By Regan McCarthy
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wfsu/local-wfsu-996338.mp3
Tallahassee, FL – Lawmakers are rethinking a rule that requires gas stations to sell fuel that's made from a blend of ethanol. Regan McCarthy reports a proposal is making its way through the legislature.
Representative Matt Gaetz a Republican from Fort Walton Beach is sponsoring the bill. He says he doesn't like the idea of the government forcing anyone to buy a product. And he says requiring people to buy gas that includes a mix of ethanol isn't actually serving the purpose legislators had hoped.
"Because if it takes one and a half gallons of gasoline to generate one gallon of ethanol, the more ethanol we generate, the more fossil fuels we're going to have to import from other countries."
But Democratic Representative Jeff Clemons of Lake Worth says that depends on how you read the reports and which reports you're reading. Clemons says a 2006 University of California Berkley study finds the production of ethanol uses less gasoline than the amount required to produce another similar unit of energy. Clemons also argues against concerns about green house gas emissions related to ethanol production.
"There's a big upfront cost so to speak in emitting all these greenhouse gasses when we break open the ground and do all the production. We've already done that work. We've released those greenhouse gasses so if we don't then produce the ethanol then we won't see those benefits."
Even if the state's law is repealed some experts say Floridians probably won't notice much of a difference at the pump. A federal law also sets standards for gas companies to sell a certain amount of ethanol blended fuel. And experts say gas companies will most likely need to keep selling the ethanol mix in Florida, which is the third largest motor fuel consuming state, in order to keep meeting the federal requirements. The bill passed out of the committee with a 10 to 4 vote.