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Ethanol is keeping gas prices as much as 40 cents cheaper, according to Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), one of the Senate’s top supporters of corn-based renewable fuels. As a result, the Bush administration should deny Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s (R) request that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cut in half the federal mandate requiring the oil industry to blend 9 million gallons of ethanol into the nation’s gas supply, Harkin said. “Ethanol is keeping gas 24 to 40 cents cheaper than it otherwise would be,” Harkin said in a Thursday conference call with reporters. “So consumers are benefiting from that, and that should not be overlooked.” Harkin also warned that GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) will be punished by voters in the Midwest if the EPA adopts Perry’s request to cut the renewable fuels mandate in half. “I think it would not fare well for Sen. McCain running under a Republican ticket to have a Republican EPA pull the rug out from under one of our economic linchpins,” Harkin said. Iowa is the largest producer by state of corn, while Minnesota ranks fourth. Both are seen as swing states, although Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) is ahead of his Arizona counterpart in both, according to an average of polls compiled by Real Clear Politics. Swing states Ohio and Indiana also are both significant corn-producing states. The federal mandate on blending ethanol has come under criticism this year for contributing to an international food crisis. Livestock producers blame it for soaring feed prices, and have pushed for the EPA to grant Perry’s request for a temporary waiver from the mandate. Livestock producers are allied with the Grocery Manufacturers Association and food and environmental groups, but ethanol-makers and producers of corn and other crops have lobbied the EPA to deny Perry’s request. |
