BILL ANALYSIS �
AJR 21
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( Without Reference to File )
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AJR 21 (Olsen)
As Amended September 10, 2013
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |73-0 |(August 5, |SENATE: |36-0 |(September 12, |
| | |2013) | | |2013) |
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Original Committee Reference: TRANS.
SUMMARY : Urges Congress to swiftly enact House Resolution (HR)
1462, the Renewable Fuel Standard Reform Act of 2013.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes findings relative to the existing federal Renewable Fuel
Standard (RFS) program and the effect of the program on the
economy.
2)Urges Congress to swiftly enact HR 1462, the Renewable Fuel
Standard Reform Act of 2013, that would revise the
requirements of the existing federal RFS program.
The Senate amendments :
1)Delete references urging Congress to swiftly enact House
Resolution 1462, the RFS Reform Act of 2013;
2)Resolve that agriculture is a vital component of California's
economic livelihood;
3)Resolve that California leads the nation in milk production;
and,
4)Urges Congress to reform the RFS program, or the United Stated
Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) to use all available
authority, to quickly transition away from biofuel sources
that compete with food production, and implement aggressive
mechanisms to promote the development of advanced,
sustainable, noncrop-based fuels, including not limited to,
cellulosic ethanol.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Under existing federal law, the RFS program was
established in 2005 and revised in December 2007, as part of the
federal RFS2. The RFS2 requires that 36 billion gallons of
biofuels be sold annually by 2022, of which 21 billion gallons
must be "advanced" lower carbon biofuels and the other 15
billion gallons be corn ethanol.
Recently introduced in Congress, HR 1462, the Renewable Fuel
Standard Reform Act of 2013, would revise the requirements of
the existing federal RFS2 program. HR 1462 would eliminate
corn-based ethanol requirements, and limit the amount of ethanol
that can be blended into conventional gasoline to 10%. Further,
HR 1462 would not eliminate but readjusts the advanced
cellulosic biofuel levels to actual industry production levels.
HR 1462 is pending in the House Energy and Commerce Energy and
Power Committee and is not expected to pass out of that
committee.
The recent shift from utilizing ethanol as a biofuel derived
from corn started in January 1, 2012, when federal corn ethanol
subsidies ended. The federal tax credit, which cost the federal
government nearly $6 billion in 2011, went to gasoline refiners
that mixed ethanol with gasoline. The federal government,
through the RFS2 and until the expiration of the federal tax
credit, had promoted ethanol and other biofuels as a way to
reduce dependence on imported oil. Upon the termination of that
federal tax credit for corn ethanol, Ms. Michal L. Rosenoer, a
policy analyst with the environmental group Friends of the
Earth, expressed that the end of the tax credit showed that
"ethanol is no longer a sacred cow. The end of this giant
subsidy is a win for taxpayers, the environment, and people
struggling to put food on the table. Production of ethanol,
with its use of pesticides and fertilizer and heavy industrial
machinery, causes soil erosion and air and water pollution. And
it means that less land is available for growing food, so food
prices go up."
The California Legislature expressed similar anti-corn ethanol
sentiments in approving AB 523 (Valadeo) Chapter 183, Statutes
of 2012, that prohibited the use of state funds for corn
ethanol. AB 523 made projects for the production of ethanol
that is derived from corn ineligible for funding, after July 1,
2013, from the Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle
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Technology Program (created pursuant to AB 118 (Nunez) Chapter
750, Statutes of 2007).
Although HR 1462, if passed, would result in a marked shift of
renewable fuels strategy away from the use of corn-based
ethanol, it still maintains a focus on the use of advanced,
cellulosic biofuels to meet sustainable fuels use goals.
According to a Global Biofuel Market Analysis RNCOS report
(November 29, 2011), "The global biofuel industry has been
witnessing rapid growth over the past few years in the backdrop
of depleting fossil fuels and degradation of environmental
conditions. Many economies have turned their attention to
next-generation biofuels which have shown a notable growth in
the recent years. These biofuels are inherently more efficient
than first-generation biofuels. The report infers potential
feedstocks for the next-generation biofuels that include forest
residues, industry residues, agricultural residues (corn
stover), municipal waste, and sustainable biomass crops
including jatropha, camelina, and switchgrass. Cellulosic
ethanol, a second-generation ethanol, is the only foreseeable
renewable feedstock for sustainable production of transport
fuels. Cellulose-based biofuels offer substantial advantages
over current corn ethanol; they can be grown at low cost on
marginal land where they will not compete with traditional food
crops. The market for cellulosic ethanol will amount to around
$75 to $140 billion worldwide by 2020."
Earlier versions of this resolution urged Congress to pass HR
1462, in the hopes that the federal bill would eventually be
enacted, thereby redirecting the nation's effort in reaching
sustainable fuels goals by limiting the use of corn-based
ethanol while maintaining focus on the use of advanced,
cellulosic biofuels. Given the bills unlikely passage, this
bill has been amended to alternatively urge Congress to reform
the RFS program, or the US EPA to use all available authority to
expeditiously transition away from biofuel sources that compete
with food production, as well as implement aggressive mechanisms
to promote development of advanced sustainable noncrop-based
fuels, including but not limited to, cellulosic ethanol.
Analysis Prepared by : Vickie Alvarez / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0002865
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