WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a joint statement, Americans for Energy Security and Innovation (AESI) Co-Chairs Jim Talent and Rick Santorum urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to support stronger domestic energy production after the agency released its proposed 2020 biofuel goals under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). As drafted, the agency’s targets reflect a token increase in advanced biofuels, but they fail to address concerns about refinery waivers that continue to destroy demand for American-made biofuels, including ethanol.
“The only certainty offered by the agency’s proposal is that strong biofuel targets promised by President Trump will continue to be rolled back, gallon by gallon, through the EPA’s secretive handouts to well-connected refineries.
“Just this week, Russia and its allies in the Middle East agreed to hold down global oil supplies, forcing U.S. consumers to pay more at the fuel pump. The EPA should do more to shield our economy from global markets and drive investment in rural America, where farm communities continue to struggle. That starts with biofuel targets that go beyond the status quo and repair the damage to America’s rural economy.
“President Trump directed EPA Administrator Wheeler and Agriculture Secretary Perdue to address the exemptions and ‘take care of our farmers.’ We couldn’t agree more, and we urge regulators to get to work before it’s too late.”
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Americans for Energy Security and Innovation (AESI) is a 501(c)(4) dedicated to supporting the renewable fuel industry and maintaining a strong Renewable Fuel Standard. For more information, please visit us on www.usaenergy.org, follow us on Twitter and join us on Facebook.