Tell EPA to Fully Account For Small Refinery Waivers

The comment period on EPA’s proposed supplemental to the Renewable Fuel Standard is an opportunity for farmers to tell the agency how the proposal fails to fully recognize the administration’s considerable use of small refinery waivers and the negative effect this has on the integrity of the RFS program and the entire renewable fuels industry.

Rather than basing the projected volume of gasoline and diesel that would be exempt in 2020 on a three-year rolling average of actual exemptions, as EPA initially hinted, the agency is proposing that this three-year rolling average be based on the relief recommended by the Department of Energy. This is problematic because DOE’s projections for the volume of biofuels that will be exempted are often much lower than the actual exemptions.

The American Farm Bureau Federation encourages farmers and others who are negatively affected by EPA’s excessive use of small refinery waivers to tell the agency it must use a rolling average of actual small refinery exemptions to ensure accurate accounting for exemptions in 2020 and beyond. The comment period is open through Nov. 29.