Casey, Coons, Scanlon, Boyle, Norcross, Fitzpatrick Announce Future Legislation to Address Skyrocketing RFS Compliance Costs

Press Release

Today, U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Chris Coons (D-DE), and Representatives Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA), Brendan Boyle (D-PA), and Donald Norcross (D-NJ) announced plans to introduce legislation to bring down skyrocketing compliance costs associated with the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

"While we appreciate that the EPA is taking a serious look at how RFS compliance costs threaten our nation's refining capacity, there remains significant uncertainty for the thousands of skilled union workers and their families across the Northeast. We need to do more to address fuel mandates that are outpacing demand and driving up costs for independent refineries including the Monroe Energy Refinery, the Delaware City Refinery, and Paulsboro Refining Company. That is why we are working on legislation to provide certainty and predictability for refineries, while also supporting the transition to renewable fuels."

The Members are developing legislation that would control the volatile prices of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs), ensuring stability and predictability for the skilled union workers at refineries, while accelerating the deployment of advanced biofuels, supporting farmers, and investing in conservation. These steps will strengthen our nation's energy and national security.

Through this bill, the Environmental Protection Agency will be directed to issue renewable fuel credits at a lower, fixed cost for compliance with the conventional renewable fuel requirement. Critically, this government backstop-RIN would create a new source of revenue, which could be directed towards the following activities:

Investing in the research, development and deployment of advanced biofuels
Incentivizing advanced biofuel feedstock production for farmers through financial and technical assistance
Supporting wildlife and restoring habitat in areas that have experienced significant land-use conversion

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