Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told a Senate committee that abruptly ending the 45-cent-per-gallon subsidy for ethanol would kill jobs in rural America. Economists have said the impact on the industry would be relatively small since refiners are mandated to use the biofuel. Vilsack did not provide an estimate of the impact himself, but he instead expressed support for shifting fundiing into infrastructure needs of the ethanol industry.
“If you create a cliff you’re going to create a significant job loss in rural America,” he told the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, citing the precipitous drop in biodiesel production that occurred when that industry’s $1-a-gallon subsidy lapsed last year.
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