Energy Title Boosts Biofuels
The House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy, and Research is expected to take up the various proposals Tuesday and draft proposed legislation that would be forwarded to the full committee for debate.
The bill would set up $2 billion in loan guarantees between 2008 and 2012 for biofuel facilities or production that could guarantee loans for up to 90 percent of a facility's funding. The proposal also sets up a separate line item with $1.5 billion in loans specifically for cellulosic plants.
These proposals are married to another plan by the House Agriculture Committee that would increase the Grassland Reserve Program by 5 million acres in the next farm bill as well. Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., has repeatedly suggested setting aside 5 million acres that would be dedicated to growing switchgrasses for cellulosic plants.
The House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy, and Research is expected to take up the various proposals Tuesday and draft proposed legislation that would be forwarded to the full committee for debate.
The loan guarantees reflect a frustration among House members such as Peterson, who was not happy the Bush administration provided $1.6 billion in cellulosic loan guarantees through the U.S. Department of Energy, rather than USDA. Peterson has noted that the Department of Energy had no experience in loans for private projects while USDA has an entire division through USDA Rural Development.
The House plan also focuses on spending money through renewable energy systems or efficiency improvements that would set up $500 million in loans for such projects on farms or other facilities. That includes setting aside 15 percent of the funding for energy-efficiency projects in which federal investment would be $50,000 or less.
At least $60 million would be set aside for biomass research at universities. Other research funding would create a $500 million pool for USDA and DOE to promote business research in biomass feedstock, cellulosic science and diverse technologies. These funds would require a 50-percent match from companies. The money also would be segregated to show that 45 percent went to cellulosic projects and at least 30 percent went to different technologies.
