Today, the Senate passed a bipartisan 8-billion gallon Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) amendment offered by Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) by a 70 to 26 vote.
The Domenici amendment represents a compromise between the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee Chairman James Inhofe, R-Okla., legislation (S. 606), Sen. Jim Talent's, R-Mo., amendment included in the Senate ENR Committee legislation and the Senate's bipartisan RFS legislation (S. 650).
The bipartisan-compromised Domenici amendment includes the Clean Air Act provisions in the EPW legislation, the 8-billion-gallon RFS included in the Talent amendment, and the credit-trading program language that limits the credits to the year when they are generated that was included in S. 650.
The Senate Finance Committee is expected to markup the tax title of the energy bill on June 16. Chairman Chuck Grassley's markup includes an extension of the biodiesel excise tax credit through 2010, an extension of the wind production tax credit, and two 20% investment tax credits for coal gasification facilities. The price tag of the chairman's tax title is $10.9 billion over five years and $16 billion over 10 years. Once approved by the Senate Finance Committee, the tax title will be added to the energy bill next week as an amendment on the Senate floor.
Speaking to the 16th Annual Energy Efficiency Forum in Washington, DC, President George Bush today urged Congress to pass an energy bill that will lower gasoline prices and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
Bush states, "Our dependence on foreign oil is like a foreign tax on the American Dream — and that tax is growing every year•We've got to be aggressive about finding alternative sources of fuel. And one such source is ethanol. Ethanol comes from corn -- and we're pretty good about growing corn here in America, we've got a lot of good corn growers. Therefore, it makes sense to promote ethanol as an alternative to foreign sources of oil.
"Ethanol can be mixed with gasoline to produce a clean, efficient fuel. In low concentrations, ethanol can be used in any vehicle. And with minor modifications, vehicles can run on a fuel blend that includes about 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. Ethanol helps our farmers find a new market and helps us replace foreign crude oil. I mean, I like the idea of spending money on research to make ethanol more feasible, so that some day an American President says, show me the crop report as opposed to, how many barrels of crude oil are we importing?"
The Senate is expected to adjourn later today to allow senators to attend the funeral of former Nebraska Senator Jim Exon on Thursday. The energy debate in the Senate will continue next week.