Publications

A free download of our Pocket Edition of Common Sense is available on Scribd.

• Single copies of this Pocket Edition of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense are available at no charge by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) with first class postage for two (2) ounces to: TheCapitol.Net, Common Sense, PO Box 25706, Alexandria, VA 22313-5706. Requests with insufficient postage will be returned or destroyed. Only 1 copy per request.
• Social Studies and Government Teachers: See DonorsChoose.org for funding ideas. students’ separate SASEs (each SASE must have first class postage for two (2) ounces attached) into one large envelope that you mail to us for free copies for your students. Enclose a note with your name, name of your school, course taught, grade, and school address. Requests with no school info or insufficient postage will be returned or destroyed.
• No phone requests are accepted for orders.
• Available while supply lasts.

Also see our Pocket Constitution.

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Energy: Ethanol

Energy: Ethanol
The Production and Use of Biofuels, Biodiesel, and Ethanol; Agriculture-Based Renewable Energy Production Including Corn and Sugar; The Ethanol “Blend Wall”; Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS and RFS2); Cellulosic Biofuels; 2007 Energy Bill; 2008 Farm Bill; Food and Livestock Feed Price Inflation; Caribbean Basin Initiative; and U.S.-Brazil Energy Cooperation

Compiled by TheCapitol.Net
Authors: Brent D. Yacobucci, Randy Schnepf, Salvatore Lazzari, Megan Stubbs, Fred Sissine, Remy Jurenas, Scott A. Malcolm, Marcel Aillery, Marca Weinberg, Kelsi Bracmort, Tom Capehart, Joe Richardson, Geoffrey S. Becker, and Clare Ribando Seelk

Biofuels have grown significantly in the past few years as a component of U.S. motor fuel supply. Current U.S. biofuels supply relies primarily on ethanol produced from Midwest corn. Today, ethanol is blended in more than half of all U.S. gasoline (at the 10% level or lower in most cases). Federal policy has played a key role in the emergence of the U.S. biofuels industry in general, and the corn ethanol industry in particular. U.S. biofuels production is supported by federal and state policies that include minimum usage requirements, blending and production tax credits, an import tariff to limit importation of foreign-produced ethanol, loans and loan guarantees to facilitate the development of biofuels production and distribution infrastructure, and research grants.
Since the late 1970s, U.S. policy makers at both the federal and state levels have enacted a variety of incentives, regulations, and programs to encourage the production and use of agriculture-based renewable energy. Motivations cited for these legislative initiatives include energy security concerns, reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and raising domestic demand for U.S.-produced farm products.
Ethanol and biodiesel, the two most widely used biofuels, receive significant government support under federal law in the form of mandated fuel use, tax incentives, loan and grant programs, and certain regulatory requirements.
Ethanol plays a key role in policy discussions about energy, agriculture, taxes, and the environment. In the United States it is mostly made from corn; in other countries it is often made from cane sugar. Fuel ethanol is generally blended in gasoline to reduce emissions, increase octane, and extend gasoline stock.
U.S. policy to expand the production of biofuel for domestic energy use has significant implications for agriculture and resource use. While ongoing research and development investment may radically alter the way biofuel is produced in the future, for now, corn-based ethanol continues to account for most biofuel production. As corn ethanol production increases, so does the production of corn. The effect on agricultural commodity markets has been national, but commodity production adjustments, and resulting environmental consequences, vary across regions. Changes in the crop sector have also affected the cost of feed for livestock producers.

2010, 444 pages
ISBN: 1587331918 ISBN 13: 978-1-58733-191-6
Softcover book: $25
For more information, see TCNEthanol.com

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Persuading Congress

Persuading Congress
How to Spend Less and Get More from Congress: Candid Advice for Executives

By Joseph Gibson

Persuading Congress, by Joseph Gibson, is a very practical book, packed with wisdom and experience in a deceptively short and simple package.
What happens in Congress affects all of our lives and extends into every corner of the economy. Because so much is at stake there, businesses and other interest groups spend billions of dollars each year trying to influence legislation.
Yet, most of these efforts are doomed to futility from the outset. Only a small percentage of the bills introduced in Congress actually become law, and most interested parties do not fully understand why those few bills succeed. More importantly, how to get Congress to do what they want remains a mystery to them.
This book will help you understand Congress. Written from the perspective of one who has helped put a lot of bills on the president’s desk and helped stop a lot more, this book explains in everyday terms why Congress behaves as it does. Then it shows you how you can best deploy whatever resources you have to move Congress in your direction.
Because you have limited time, this book sticks to the basics and its chapters are short so that it can be digested rapidly.

2010, 150 pages
Hardbound, $27
ISBN 10: 158733-173-X
ISBN 13: 978-1-58733-173-2
Softcover, $24
ISBN 10: 158733-164-0
ISBN 13: 978-1-58733-164-0
For more information, see PersuadingCongress.com

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