Thomas Daschle: “I wish to comment on some of the arguments raised by a very dear friend of mine, my colleague from California, Senator…”

“I wish to comment on some of the arguments raised by a very dear friend of mine, my colleague from California, Senator Feinstein. First, let me say that 65 percent of all the gasoline utilized today in California is blended with ethanol--65 percent. They expect that it will be 80 percent this summer. So four out of five gallons of gasoline in California will already be blended with ethanol. I am not sure I understand what motivation there will be to seek a waiver, when 65 to 80 percent of all the gasoline is already blended. That is No. 1. No. 2, my colleague noted that she has applied to EPA--she and the State of California have sought a waiver under current law. That is the point. The renewable fuels standard will actually provide greater flexibility, greater opportunities for States to seek waivers than what they have right now. The waiver she is applying for is the waiver that she seeks under the law that was passed in 1991. She is frustrated that there has been no positive response on the part of EPA. I can understand her frustration with that refusal. But we are talking about the current law. What we are suggesting, of course, is that under the new law there will be waiver authority if a case can be made that somehow this is disruptive. Let me emphasize something. There is a very significant misperception here that somehow this renewable fuels standard is a mandate on States.”