Ag Secretary wants ethanol mandate

Iowa’s Secretary of Agriculture is checking with lawyers to see if she hasthe authority issue an order that ethanol be the only fuel dispensed fromIowa gas pumps. Republican leaders in the Iowa legislature refused toendorse an ethanol mandate this past spring. Democrat Governor Tom Vilsackis hopeful Ag Secretary Patty Judge, who’s also a democrat, can requireethanol use on her own.Vilsack says boosting ethanol use boosts the price of corn, as is evident inthe Eddyville area, where farmers get a better price for their corn becauseit’s used in industry.Vilsack says if the legislature doesn’t like making corn-based ethanol fuel”king” in Iowa, then it can block the Ag Secretary’s rule.