Statement by Congressman Bingaman (D-NM) (July 14, 2010)

(in response to Congressional Budget Office Report, the congressman stated that any decision to extend the volumetric ethanol excise tax credit should consider the credit's "very high cost to taxpayers"; the congressman noted that the credit "is by far the largest renewable energy tax expenditure and will cost $7.6 billion this year" before it expires on December 31, 2010; this amount is in addition to the $41.2 billion in current dollars that has been spent in tax-based subsidies on the credit for ethanol since 1980).