Letters

Letters Bingen offers female perspective

To the editor:

Central Ward citizens have a key election on April 8. Kate Bingen is a young, energetic candidate who will be a tremendous addition to the city council. She is outspoken and confident.

She will bring a female perspective to the city council which is short on diversity. Her voice for the Central Ward will promote a more aesthetically pleasing city environment. She will work hard for our ward. The changes she wants for Vermillion are a long-needed curbside recycling program, a more involved and upgraded youth center and a better and more thoughtful approach to the Chestnut Street dilemma.

I urge Central Ward residents to vote for this young, bright candidate.

Barbara Yelverton

Vermillion

Wymar's letter filled with flaws

To the editor:

Professor Benno Wymar's recent letter to the editor is once again filled with several flaws regarding ethanol.

Professor Wymar should familiarize himself with the United States General Accounting Office's Tax Incentives for Petroleum and Ethanol Fuels (GAO/RCED-00-301R), which provides information on the tax incentives that benefit the petroleum and ethanol industries.

Had this economics professor reviewed this report, he would have learned that U.S. taxpayers have subsidized the petroleum industry with incentives that range from $330 million for expensing of tertiary injectants (1980-2000) to about $82 billion for certain cost depletion deductions (1968-2000). Taxpayers have also doled out $54 billion for expensing of exploration and development costs (1968-2000), $10 billion for fuel production credit (1980-2000), $1 billion for oil and gas exception from passive loss limitation (1988-2000), and $1 billion for enhanced oil recovery costs (1994-2000).

In comparison, ethanol fuel tax incentives ranged from $198 million for alcohol fuel tax credits (1980-2000) to about $11 billion for the excise tax exemption for alcohol fuels (1979-2000).

These figures do not include the costs U.S. taxpayers have had to bear regarding petroleum cleanup costs from pipeline leaks, train derailments, or shipping disasters nor the environmental effects of those disasters.

If Professor Wymar has nothing better to do than be critical of America's growing ethanol industry, I offer him the suggestion to start criticizing the price setting and production setting functions of a cartel such the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) from which the U.S. imports over 50 percent of our oil.

Todd Anawski

Director of Research & Legislative Affairs

South Dakota Corn Growers Association

Sioux Falls

Help reach assistance goal

To the editor:

"Hands Across South Dakota" continues its efforts to raise funds to provide help to families in our state who are adversely affected by drought.

Our volunteer organization has a goal of raising $250,000 to assist these farm and ranch families. Thus far, we have received $82,990 in gifts. Three-fourths of the gifts have been received by the Association of Christian Churches, with the balance received at the coordinator's office in Huron.

We appreciate very much the generous support and encouragement given by our local newspapers, radio and TV stations, by many through their church donations, and the gifts from businesses and other entities in their respective communities.

However, we have reached only one-third of our financial goal to provide assistance in the form of livestock feed, food, finance, counseling and other help to victims of drought. The need continues to be great. And the need is now.

Gifts for "Hands Across South Dakota" may be sent to the Association of Christian Churches, 100 South Spring Ave., Suite 106, Sioux Falls, SD 57104.

For further information, you may call Janelle Bischoff, project coordinator, at 1-866-295-6479, or me at my home phone in Sioux Falls at 605-330-0800.

Thank you for your consideration and the helping hand for our South Dakota neighbors.

Walt Conahan

Committee member

Sioux Falls