State of Illinois
91st General Assembly
Legislation

   [ Search ]   [ Legislation ]
[ Home ]   [ Back ]   [ Bottom ]



91_HR0637

 
                                              LRB9106841ACtmB

 1                          HOUSE RESOLUTION

 2        WHEREAS, The federal Clean Air Act requires a new type of
 3    motor fuel to be sold in the  Nation's  ozone  non-attainment
 4    areas beginning January 1, 2000; and

 5        WHEREAS,  This new fuel is known as Phase II Reformulated
 6    Gasoline or RFG; and

 7        WHEREAS, Illinois has 2 ozone non-attainment  areas:  the
 8    8-county  Chicago  Metropolitan  area which will have to sell
 9    Phase II RFG exclusively and the  3-county  Metro-east  area;
10    and

11        WHEREAS, Most of the present Phase I RFG fuel sold in the
12    Chicago Metropolitan area, through a partnership between corn
13    growers,   ethanol  processors,  and  gasoline  refiners  and
14    marketers, contains 10% ethanol; and

15        WHEREAS, The Chicago RFG market accounts for 400  million
16    gallons  of  ethanol  demand, making it the foundation of the
17    domestic ethanol industry today; and

18        WHEREAS, The General Assembly is greatly  concerned  that
19    present   United   States   Environmental  Protection  Agency
20    regulations for Phase II RFG could severely limit or prohibit
21    the blending of ethanol in gasoline by  refiners,  especially
22    in  the  summer  months,  thereby  endangering  the  Illinois
23    ethanol industry's core market; and

24        WHEREAS, To date, the Chicago Area and Illinois have made
25    extraordinary  progress  in  meeting the demands of the Clean
26    Air Act, leading to greatly improved  air  quality,  much  of
27    which is attributed to the use of existing RFG fuels; and

28        WHEREAS,  The  USEPA's  proposed Phase II RFG regulations
29    for January 1, 2000, constitute a real threat to the economic
30    viability  of  Illinois'  ethanol  industry   and   Illinois'
 
                            -2-               LRB9106841ACtmB
 1    gasoline refining industry; and

 2        WHEREAS,  Illinois' ethanol industry supports over 50,000
 3    jobs in the corn farming and ethanol processing sector,  with
 4    major  facilities  in  Peoria,  Decatur, and elsewhere in the
 5    State; and

 6        WHEREAS,  Illinois'  gasoline  refining   and   marketing
 7    industry  employs  over  40,000 Illinois workers, including 6
 8    major refineries producing over one million barrels a day  of
 9    gasoline  and  other  products in the Chicago area, St. Louis
10    area, and Southeastern Illinois locations; therefore, be it

11        RESOLVED,  BY  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES   OF   THE
12    NINETY-FIRST  GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
13    we encourage and support Governor George Ryan's  decision  to
14    immediately  engage  the  Administrator  of the United States
15    Environmental Protection Agency in a dialogue towards meeting
16    and resolving the technical challenges of  using  ethanol  in
17    Phase II RFG; that the dialogue shall include presentation of
18    recent  research  data  suggesting  ethanol  benefits and the
19    request that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency  permit
20    the  continued  use  of  ethanol  under  phase  II of the RFG
21    Program in a way  that  will  not  economically  disadvantage
22    Illinois' ethanol and gasoline refining industries; and be it
23    further

24        RESOLVED, That if urban airshed modeling is required as a
25    necessary   component   of   the  presentation  to  the  U.S.
26    Environmental Protection Agency, the  General  Assembly  will
27    support funding for the Illinois EPA to conduct the modeling;
28    and be it further

29        RESOLVED,   That   the   General  Assembly  will  support
30    year-round use of ethanol in the  Chicago  market  under  the
31    Phase II Reformulated Gasoline (RFG) rules that are a part of
32    the Clean Air Act; and be it further
 
                            -3-               LRB9106841ACtmB
 1        RESOLVED,  That  suitable  copies  of  this resolution be
 2    delivered to the  Governor,  the  Director  of  the  Illinois
 3    Environmental  Protection  Agency,  the  Administrator of the
 4    United States Environmental Protection Agency, the  President
 5    of  the  United  States,  and  each  member  of  the Illinois
 6    congressional delegation.

[ Top ]