Leaders from the renewable fuels industry took questions at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Convention in Kansas City on Wednesday about what the future looks like for them now with a new administration and a new Congress.

Moderator Mark Dorenkamp of Brownfield led the panel with Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper, National Corn Growers Association CEO Neil Caskey, National Oilseed Processors Association CEO Kailee Tkacz Buller, and Clean Fuels America CEO Donnell Rehagen. One of the first questions they were asked was what they thought about President-elect Trump’s pick for EPA Administrator, former Congressman Lee Zeldin of New York, who was not friendly to the RFS when he was in office.

“We’ve been through this before with Trump 1.0 and Administrator Pruitt, not a particular fan of renewable fuels, so we’ve got our work cut out for us, there’s an education process that’s going to be happening,” said Cooper.

“I’m looking at it as an opportunity,” said NOPA’s Buller, who served in the Trump 1.0 administration USDA. “The more we can align on our messaging as a holistic biofuels industry, the better that is for all of us coming into the Trump administration.”

Caskey noted that much of what they are working for right now will require legislative solution like the Next Generation Fuels Act and permanent E15. “So we got some good news with Senator Thune being elected majority leader, he’s a good friend of agriculture and someone who’s going to champion our issues in Congress.”

Rehagen said whatever opposition Zeldin had to the RFS in Congress was years ago and things are different now. “One of the biggest changes has been the investment that the oil and gas refiners have made in our industry and that changes the dynamics,” said Rehagen.

A big topic was what will happen now with the Inflation Reduction Act and the 45Z tax credit, sustainable aviation fuel, tailpipe emissions standards, and lots more.

NAFB Renewable Fuels newsmakers panel (47:40)