Brazilian Ethanol Tariffs

The tariff is 54 cents per gallon

Chris Kraul (special correspondent for the LA Times), November 4, 2009, “Brazil raises cane over U.S. ethanol
tariff,” Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-biofuels4-2009nov04,0,2435171.story?track=rss

All of which only adds to the ire of Leao and his members at being largely shut out of U.S. markets by a 54-cent-
per-gallon tariff on Brazilian ethanol imports. He says the duty makes the fuel uneconomical for U.S. consumers
except when oil prices spike as they did in mid-2008.

The tariff is an unfair barrier

Ben Geman, March 18, 2009, “Bipartisan Senate bill seeks lower tariffs on ethanol imports,” New York Times,
http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/03/18/18greenwire-bipartisan-senate-bill-seeks-lower-import-tari-10211.html

A new Senate measure (pdf) is aimed at knocking down the 54-cent-per-gallon import tariff and the 2.5 percent ad
valorem tariff to achieve "parity" with the lowered blender's tax credit. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), one of the
sponsors, said in a statement that the higher import tariff creates a barrier for sugarcane-based ethanol from Brazil,
and hence gives gasoline imports a "competitive advantage." "I believe this makes no sense -- particularly given our
nation's continued addiction to oil imported from the Middle East and other hot spots, as well as the volatility of
global markets for the fuels we put in our cars," she said.