Ontario agriculture, especially the grains and oilseed sector, operates in a business environment dominated by policy initiatives south of the border. There are currently two such items moving through the U.S. Congress that will have a lasting impacthere: the Fiscal Year 2006 U.S. Budget Resolution; and the Energy Bill. A comprehensive U.S. Energy Bill has been years in the making. Progress was made towards passage of legislation two years ago when oil companies, environmentalists, and U.S. corn growers agreed to a compromise which exempted petroleum companies from litigation surrounding Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE: a carcinogenic oxygenate additive to gasoline) contamination of water sources. But the MTBE litigation exemption became a stumbling block in a Democratic Senate. Now, with Chinese demand for petroleum escalating rapidly and crude oil prices 40% higher than one year ago, another Energy Bill is making its way through Congress.
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