Keep your enemies closer

Source: BY MATTHEW CHOI, Politico • Posted: Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Lawmakers traditionally on opposing sides of the Renewable Fuels Standard debate joined forces Monday in a letter to Biden. The letter, signed by 50 Republican lawmakers, opposes an executive order that Biden signed in December directing the federal government to procure 100 percent zero-emission vehicles by 2035. “This order ignores the challenges presented with forcing a single-technology approach to the federal government’s vehicle procurement,” they write. “It also completely disregards the opportunities presented to reduce both cost and emissions immediately through traditional and emerging liquid motor fuels.

The lawmakers represent states home to both the petroleum and ethanol industries, and were led by Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) and Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas). They wrote the executive order “overlooks” high-octane liquid fuels’ ability to increase the transportation sector’s efficiency, and pointed to the contributions to security and sustainability from clean liquid motor fuels like ethanol and renewable diesel. The order, they added, undermines national security since the build out of electric vehicles will rely on critical minerals largely sourced from China or countries where China has significant influence.

The joining of forces of the liquid fuels supply chain comes as the Biden administration faces looming decisions about the future of the RFS and the role power generation for electric vehicles can play. Congress only set statutory biofuel blending volumes through 2022, leaving EPA tasked with setting the volumes for the future of the program for 2023 and beyond.

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