Ricketts, Finstad Slam EPA’s Partisan Preview of RFS Rule: “At Worst, Could Facilitate Market Manipulation”

June 27, 2023

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE), the Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate, and Nuclear Safety, and U.S. Representative Brad Finstad (R-MN) slammed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for opting to brief only Democrats in advance of the public release of new Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO). Ricketts and Finstad were joined by eleven Senate and House colleagues.

Each year, the EPA-established RVO sets the minimum amount of renewable fuel that should be blended into gasoline and made available to consumers in the year ahead. On June 20, 2023, the EPA briefed Democrat lawmakers and their staff about the proposed rule for 2023, 2024, and 2025 set to be released the following day. Information from the briefing, which took place while the markets were still open, was then leaked to private sector stakeholders.

“Administrator Regan and the EPA know support for our renewable fuels is bipartisan, and there was absolutely no reason for the preview of this rule to be Democrats-only,” said Senator Ricketts. “The implications of doing a partisan briefing just before markets close are extremely concerning. I’m committed to ensuring a strong future for American biofuels as part of our nation’s energy portfolio, but we cannot accomplish that if the Biden administration is determined to make it a closed-door, hyper-partisan issue.”

“EPA chose to leak the final Renewable Fuel Standards rule to select offices during market trading hours, putting at risk billions of dollars in the market value of renewable fuels companies,” said Rep. Finstad. “Alarmingly, while the announcement alone failed to recognize industry’s projected production – threatening biofuel expansion in farm country and increasing our reliance on foreign energy – the agency’s rollout and blatant partisanship makes the rule all the more shameful, which is why my colleagues and I are demanding answers from Administrator Regan.”

In addition to Ricketts and Finstad, co-signers of the letter include U.S. Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and U.S. Representatives Michelle Fischbach (R-MN), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), Zach Nunn (R-IA), Randy Feenstra (R-IA), Mike Flood (R-NE), Mark Alford (R-MO), Adrian Smith (R-NE), and Dusty Johnson (R-SD).

Read the full text of the letter HERE or below:

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