Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

[Mike E.]

I just hear this...Hope this doesn't break any forum rules.

The Obama administration on Friday proposed to reduce the amount of ethanol in the nation's fuel supply for the first time, acknowledging that the biofuel law championed by both parties in 2007 is not working as well as expected.

While the proposal highlights the government's struggle to ramp up production of homegrown biofuels that are cleaner-burning than gasoline, it is unlikely to mean much for consumers at the pump.

The change would reduce by almost 3 billion gallons the amounts of ethanol and other biofuels blended into gasoline in 2014 than the law requires.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/epa-proposes-reducing-biofuel-mandate-20903148

Mike

[Michael J.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

Definitely good news, hope it is just a start with more volume reduction coming later.

[James B.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

This probably won't help me in Illinois when we're surrounded by corn! I love the following quote from further down the ABC news item:
".... environmental groups that oppose planting more corn for fuel. A recent AP investigation found that corn-based ethanol's effect on the environment is far worse than the government predicted or admits."

[Ed D.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

The good news is they will reduce the corn usage in our fuel. I wonder where the bad news is. Maybe they will substitute apples. I always get concerned when the government tries to help.

[Robert R.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

The bad news already occurred. Corn prices tripled in 2010 when farmers sent their corn to be used to make ethanol. This triggered ranchers to cull back herds of cattle and hogs. And they culled them back again in 2012.
So now we have expensive beef and pork for the next 6 years minimum. It takes three years from insemination to harvest ( that's the PC version of slaughter) for cattle, and we reduced the herds by 6 million head in the past 4 years. All for a small price savings at the pump, but no real solution long term solution.

[John F.]

[Larry E.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

I just hear this...Hope this doesn't break any forum rules.

The Obama administration on Friday proposed to reduce the amount of ethanol in the nation's fuel supply for the first time, acknowledging that the biofuel law championed by both parties in 2007 is not working as well as expected.

While the proposal highlights the government's struggle to ramp up production of homegrown biofuels that are cleaner-burning than gasoline, it is unlikely to mean much for consumers at the pump.

The change would reduce by almost 3 billion gallons the amounts of ethanol and other biofuels blended into gasoline in 2014 than the law requires.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/epa-proposes-reducing-biofuel-mandate-20903148

Mike

Wasn't he the same one that said you can keep your health insurance?? Larry

[Michael J.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

It could lead to a reduction, remember the pumps usually say "contains up to 10% ethanol", and so they are not limited by ethanol content on the downside of 10%, except in the highly polluted big cities as an oxygenate. Additional legislation is in the works to totally repeal the RFS, that is what makes most sense, let the market decide. And luckily now, they will not start putting up to 15% ethanol in, that was where it was heading if they didn't relax the mandate.

[Michael J.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

...Exactly, so don't trust anything out of the government's mouth until you actually see it.

[Paul B.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

...supposedly our fuel needs are back to "pre-9/11" numbers. Electric cars, Tesla's, Hybrids, Prius and in general cars are getting better mileage plus millions and millions of people who had jobs then but don't now aren't driving back and forth to work 5 times a week using "x amounts" of gasoline results in millions of gallons of gasoline that isn't needed anymore. Ethanol right now is being way over produced compared to the amount of gasoline being purchased. I read on a petroleum company's website that 40% of last year's corn went to ethanol production!!!!!

[Troy P.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

Has anyone ever noticed that Federal and state tax laws place a tax on gasoline but not on ethanol? When ethanol was introduced no one changed the tax laws that I know of. Therefor you having been paying a gasoline tax on the 10% of what you buy that is actually alcohol.

[Paul J.]

Re: Good News for our Vintage Cars on Ethanol

It could lead to a reduction, remember the pumps usually say "contains up to 10% ethanol", and so they are not limited by ethanol content on the downside of 10%, except in the highly polluted big cities as an oxygenate. Additional legislation is in the works to totally repeal the RFS, that is what makes most sense, let the market decide. And luckily now, they will not start putting up to 15% ethanol in, that was where it was heading if they didn't relax the mandate.

Remember everyone, there are two completely different laws here. The 2007 law, which is part of Obama's energy plan, is what this is about. The other law pertains to the 1990 Clean Air Act and is an allowable way to try to bring ozone non-attainment areas (or highly polluted areas, as Michael states) back into compliance. The seasonal and sometimes permanent use of ethanol will not change in these areas, just as it was before 2007.