What Does the Open Fuel Standard Act Say?
Friday, May 20, 2011
The category includes flex fuel (capable of burning gasoline, ethanol or methanol or any combination of these), natural gas, hydrogen, biodiesel, plug-in electric, and fuel cell. The bill will provide certainty to investors to produce alternative fuels and fueling stations. Below is the core of the bill, quoted from the bill itself:
Each manufacturer's fleet of covered vehicles for a particular model year shall be comprised of:
(1) not less than 50 percent qualified vehicles beginning in model year 2014;
(2) not less than 80 percent qualified vehicles beginning in model year 2016; and
(3) not less than 95 percent qualified vehicles beginning in model year 2017 and each subsequent year.
"Qualified vehicle" means a covered vehicle that:
(A) has been warranted by its manufacturer to operate solely on natural gas, hydrogen, or biodiesel;
(B) is a flexible fuel vehicle;
(C) is a plug-in electric drive vehicle;
(D) is propelled solely by fuel cell that produces power without the use of petroleum or a petroleum-based fuel; or
(E) is propelled solely by something other than an internal combustion engine, and produces power without the use of petroleum or a petroleum-based fuel;
The term `flexible fuel vehicle' means a vehicle that has been warranted by its manufacturer to operate on gasoline, E85, and M85.
The term `E85' means a fuel mixture containing 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline by volume;
The term `M85' means a fuel mixture containing 85 percent methanol and 15 percent gasoline by volume;
The term `biodiesel' means diesel fuel which has been produced from a non-petroleum feedstock and which meets the standards of ASTM D6751-03.
See a PDF document of the actual bill in its entirety by clicking here.
And to read a Fact Sheet on the bill, click here.
3 comments:
I support this bill. So does my rep.
Zubrin, as you know, just published an article at National Review. If I read him correctly, he says that most new cars today are already flex fuel capable, so it is no longer accurate to say that the Open Fuel Standard would cost $100 per car. That cost is gone, since new cars are already flex fuel capable. Zubrin says the problem now is to get the car companies to "activate" the technology that's already in the car. He suggests that the reason they don't is that they are influenced by people who have an interest in maintaining the pretroleum monopoly on transport fuel.
It's a big question. Why are the car companies not activating the technology that, apparently quite recently, is becoming almost standard on new cars? Are they merely taking their time because the change could be a big one and they want a moment to consider the business impact? Or is it what Zubrin suggests, that economic interests in the petroleum monopoly are responsible?
That is a very good question. Are car companies somehow in cahoots with oil companies?
Or is it complacency? It took strong measures to get car companies to put in seat belts, too.
Yes, it is an interesting question. If, in fact, some car manufacturers are in cahoots with oil companies, they must be boycotted by consumers.
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