Yesterday the Senate voted to strip language from the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which would have prohibited the Department of Defense from purchasing alternative fuel unless it was cost-competitive with traditional fossil fuel. By a bipartisan vote of 62-37 members of the Senate made it clear that their position is to allow the Department of Defense to continue its support of biofuels for military purposes.
This is an important win for the biofuels community. While the House version of the NDAA still includes language prohibiting DOD from purchasing alternative fuel which is not cost-competitive with traditional fossil fuels, the elimination of this language from the Senate bill makes this issue one that will have to be resolved when the House and Senate work out the NDAA differences in conference committee.
In today’s Biofuels Digest ABO executive director Mary Rosenthal writes about the significance of yesterday’s vote.