Lawmakers are again pushing legislation that would give the Defense Department long-term contracting authority to purchase alternative fuels, a move aimed at jump-starting alternative fuels production, but budgetary scoring issues have kept language on the issue out of the House's fiscal year 2012 defense authorization bill. Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO) offered and withdrew an amendment focused on allowing long-term contracts for coal-to-liquids (CTL) fuels during the May 11 mark-up of the defense authorization bill, citing concerns about Congressional Budget Office's...