2016 Boards and Commissions

Nebraska Ethanol Board

General Information

Formal Name:Nebraska Ethanol Board
Contact Person:Mr. Todd Sneller, Administrator Nebraska Ethanol Board P.O. Box 94922 Lincoln, NE 68509 402-471-2941
Purpose:The NEB is directed by statute to cooperate with the private sector to help create, maintain, and facilitate growth in ethanol production and allied industries in the state. The Nebraska Ethanol Boards mission is to establish procedures and processes necessary to the manufacturing and marketing of ethanol fuel. The board accomplishes this by:Analyzing marketing process and test procedures to assure acceptance in themarketplace.Cooperating with industry professionals to establish privately-owned agriculture ethyl alcohol plants.Sponsoring research and development of industrial and commercial uses for ethanol and its co-products.Promoting state and national air quality improvement programs and influencing legislation that encourages the use of renewable fuels.Promoting the use of renewable ethanol as a partial replacement for imported oil to ensure the energy security of the country.
How Many Affectable:Nebraskas 23,000 corn farmers are directly affected by the ethanol industry as 42% of the states average annual corn crop is purchased and processed by Nebraskas 25 ethanol plants. Approximately 40% of the corn processed becomes a high-value livestock fee
How Many Served:Nebraskas 23,000 corn farmers are directly affected by the ethanol industry as 42% of the states average annual corn crop is purchased and processed by Nebraskas 25 ethanol plants. Approximately 40% of the corn processed becomes a high-value livestock fee
Year Created:Sept. 1, 1993 NEB was preceded by the Agricultural Products Industrial Utilization Committee, a state agency created in 1971 and operated with similar mission directives.
Year Active:Sept. 1, 1993
Sunset Date:na

Authorization

Authorization Citation:Nebraska Revised Statutes: 66-1335
Parent Agency:NA

Memberships and Meetings

Number Of Members:7 and the board also has a technical advisor (non-voting member) from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Who Appoints:Governor
Legislative Approval:Yes
Qualifications Of Members:1.Farmer representing general farming2.Farmer representing corn3.Farmer representing wheat4.Farmer representing sorghum5.Person representing general business6.Person representing labor interests7.Person representing state petroleum marketers
Per Diem:$25day
Expense Reimbursement:Yes
Term Length:4 years
Terms Rotate or Expire At Once:Terms Rotate

Meetings Required In:

Required FY 13-14:Statutes require the board to meet at least once annually
Held FY 13-14:4
Required FY 14-15:Statutes require the board to meet at least once annually
Held FY 14-15:4
Required FY 15-16:Statutes require the board to meet at least once annually
Held FY 15-16:3

Operations

Support Staff:Yes
Shared or Separate:Separate
FY 13-14 Budget:$342,230
FY 14-15 Budget:blank
FY 15-16 Budget:blank
Other Funding Sources:NA
Spending Authority:Yes, the NEB allocates and spends funds based on needs and goals of the agency (Marketing, Public Education, Research, etc.)

Accomplishments

Since July 1, 2012:In the past four years, more than a dozen new fuel retail stations have added higher blends of ethanol to their fuel lineup. As of July 20, Nebraska has more than 85 fuel sites that offer higher blends of ethanol like E85. We are also part of Access Ethanol Nebraska, a public-private partnership between the Nebraska Corn Board, Nebraska Ethanol Board and Nebraska Department of Agriculture, with the Energy Office as the lead agency. Federal funding for the AEN came from the Biofuel Infrastructure Partnership (BIP) grant through the US Department of Agricultures (USDA) Commodity Credit Corporation, which requires a dollar to dollar match from the state, private industry and foundations. This grant has allowed for more than $6 million in federal, private and state funds to be available for ethanol flex fuel pumps, fuel storage tanks, necessary infrastructure, marketing and education.We partnered with the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency (MAPA) in Omaha to work on solutions to the ground-level ozone and possible EPA non-attainment status that the Omaha metro faces. As part of their Little Steps Big Impact campaign, MAPA now recommends fueling your car with biofuels to help reduce emissions and clean up the air. Ethanol and its co-products can serve as the foundation for many next-generation bioproducts from green chemicals to nutraceuticals and animal feed supplements. Nebraska Ethanol Board has been partnering ethanol plants with the Nebraska Department of Economic Development to bring in next-generation bioscience companies to co-locate with ethanol plants and evolve in Nebraska.All 25 ethanol plants now produce corn oil, a co-product of ethanol production that can be sold to make biodiesel, used in livestock feed or for food-grade purposes. Prior to the last five years corn oil was not a significant revenue source; however, in 2014 corn oil production value was $17 million in Nebraska. While the Nebraska Ethanol Board cannot take direct credit for this, the conferences and educational seminars weve hosted helped introduce information on the latest technological advances in ethanol production that eventually led to ethanol plant modifications to extract corn oil.The Lincoln Formula SAE International competition started in 2013 with only seven teams in the combustion category competing with E85. Nebraska Ethanol Board has sponsored and been on site at this competition speaking to student teams about racing fuel since the beginning. This year, 20 cars competed with E85 in their tanks.The Nebraska Ethanol Board has partnered with the Nebraska Corn Board on four major fuel promotions in the Omaha market to educate flex fuel drivers about their ability to use E85 fuel. NEB staff has participated in hundreds of events in the past four years to educate the public on the benefits of ethanol (FFA conventions, smart energy expos, state fairs, rest stop blitzes, raceways, fuel promotions, fuel station grand openings, health fairs, Renewable Fuels Month, etc.)The Nebraska Ethanol Board has held four annual Emerging Issues forums bringing together approximately 150 attendees each time to inform ethanol producers and allied industries of technical advances, value-added opportunities, and new marketing information in the ethanol sector. NEB has held four annual Environmental, Health & Safety Summits with 50 attendees at each summit to learn about safety and regulatory compliance issues that apply to the ethanol industry. In 2014, we established an annual video contest for Nebraska High School students to submit ethanol videos. This has allowed teachers to discuss renewable fuels and value-added agriculture by using our video contest as the capstone project. In 2015, we had 16 video entries and spoke with several classrooms about the benefits of ethanol.This year, we partnered with the Partners in Pollution Prevention program to work with a University of Nebraska-Lincoln chemical energy student. The student developed an SPCC document to help farmers and ranchers meet on-farm fuel storage regulations. The document will be made available to local farmers, co-ops, farm bureau and several other ag organizations. This will allow farmers to meet state fuel storage regulations and help prevent any leaks that could contaminate the environment.