intent of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) is maintained.” He said the RFS is “the only nationwide domestic energy strategy that is directly reducing imports of oil while also creating permanent U.S. jobs and economic opportunities.” He also called for long-term tax policies that allow advanced biofuel technologies to raise capital and begin production, including extensions of both the Production Tax Credit for cellulosic ethanol and the Accelerated Depreciation Allowance for cellulosic biorefineries. Dinneen also urged Obama to support an end to subsidies and other tax benefits enjoyed by the fossil fuels industry.

 To download and read the entire letter, click HERE.

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