[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 92 (Monday, July 11, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H5616-H5617]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   BENEFITS OF ETHANOL USE TO AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. OSBORNE. Mr. Speaker, as many Americans are aware, the Senate has 
passed a version of the energy bill, the House has passed their version 
of the energy bill, and, as often happens, the two versions are not the 
same. So, at the present time, the energy bill is in conference.
  One major difference between the House version and the Senate version 
is in the renewable fuels section. In the House, we mandate 5 billion 
gallons of ethanol be produced in this country by 2012. The Senate 
version requires 8 billion gallons rather than 5 billion. So there is a 
substantial difference.
  In 2004, the United States produced 3.6 billion gallons; this year, 
4.5 billion gallons of ethanol. And we should reach the 5 billion 
gallon standard by 2006. So the House version is relatively 
meaningless, because by saying that we want 5 billion gallons in 2012, 
we will have already reached that by 2006.
  So we are obviously very supportive, many of us, of the 8 billion 
gallon standard, and I rise tonight to encourage that that be what is 
included in the conference report.
  Currently, ethanol is produced in 20 States, including California and 
Kentucky. At one time, it was assumed that ethanol was something that 
was only produced in five or six midwestern states. Ethanol could be 
made from almost any type of biomass, and I think eventually we will 
see ethanol production in all 50 States.
  The ethanol industry benefits all Americans, not just those in the 
corn-producing States of the Midwest. Currently, ethanol reduces the 
price of an average gallon of gasoline by roughly 29 cents, so if we 
are paying $2.20 a gallon at the pump today, if it were not for the 
ethanol industry, it would be $2.50, $2.51, something in that rage. E-
85, with 85 percent ethanol, at the present time is roughly 60 cents 
cheaper than regular gasoline. So in many areas of the country, E-85 is 
selling for $1.60 a gallon as opposed to $2.20 or $2.25.
  Ethanol creates more energy than it consumes. This is something lots 
of people are not aware of.
  For instance, for every one Btu of energy, ethanol produces 1.389 Btu 
of energy. So by the time you have planted the crop, you have harvested 
it, you have processed it, you have refined it, you gain almost four-
tenths of a Btu. The reason for that is that we are harnessing the 
energy of the sun in making ethanol.
  Conversely, gasoline, for every 1 Btu of energy used, produces eight-
tenths of a Btu of energy once it is refined. MTBE produces 6.675 Btus. 
So there is a considerable energy loss in these areas. Again, this is a 
misconception that many people have that ethanol uses more energy than 
it really produces. This is not true.
  As MTBE is phased out due to groundwater contamination, ethanol is 
the primary remaining eliminator of greenhouse gas emissions. In 2004, 
ethanol reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 7 million tons in the 
United States, which was a huge environmental benefit.
  The ethanol industry added $25 billion to the U.S. economy in 2004. 
The ethanol industry has added 243,000 jobs to our economy, and above 
all, it has moved us away from dependence on foreign oil.
  There are just a couple of other things I would like to mention that 
we have on the following chart. You will notice that, currently, 
ethanol adds $51 billion to farm income over 10 years. The reason for 
this is that ethanol increases the price of a bushel of corn by 25 to 
50 cents a bushel.
  It reduces government farm payments by $5.9 billion over 10 years. 
The reason for that is it raises the price of corn. Therefore, there 
are fewer farm bill payments that drain money from the taxpayers, so 
this is a good thing

[[Page H5617]]

for the average taxpayer in the country.
  It also reduces the U.S. trade deficit by roughly $34 billion, and 
this is huge, because what is eating our economy alive is a huge trade 
deficit at the present time. As we remove ourselves from dependence on 
foreign oil, which is the main cause of the trade deficit, we begin to 
see things turn around because of ethanol.

                              {time}  1930

  And as I mentioned earlier, it does significantly reduce air 
pollution. So we think this is a win-win for the American economy, for 
the American people; and I urge my colleagues to support the higher 
level of 8 billion gallons of ethanol that is currently in the Senate 
version of the energy bill.

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