WASHINGTON – Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) today are celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) becoming law. August 8, 2020 will mark 15 years since the legislation was signed into law. Grassley supported this program since its inception when it was authorized under the
Energy Policy Act of 2005 and Ernst has been one of the program’s most vocal and effective advocates since joining the Senate in 2015.
“I’ve been a longtime supporter of renewable energy and was glad to support the authorization of the Renewable Fuel Standard 15 years ago when the oil industry approached the renewable fuels industry looking for a replacement for the cancer-causing substance they had been using. Over the years, I’ve continued to fight for our ethanol and biofuels producers both in Iowa and across the country. We’ve come a long way but there’s always more work to be done. I look forward to continuing to promote clean, home-grown energy and work toward greater American energy independence,”
Grassley said.
As the top ethanol and biodiesel producing state, biofuels are a vital part of Iowa’s economy,”
Ernst, a tireless advocate for Iowa’s renewable fuel producers said. “The RFS – signed into law 15 years ago– is key to growing the biofuel industry, advancing innovation in our renewable fuel sector, and providing consumers access to cleaner, more affordable choices at the pump. Iowa farmers and biofuel producers know that I will never stop fighting to uphold the RFS and defend their way of life.”
In May, Grassley and Ernst joined a
bipartisan effort urging the Trump administration to uphold the RFS and reject requests for obligations to be waived.
Most recently, Grassley and Ernst
voted against Mark Menezes to be the Deputy Secretary of Energy due to his support of ‘gap year’ small refinery waivers that directly threaten the RFS. On June 26, Grassley and Ernst sent a
letter to Menezes requesting information on the technical analysis of SREs at DOE. Menezes
responded to their inquiry and stated that they had received petitions from EPA that had already been scored by DOE.
Grassley and Ernst also joined Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) on
bipartisan legislation to support biofuel producers negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The RFS hasn’t just lived up to its ambitious expectations—it has far exceeded them. In addition to decreasing reliance on imported petroleum, the RFS has reduced emissions of harmful tailpipe pollutants and greenhouse gases, lowered consumer fuel prices, supported hundreds of thousands of jobs in rural America, and boosted the agricultural economy by adding value to the crops produced by our nation’s farmers. And far from “distorting the free market” as RFS opponents often claim, the policy has been remarkably effective in stimulating market competition and giving consumers more choices. These successes simply would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of Senators Grassley and Ernst to protect and defend the RFS from relentless attacks,”
Geoff Cooper, President and CEO RFA said.
“The Renewable Fuel Standard has stood the test of time as America’s single most successful clean energy policy, driving down emissions, increasing competition at the pump, and expanding economic opportunity across rural communities,”
Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy said. “Thanks to the steadfast leadership of champions like Senators Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley, America now leads the world in the production and export of low-carbon biofuels, and that progress is just the beginning. With their support, we will repel regulatory attacks on the RFS and harness the power of homegrown energy to fuel the future.”
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