Mandates and Moonshine

It's been a tough week for grain alcohol in the Tall Corn State.

On Monday, renewable fuel backers made their latest pitch for mandating that every gallon of gasoline sold in Iowa be blended with at least 10 percent corn-based ethanol. They got a very cool reception from would-be governors and state lawmakers.

On Tuesday, state alcohol regulators held a public hearing on the fate of Everclear, a high-proof grain liquor that's as infamous as it is flammable. A Drake University frat boy nearly died after guzzling the stuff, so now the state is thinking about banning or limiting its sale in Iowa.

I've put nothing but ethanol-blended fuel in my car for eons, and yet I think a mandate is a bad idea. I'm not sure demon Everclear has ever passed my lips, that I can recall, and yet I think banning it would be a mistake.

The words “mandate” and “ban” should never be taken lightly. Every time those  words make it into the Iowa Code, we get a little less free. And once those words become law, it's almost impossible to remove them.

Sometimes, mandating and banning are necessary. I happen to support the no-murder mandate, for instance. Setting reasonable limits on our behavior is a traditional function of government. But extreme caution is warranted.

Without caution, there can be unintended consequences. For example, sometimes, the best way to make something wildly unpopular is to mandate it. And one of the best ways to make something popular is to ban it.

When ethanol backers started talking about mandates in the '90s, less than half of the gasoline sold in Iowa was an E10 blend. During the past 10 years, mandate talk has persisted. Supporters even tried to convince the Iowa Supreme Court to allow then-Secretary of Agriculture Patty Judge to order a mandate. No dice.

Still, by last spring, the fuel market share commanded by ethanol blends hit 80 percent, according to the Department of Revenue. The free market, sweetened with tax breaks and incentives, did its job for ethanol.

But backers still want government to step in and hand them the last 20 percent on a silver platter. Luckily, chances are slim. Iowans don't want a mandate. They like having choices.

Since the state started talking about an Everclear ban last fall, its sales have jumped. Some are hoarding it. Others are probably wondering what all the fuss is about. Curiosity is a lot more powerful than government.

If it's banned, I expect frat boys of the future to excitedly return to school from out of state with a clandestine bottle of Iowa's forbidden fruit. They can stop at a little joint on the border that sells Everclear, and regular unleaded.

Comments: (319) 398-8452 or todd.dorman@gazcomm.com