The Nebraska Ethanol Board and Renewable Fuels Nebraska were pleased last week to take part in Governor Pete Ricketts’ final approval of state legislation that will provide benefits for the struggling industry. Dubbed the great compromise, LB 1107 combined many of the business incentives of LB 720, otherwise known as the ImagiNE Act, with elements of property tax reform for …
EPA Small Refinery Waiver Requests Nearing 100
The Environmental Protection Agency now has 98 requests for RFS Small Refinery Exemptions parked in its online dashboard for consideration. The agency has received another nine new small refinery exemption requests for previous years, along with three new current waiver petitions for 2019-2020. The prior year petitions include one each for 2011 and 2012, two each for the years 2013 …
Lawmakers Urge USTR to Prioritize Brazil Ethanol Tariffs
U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood (IL-18) and Adrian Smith (NE-03) spearheaded a bipartisan letter urging U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer to prioritize Brazilian trade barriers to U.S. ethanol during ongoing US-Brazil trade negotiations. Reps. LaHood and Smith both serve on the House Ways and Means Committee, and Rep. LaHood is co-chair of the U.S.-Brazil Caucus. The letter calls for a …
Virtual ACE Conference Offers Full Agenda
The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) 33rd annual conference offers attendees this year a virtual agenda on the most pressing issues facing the ethanol industry on the afternoon of September 16 from the comfort of your own home or office. The event agenda complements the broader content attendees will receive having dual access to the Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo …
Sen. Ernst Urges President to Stop Gap Year Waivers
During a briefing on storm damage in Iowa Tuesday, President Donald Trump heard from Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) about issues facing the ethanol industry, particularly the threat of the Environmental Protection Agency granting retroactive small refinery exemptions for previous years. “Our farmers would love to know that with these gap year waivers that the oil refineries are submitting to the …
RFA Welcomes President Trump to Ethanol Country
When President Trump visited Mankato, Minnesota yesterday he was welcomed by a full-page ad in the Mankato Free Press along with a banner on the front page of the local newspaper with the message “Mr. President, welcome to ethanol country. We need your support.” The front-page banner and full-page ad were sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association to remind the …
Groups Say Proposed Rule Would Penalize Ethanol Blends
The Urban Air Initiative (UAI), a coalition of state corn grower organizations, and the American Coalition for Ethanol, and the Clean Fuels Development Coalition filed comments last week opposing a proposed EPA rule they say would penalize ethanol for its lower carbon profile. In a notice of proposed rulemaking, EPA is proposing to penalize the current Tier 3 test fuel …
Ethanol Report 8-14-20
In this episode of The Ethanol Report, we cover a number of different topics on the ethanol front. First, we head to South Dakota for the 80th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, where the Renewable Fuels Association once again provided free fuel and ethanol education for bikers, with the new addition of ethanol-based hand sanitizer as a giveaway. RFA’s Robert White, former …
Young Minnesota Farmers Promote Ethanol at Sturgis
Austin and Evan Ludowese from south central Minnesota have been proud to help promote the good news about ethanol at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally since 2015. Austin, who was an intern with the Renewable Fuels Association in 2015, says a lot has changed since then. “I think you have more people who understand what ethanol is and are more willing …
EPA Reviewing RFS Gap Year Waiver Requests
During a visit to Wisconsin this week, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler was once again questioned about the status of so-called “gap year” waiver requests from refineries asking for relief from their Renewable Fuel Standard obligations from previous years. Because the petitions go back as much as eight years, Wheeler said he is not sure how long it will …