WASHINGTON — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today its final 2013 rule for the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. The rule now requires refiners to blend 16.55 billion gallons of biofuel into the U.S. fuel supply. Institute for Energy Research President Thomas Pyle released the following statement in response to the announcement:
“Today’s announcement by the EPA that federal regulators will increase the requirement on refiners this year to blend a staggering 16.55 billion gallons of biofuel is the latest example of how Washington bureaucracies don’t understand the real world or how energy mandates affect real people. The continued push to mandate phantom fuels like cellulosic biofuel is driving up the cost of energy and food for everyone, disproportionately hurting middle class and lower income families.
“Congress recognizes that the Renewable Fuel Standard isn’t working, and bipartisan concerns about this broken program continue to mount. Remarkably, the EPA doesn’t understand what everyone else seems to see perfectly clear — the RFS is hurting American families, farmers and small businesses. Today’s announcement gives no relief to them, but most certainly gives continued help to politically-connected green lobbying groups favored by the present administration.”
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