Alternative fuels: Cut taxes

The (Dexter, Mo.) Daily Statesman

As we watch the price of crude oil climb back above $54 a barrel, we note with mixed emotions efforts by the government to reduce our dependency on foreign oil.

We applaud the various legislative efforts to provide incentives to manufacturers of alternative fuel sources. Consumers cannot buy what manufacturers do not produce.

But there is a piece missing. ... Currently the federal tax on motor fuels is 24.4 cents for diesel fuel, 13.1 cents on gasohol and 18.4 cents on gasoline. Just in this area we see premium gasolines containing ethanol (gasohol) selling at a discount compared to gasoline just about equal to the difference in the federal taxes on the two items.

We have no figures available but would be very surprised if the businesses thus selling gasohol are not seeing rather more traffic than those which do not. So there is a lesson here for anyone who wants to provide added incentives, either for gasohol or for biodiesel fuel: Cut the taxes for the consumer at the pump on alternative fuels if they are serious about helping us achieve energy independence.

Can our government afford to cut these fuel taxes in terms of lost revenues? We wonder why no one asked that question of us taxpayers the last time taxes went up.