LANSING – State Representative Terry Brown (D-Pigeon) today announced legislation to reward Michigan businesses for implementing innovative technology in the ethanol production process.
"The more ethanol and other renewable energies we produce, the faster we can reduce our dependency on the Middle East and other foreign countries for oil," Brown said. "We must take advantage of new technology that cuts the cost of producing ethanol, as well as new methods of making ethanol from biomass rather than purely from corn."
The legislation provides a tax credit of up to 10 percent – for a maximum of $250,000 a year – to existing ethanol facilities that use innovative technology to produce ethanol. That technology can include methods that reduce the cost or energy consumption of converting corn to ethanol; increase the yield of ethanol; enable corn and biomass to be processed into ethanol or biofuels; or facilitate the production of other biofuels, bioenergy and bioproducts.
"Farmers will benefit from increased demand for biomass, which includes materials normally regarded as agricultural waste," Brown said. "Less waste means more profit. Farming is part of our heritage, and our farmers need to be able to provide for their families. As renewable energy providers become bigger players in our economy, we also want to support them and help create jobs for our communities."