Farm and biofuel groups warn expanded refinery waivers will hurt rural America
Farm and biofuel groups urge Trump to limit small-refinery exemptions, warning a proposed expansion would crush biofuel demand and hurt rural economies.
A coalition of U.S. farm and biofuel groups has urged President Donald Trump to reject a proposed expansion of exemptions from the nation's biofuel blending requirements. The groups warn that a surge in waivers for small refineries would undercut demand for American crops and renewable fuels, dealing a severe blow to rural economies.
The White House is reportedly backing a plan to significantly expand the small refinery exemption program. Sources familiar with the matter say officials are considering roughly doubling the size of the exemptions, from about 950 million credits to as many as 1.8 billion. A decision is expected before the end of August.
The prospect of a large expansion has already sent prices for renewable fuel credits, known as RINs, sharply lower as traders anticipate weaker demand for biofuels.
In a letter to the President, the groups — including the Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy, and the National Farmers Union — said the administration should keep exemptions for the 2025 compliance year in line with the volumes the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assumed when it set biofuel blending requirements for 2026 and 2027.
The groups warned that granting exemptions well above EPA's anticipated levels would "decimate the demand signal" created by the agency's March rule. "The consequences would be severe and immediate," they said, warning that excess exemptions could cause biofuel markets to collapse, reduce demand for corn and soybean oil, and further weaken rural economies.
The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requires refiners and fuel importers to blend specified amounts of renewable fuel into the U.S. fuel supply or buy RINs to demonstrate compliance. Small-refinery exemptions allow certain smaller refineries to avoid some or all of those obligations if they can demonstrate disproportionate economic hardship.
Senator Joni Ernst, a Republican from Iowa, has criticized the potential expansion, calling it "a handout to Big Oil falsely marketed as relief at the pump." She added, "You don't lower gas prices by taking American-made biofuel off the market, and these exemptions will crush demand for corn and soybeans while padding the pockets of refiners already making record profits. Farmers lose, consumers get nothing, and oil companies rake in the cash."
The White House deferred questions to the EPA, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment.