Diverse Coalition Opposes Subsidies for Corn Ethanol in Letter to Lawmakers

WASHINGTON, DC — March 1, 2011 – A broad and diverse coalition of 90 business associations, taxpayer advocates, hunger and development organizations, agricultural groups, free-market groups, religious organizations, environmental groups, budget hawks, and public interest organizations today sent a letter to Congressional leadership urging Congress to let the refundable Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC) expire and to resist calls for spending on infrastructure for conventional biofuels. Text of the letter: The undersigned diverse group of business associations, taxpayer advocates, hunger and development organizations, agricultural groups, free-market groups, religious organizations, environmental groups, budget hawks, and public interest organizations urge you to allow the refundable Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC) to sunset this year and to resist calls for spending on infrastructure for conventional biofuels. In particular, Congress has the opportunity to end the $6 billion a year subsidy to gasoline refiners who blend corn ethanol into gasoline. At a time of spiraling deficits, we do not believe Congress should continue subsidizing gasoline refiners for something that they are already required to do by the Renewable Fuels Standard. Experts like the Congressional Budget Office and the Government Accountability Office have concluded that the subsidy is unnecessary, and leading economists agree that ending it would have little impact on ethanol production, prices or jobs. We urge you to let VEETC expire and resist calls for spending on infrastructure for conventional biofuels. Signatories to the letter: ActionAid US Africa Action Africa Faith and Justice Alabama Poultry and Egg Association Alliance of Western Milk Producers American Bakers Association American Conservative Union American Frozen Food Institute Americans for Limited Government Americans for Prosperity American Jewish World Service American Meat Institute Beyond Pesticides California Dairies, Inc. California Poultry Federation California Safe Schools Center for Auto Safety Center for Biological Diversity Center for Food Safety Clean Air Task Force Clean Water Action Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach Competitive Enterprise Institute Council for Citizens Against Government Waste Dairy Producers of New Mexico Dairy Producers of Utah Environment America Environmental Working Group Foreign Policy in Focus Freedom Action FreedomWorks Friends of the Earth Heartland Institute Georgia Poultry Federation Greenpeace USA Grocery Manufacturers Association Idaho Dairymen’s Association Indiana State Poultry Association International Center for Technology Assessment International Dairy Foods Association John Locke Foundation KyotoUSA Leadership Conference of Women Religious League of Conservation Voters Marynoll Office of Global Concern Milk Producers Council Mississippi Poultry Association MoveOn.org National Audubon Society National Catholic Rural Life Conference National Council of Chain Restaurants National Chicken Council National Meat Association National Retail Federation National Taxpayers Union National Turkey Federation National Wildlife Federation Natural Resources Defense Council NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby North Carolina Poultry Federation Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance Northeast Organic Farming Association — Interstate Council (NOFA-IC) Northwest Environmental Defense Center Northwest Dairy Association Oil Change International Oxfam America Partners for the Land & Agricultural Needs of Traditional Peoples (PLANT) The Poultry Federation Public Citizen Safe Climate Campaign The SafeLawns Foundation Sierra Club Snack Food Association