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World Biofuels
Symposium
November 13-15, 2005
Beijing, China
2nd Annual Canadian Renewable Fuels Summit
December 13-15, 2005
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Hosted by:
Candadian Renewable Fuels
Association
National Biodiesel
Conference & Expo 2006
February 5-8, 2006
San Diego, California
Organizer:
National Biodiesel Board
11th Annual
National Ethanol Conference: "Policy & Marketing"
February 20-22, 2006
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Sponsored by:
Renewable Fuels Association
22nd
Annual International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo
June 20-23, 2006
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
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Posted on
May 21, 2002MCGA LOBBYING EFFORTS REWARDED: ETHANOL, AG LEGISLATION PASSES On May 17, 2002, the final day of the 2002 legislative session, the Missouri General Assembly passed several bills important to ethanol and agriculture, including House Bill 1348, Senate Bill 984 and Senate Bill 915.
House Bill 1348, omnibus agriculture legislation, includes provisions to improve the state ethanol program and requires that ethanol plants must be
at least 51 percent farmer-owned to qualify for program payments. The bill also removes mandatory ethanol fuel pump labels and bans the harmful fuel additive methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE).
Senate Bill 984, relating to environmental regulation, also makes an additional enhancement to the Missouri ethanol program, allowing ethanol plants to continue to receive program payments beyond the 5 years allowed in current law, if they've failed to receive payments during the period due to state budget constraints. Senate Bill 915, the transportation-funding bill, provides stable funding for the Missouri ethanol program at $3 million per year.
Brent Rockhold, Missouri Corn Growers Association president and corn farmer from Arbela, MO, claims passage of the three bills are a huge win for corn
growers. “The Missouri Corn Growers Association played an important role in pushing for improved ethanol and agriculture legislation, and our hard work was rewarded today. The new legislation is a win-win-win for farmers, consumers and the environment. We greatly appreciate the tremendous support of our friends in the Missouri General Assembly.
“Our special thanks go to Senator John Cauthorn and Senator Morris Westfall for their tireless efforts in shepherding the ethanol provisions and supporting Missouri corn growers. We also appreciate the work of the handlers of the three bills, Senator Bill Foster and Representative Peter Myers for H.B. 1348, Senator Sarah Steelman and Representative Denny Merideth for S.B. 984, and Senator Morris Westfall and Representative Don Koller for Senate Bill 915. Several others made important contributions to the effort, including Representative Maurice Lawson, who amended S.B. 984 to include the ethanol provisions and introduced the original MTBE ban legislation, and Representative Sam Berkowitz, who introduced H.B. 1837, the original bill with ethanol program enhancements.
“Conferees who signed the report for H.B. 1348 and supported ethanol include Senators Foster, Klindt, Cauthorn and Coleman, and Representatives
Berkowitz, Barnitz, Shoemyer, Legan and Myers. Conferees who signed the report for S.B. 984 and supported ethanol include Senators Steelman,
Cauthorn, Klindt, Caskey and Coleman, and Representatives Merideth, Ransdall, Barnitz, Marble and Kelly. Conferees who signed the report for S.B. 915 and supported ethanol include Senators Westfall, Russell and Staples, and Representatives Koller, Green, Berkowitz and Ostmann. ”
Missouri’s farmer-owned ethanol industry is expected to grow as a result of the legislation. Through expansion construction, Northeast Missouri Grain will double the annual ethanol output of the plant in the next year. Three additional farmer-owned efforts are also underway to build ethanol plants in west-central, east-central and southeast Missouri. (For more information, contact Jamey Cline, MCGA director of value enhancement, via email at jcline@mocorn.org.)
The legislation is also expected to further improve the environment quality in St. Louis and other Missouri metropolitan areas. Ethanol reduces harmful toxic emissions and emissions that cause greenhouse gases. Because the legislation bans MTBE, a fuel additive found to pollute drinking water in Missouri and other states, MTBE will be replaced with ethanol in motor vehicle fuel to meet federal clean air requirements in St. Louis. Removal of the mandatory pump label opens the door to voluntary, ethanol pump labels with positive messages, and ethanol sales in Missouri are expected to increase as a result.
Two of the bills, H.B. 1348 and S.B. 984, now go to Governor Holden for his consideration. He is expected to sign the legislation. If signed, H.B. 1348 and S.B. 984 then become law. The transportation funding measure in S.B. 915 will appear on the August 6, 2002 ballot for voters' consideration.
“In tight fiscal times, we must also recognize the work of our supporters to hold current funding for the Missouri ethanol program,” says Rockhold. “MCGA offers special thanks to Representative Bill Ransdall, who stood up to a fierce anti-ethanol crusade by Senators Goode and Rohrbach in the budget conference. Other supporters in the conference included Senators Russell and Westfall, and Representatives Legan and Bearden. Supporters who spoke to the conferees on behalf of ethanol funding included Senators Cauthorn, Foster and Klindt, and Representatives Berkowitz, Clayton, Hegeman, Merideth, Myers, Quinn, Shoemaker and Shoemyer.”
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