Biofuels and oil to renew mandate battle

WASHINGTON — With the Trump administration readying to make its first foray into U.S. ethanol policy, the biofuels industry is not sitting by quietly. It’s launching a lobbying campaign that will renew its battle with oil interests.

In a new report released by the trade group Renewable Fuels Association, ethanol producers aimed to remind EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt just how consequential ethanol production has become over the last decade to the Midwestern economy.

Looking back to 2005, when former President George W. Bush signed what has become known as the ethanol mandate into law, the Renewable Fuels Association highlighted several gains. The number of ethanol plants nearly tripled from 85 in 2005 to 213 in 20016. U.S. The number of ethanol jobs more than doubled to 339,000 from 154,000 in 2005. U.S. corn production jumped 37 percent to 15.2 billion bushels.

The report comes as oil lobbyists and Republicans from oil-rich states like Texas continue to press the administration to freeze the ethanol mandate, which requires refiners to blend ethanol into gasoline. That means motorists use less gasoline, reducing the demand for oil.

But the Renewable Fuels Association, as well as Midwestern politicians of both parties, argue that ethanol has become a vital part of the national economy that must be supported by the federal government.

“With EPA expected to propose its 2018 RFS obligations in the near future, the agency needs to look no further than this document for what impact this vital program has had on our nation,” said Bob Dinneen, the CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association. “We look forward to EPA continuing to implement a strong RFS to ensure future growth for our industry and the positive impact it has throughout all sectors of our economy.”