Senate passes Farm Bill with energy programs intact

Ethanol Producer Magazine
By Kris Bevill
June 21, 2012

The U.S. Senate passed its version of the Farm Bill in a 64-35 vote on June 21 after considering more than 70 amendments and completing the floor debate in a timely fashion not often experienced in Congress as of late. The bill offers a reason for biofuel stakeholders to celebrate, at least temporarily, as the Senate agreed to retain energy title programs and provide mandatory funding for those programs for the next five years as passed earlier this year in the Senate Agriculture Committee’s version of the bill.

Agriculture Energy Coalition released a statement applauding the Senate for reauthorizing energy title programs, which include the Renewable Energy for America Program, the Biorefinery Assistance Program and the Biomass Crop Assistance Program, and said their continued funding will continue to expand rural economies and create jobs. “These programs have been successful in supporting the growth of new renewable industries, creating markets for U.S. agriculture and saving energy,” the group said in its statement. “We urge members of the House, which is currently considering energy legislation, to quickly take up and pass the Farm Bill and its energy title.”

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