The co-chairs of the House Biofuels Caucus have introduced two new pieces of legislation to increase access to biofuels and to fully recognize their environmental benefits.
Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa, and Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Ill., led the introduction of the Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Investment and Market Expansion Act, which would expand access to higher blends of biofuels. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., was the lead sponsor of the Adopt GREET Act, which will direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to update its greenhouse gas modeling for ethanol and biodiesel.
“One of the largest barriers to increased use of higher blends of biofuels is the lack of infrastructure and availability for consumers,” says Axne. “My bipartisan legislation will provide consistent federal investment for biofuels infrastructure and will remove barriers for E15. I’m also proud to support Johnson’s legislation to ensure the EPA is using the most up-to-date modeling to accurately reflect the greenhouse gas reduction provided by renewable fuels. These bipartisan bills will result in improved access to clean, affordable and homegrown fuel.”
The Renewable Fuel Infrastructure Investment and Market Expansion Act would authorize $500 million over 5 years for infrastructure grants for fuel retailers and direct the EPA administrator to finalize a proposed rule to repeal E15 labeling requirements warning drivers about E15’s potential impact on cars, which may confuse and deter drivers from using E15, a blend of gasoline with 15% ethanol. The bill would also direct the EPA administrator to finalize provisions from the same proposed rule to allow certain existing underground storage tanks (UST) to store higher blends of ethanol.
The Adopt GREET Act would require the EPA to update its greenhouse gas modeling for ethanol and biodiesel by requiring the EPA to adopt the Argonne National Lab’s Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions and Energy Use in Transportation (GREET) Model for both fuels. EPA would then be required to update its modeling every five years or report to Congress to affirm its modeling is current or otherwise explain why no updates were made.
Both pieces of legislation are supported by the National Corn Growers Association, the Renewable Fuels Association, the American Coalition for Ethanol, Growth Energy and POET.
Photo: Rep. Rodney Davis
