The president announced the move ahead of his trip to Iowa
By NACS Online
In advance of his trip to Iowa on October 9th, it was reported in the press that President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to increase sales of corn ethanol, Politicoreports.
The order comes after weeks of tussling between the oil and corn industries over the president’s promoting a bump in ethanol sales. The move could boost the Iowa Republican governor during her re-election campaign. Trump has been very supportive of corn ethanol, and will order the agency to let E15 be sold all year long. E15 currently is restricted from being sold during the summer in some states because of the Clean Air Act.
But the U.S. oil industry has staunchly opposed increasing ethanol sales, and it has pressed for EPA and Congress to overhaul the federal biofuels mandate that Congress first created in 2005 to help reduce U.S. dependence on imported oil. A major oil industry trade group countered that it would continue fighting against the action.
“President Trump has made strengthening the Renewable Fuel Standard an important priority of this administration,” said EPA spokesman John Konkus in a statement. “He is fulfilling his promise by providing clear policy direction that will expand opportunities for our nation’s farmers, provide certainty to our refiners and bolster the United States’ role as a biofuels powerhouse. EPA will follow the president’s direction and proceed as expeditiously as practicable.”
NACS will continue to monitor this issue closely. When further details are provided by the administration, NACS will share them via the NACS Daily.
