On Wednesday, July 10, 2024, the U.S. House Agriculture Committee held a hearing titled, “Examining the Consequences of EPA’s Actions on American Agriculture.” Throughout the hearing, biofuels champions on the Committee raised the importance of biofuels to America’s farmers, and specifically talked about year-round E15 and sustainable aviation fuel. Read some of the highlights below and click the links to watch.
Rep. Tracey Mann (R-KS): I will just point out that it’s time for them to lock down year-round E15. We now have both chambers that have all said they are okay with E15 so it’s time to get that done.
Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL): Could you also speak about the importance of biofuels and how regulatory certainty impacts a grower’s planting decision?
Chris Chinn, Director, Missouri Department of Agriculture: Again, it’s about having that choice about where you want to market your crop. Whether it’s for biofuels or livestock, having that competition in the marketplace is a good thing and we want to make sure the farming community has many options and that they know what the rules are when they make those decisions.
Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH): How do you see the role of agriculture in the production of sustainable aviation fuels, and what conservation practices are you implementing on your farm to support this industry while ensuring environmental sustainability?
Mr. Kippley, Vice President, National Farmers Union: On our farm, we’ve been using no-till for years. However, some of the current regulations will not allow us to meet everything that’s there. We need to open it up so that farms in the northern U.S. can easily access these benefits. Cover crops just don’t work in our part of the world. We’re limited in some ways by the current rules.
Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL): You mentioned the importance of RFS for growers as well as your support for year-round E15. Constituents in my district have expressed concerns that renewable volume obligations are not keeping up with the increasing rates of production, disincentivizing new and continued production of biofuels. Can you speak on what EPA can do to improve this disparity, and how EPA can improve the landscape of biofuels?
Mr. Kippley: I think there is an opportunity for E30 in this country. They sell a lot of E30s up in our part of the world and we have a lot of people using them on all kinds of engines with no problems. I think the best way to boost this up is with E30… It’s a cleaner fuel, the gas mileage doesn’t change, and you do get a little better horsepower out of your vehicle.
Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-IL): One thing that is heavy on our minds in the Midwest is the 40B tax credit. What can the EPA do to advocate for a better outcome for the upcoming 45Z tax credit for biofuels?
Mr. Kippley: I think they need to include more ways for all farmers to participate in this program. Feedstocks are going to be a very important part of this and they need to make sure it’s going to be available and we need to look at other options we can use to qualify.
Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA): Do you believe the EPA’s failure to extend the E15 waiver yet again this year has impacts on family farms and on corn and soybean growers across this country?
Mr. Kippley: Absolutely. We’re always waiting for the numbers to come out. The EPA is always slow to get those renewable numbers out and as far as E15, we want year-round, and we would like to see it go up to E30.
Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA): Do you think the ability for biofuels in this country is a net advantage for American’s energy independence?
Mr. Kippley: Absolutely.
Thank you to our champions for raising these important issues!