ALBANY, N.Y. -- Governor George E. Pataki has proposed legislation to increase the number of gas stations that sell ethanol or other renewable fuels.
The bill would exempt renewable fuels from the provisions of exclusivity contracts between fuel providers and retail stations, which only allow the stations to sell specific brands of fuel. In most cases, he said, these brands do not include renewable fuels. Since the exclusivity contracts prohibit stations from obtaining renewable fuels such as ethanol (E85) from other sources, these fuels are not available for sale to consumers.
The [image-nocss] governor's proposal would exclude renewable fuels from these contracts if the distributor does not offer these types of fuels. At the present time, no major petroleum fuel distributor offers E85 in the state New York, according to Pataki.
One of the key strategies to reduce our dependence on imported energy is to diversify our fuel supplies, and we can do that by making renewable fuels more readily available to all New Yorkers, Pataki said. To achieve this, we must end the use of exclusivity agreements between fuel providers and service stations that prevent motorists from having access to renewable fuels. This corporate contractual arrangement hurts families and businesses across the state by limiting their fuel options. I urge the legislature to quickly act on this proposal so we can eliminate these antiquated contracts, and move forward with our plan to boost the use of renewable fuels and provide a viable option to petroleum-based energy.
If this legislation is enacted, the state would allow stations to sell E85 or biodiesel regardless of any existing contractual provisions. Iowa has already passed similar legislation.
There are an estimated 200,000 flex fuel vehicles registered in New York state, said Pataki. These vehicles can operate on either traditional gasoline or ethanol; however, at the present time, there are no public stations where drivers can purchase E85. The exclusivity contracts serve as a barrier to increasing fueling access.
Ashok Gupta, air and energy program director for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said, The governor's announcementaddresses a critical barrier to getting homegrown ethanol to marketthe exclusive contracts between fuel providers and retail service stations. Removing this barrier will be an important step in making high-blend ethanol available in New York.
The New York State Thruway Authority is moving forward with an initiative to install renewable fuel pumps at all 27 travel plazas.
But the state legislature failed to adopt Pataki's proposals to eliminate all state taxes on renewable fuels at the pump and a $5 million grant program to assist stations install renewable fuel pumps.
Meanwhile, in Missouri, all regular-grade gasoline sold in Missouri will have to contain 10% ethanol by Jan. 1, 2008, under a bill state lawmakers passed last week and sent to Governor Matt Blunt, reported The Kansas City Star.
In response to concerns that the ethanol-blend gasoline would be more expensive, the bill will not require dealers to buy it unless the price is at or lower than petroleum-based fuel.
Our main concern was to ensure that consumers are protected from higher prices, Ron Leone, executive director of the Missouri Petroleum & Convenience Store Association, told the newspaper. We think we've done the best we can. The group had opposed the bill until it included the price option. The bill will not apply to premium gasoline.
The bill also requires that ethanol production plants either be 51% Missouri-owned or that 80% of the corn used at a plant to make the ethanol be grown in Missouri. About 50% of fuel now sold at Missouri pumps has an ethanol blend, said the report.
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