EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin confirmed today that the agency will finalize Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Set 2 regulations before the end of the month, providing much-needed certainty to the biofuels industry.

Speaking at the Agri-Pulse Ag and Food Policy Summit with founder Sara Wyant, Zeldin said the agency is in the “very final stages” of releasing the rule, which was overdue when he took office. While there has been speculation that an announcement might be made this week at a White House agriculture and biofuels event, when pressed for a date, Zeldin simply said, “Before the end of the month,” which is just over a week away. Zeldin described biofuels policy as involving “a lot of competing interests” that consume significant time at the agency. He noted diverse stakeholder input during the process and emphasized the need to “get it right.”

Zeldin explained that the RFS Set 2 decision involves multiple “dials,” including volume levels, biomass-based diesel, discounted RINs, and reallocation. He pledged the agency will immediately begin work on RFS Set 3 upon completion to provide greater predictability.

Zeldin also discussed ongoing congressional talks regarding year-round E15 sales and highlighted the strategic importance of biofuels as both an economic driver for rural America and a national security asset. “They view it as an economic issue and a national security issue,” he said of conversations with Midwest lawmakers like Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst.

“You have a lot of other members of Congress, who represent other parts of the country. And they have different views, different constituencies that they represent,” Zeldin said, referring also to his own biofuels opposition when he served in Congress. “I represented a different constituency on this issue on the east end of Long Island.”

The good thing, he says, is that people on different sides of the issue have been talking and listening to each other. “I can share from my perspective that this was the first time, the last couple months, it’s the first time that we’re having that deep dive with the multiple parties represented at the table,” said Zeldin.

Listen to Zeldin’s conversation with Wyant:
Agri-Pulse Summit Lee Zeldin 31:30