The Energy & Power Subcommittee of the House Energy & Commerce Committee held a hearing this week on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Panelists included representatives from the petroleum, biofuels, livestock, automotive and restaurant industries, among others. Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board testified on behalf of the biodiesel industry. An initial hearing on the RFS held by the Energy & Power Subcommittee last month included testimony from the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Energy Information Administration.

Over the last several months, the Energy and Commerce Committee has also invited feedback from RFS stakeholders to a series of white papers on the standard. ASA submitted comprehensive comments on the agricultural impacts of the RFS.

In his statement at the hearing, NBB’s Jobe emphasized that the law, first passed in 2005 with overwhelming bipartisan support, is working as Congress intended to diversify the transportation fuels market while boosting local economies and cutting harmful emissions. He pointed to persistent increases in gasoline prices amid the current North American oil boom as evidence of the continued need for alternatives at the pump. Jobe pointed out that the RFS has helped biodiesel become the first EPA-designated Advanced Biofuel to reach 1 billion gallons of annual production.

Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.), a senior member of the Energy & Commerce Committee, issued a strong defense of soy biodiesel prior to his questioning of Jobe and his fellow panelists, saying, “[Illinois’ 15th District’s] biofuel production is mostly from soybeans… and other than the [renewable identification number] fraud, which is being investigated, biodiesel isn’t really part of this debate. It’s a drop-in [fuel], there aren’t any retail issues, and it’s across the market.”

While the RFS, and efforts to repeal or revise it, continue to be the subject of discussion and lobbying efforts, it is unlikely that any significant legislative changes will move through the full House or Senate. The EPA does have administrative flexibility that could be exercised to make necessary changes to the RFS.