COLUMBUS, OHIO – Under an upcoming Ohio bill, which Ohio Gov. Bob Taft is expected to sign into law, state vehicles must buy more of a cleaner-burning mix of gasoline and ethanol, according to the Associated Press. The bill requires 90 percent of new vehicles the state buys to be capable of accepting fuels that mix petroleum with ethanol and biodiesel. Of more immediate impact: The 6,700 biodiesel and ethanol-ready vehicles the state already owns must buy the alternative fuels when “reasonably available and reasonably priced.” The state owns 11,500 vehicles, not including law enforcement vehicles or state cars for elected officials. The fleet is about to meet the bill’s requirement of using 1 million gallons of biodiesel in 2006, the report said, but the 16,800 gallons of E-85 used so far are far short of the required 60,000 gallons. Incentives in the bill should increase availability at the pump. The bill adds $1 million to a grant program that pays retailers up to 80 percent of the cost of installing E-85 pumps. A new pump can cost up to $50,000, but stations can save money by converting old pumps.
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