Roughly 10 billion gallons ethanol were used in 2009, costing taxpayers about $5 billion in tax revenue the ethanol producers collected as tax credits.
Here's the kicker.
"Because the production of ethanol draws so much energy from coal and natural gas, it can be thought of as a method for converting natural gas or coal to a liquid fuel that can be used for transportation."
Roughly 11 billion gallons of biofuels were produced and sold in the United States in 2009, and ethanol produced from corn accounted for nearly all of that total. Blenders of transportation fuels receive a tax credit of 45 cents for each gallon of ethanol that is combined with gasoline and sold. Although the credit is provided to blenders, most of it ultimately flows to producers of ethanol and to corn farmers —in the form of higher prices received for their products.
continued at Daily Kos....
