Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) today joined Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) to introduce the bipartisan RFS Integrity Act of 2021. This legislation would provide more certainty for rural America by bringing transparency and predictability to EPA’s small refinery exemption process. The bill would require small refineries to petition for Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) hardship exemptions by June 1st of each year. This change would ensure that EPA properly accounts for exempted gallons in the annual Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) it sets each November.
“The RFS has been in place for over 15 years, but unfortunately some in Washington, D.C. have taken advantage of certain loopholes. I’m tired of this funny businesses. It’s time to restore integrity to the RFS and bring more transparency and accountability for the industry,” Grassley said. “This legislation would give some much-needed certainty to the renewable fuels community. I’m glad to cosponsor this bipartisan legislation that will help our Iowa farmers and producers.”
This legislation fixes the unnecessarily complex “rolling deadline” by setting a deadline for refineries to apply for an SRE by June 1 in the year before the RVO is in effect, giving EPA sufficient time to ensure exemptions are accounted for in the annual RVO process. It further requires the EPA to publish the name of the refinery and how many gallons are exempted on their dashboard at the same time the refiner is notified that they received an exemption.
Grassley has been a longtime defender of the RFS. In February, he led 14 of his colleagues in a letter to EPA urging the agency to take immediate action to restore integrity to the RFS. In that letter, the senator’s also pressed the EPA to swiftly issue a proposed rule for the 2021 RVO’s which will provide growth in all renewable fuel categories and move forward with the E15 streamlining proposal to remove certain barriers to expanded sales of E15.
Original source can be found here.
