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Peterson Critical of EPA's Proposed Actions on RFS

Rep. Collin Peterson, chair of the House Agriculture Committee, sent a letter today to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), raising concerns that the Agency’s October supplemental proposed rule for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) fails to uphold the integrity of the RFS.

“The bottom line is the EPA continues to undermine the RFS at the expense of our farmers and biofuel producers," Peterson said. "I’ve said time and time again that any action from EPA that does not uphold the integrity of the RFS is unacceptable.”

In July, the EPA published a proposed rule for Renewable Volume Obligations for 2020 and 2021 as required by the RFS, and the Congressional Biofuels Caucus sent a comment letter on the overall rule. In October, the agency submitted a supplemental proposed rule and suggested changes to the formula EPA uses to restore gallons waived through the small refinery exemptions process.

BACKGROUND

Rep. Peterson serves as chair of the House Agriculture Committee and co-chair of the Congressional Biofuels Caucus, a bipartisan group of Members of Congress who advocate for homegrown renewable fuel policies that boost farmer incomes and reduce dependence on foreign oil. He is also the sponsor of the Renewable Fuel Standard Integrity Act of 2019, a bill which provides certainty to the biofuels industry by setting an annual deadline for small refinery exemption applications and bringing transparency to the process. In October, he challenged the EPA to follow Congressional intent of the RFS law in setting biofuel waivers which would shortchange the biofuels industry. In recognition of his efforts to champion renewable fuels, Rep. Peterson received the Fueling Growth Award from Growth Energy – the country’s largest ethanol association.

 

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