LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- When it comes to President-elect Donald Trump's nominee to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Lee Zeldin, the oil industry and others who have opposed the Renewable Fuel Standard will have a sympathetic ear at the head of the agency.
Zeldin opposed biofuels and the RFS when he served in the U.S. House of Representatives during Trump's first term as well as at the end of President Barack Obama's first administration. In addition, Zeldin has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in political campaign contributions from the oil and gas sector.
Opensecrets.org shows that between 2007 and 2024, Zeldin received $269,608 from the industry.
When it comes to the RFS, Zeldin has joined other House colleagues in sending various letters to the EPA in opposition to proposed volumes increases.
For instance, Zeldin signed a Nov. 4, 2015, letter from 184 House members to then-EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, expressing concern about the proposed 2016 RFS volumes and asking the agency to keep blending requirements below the "E10 blend wall."
"Increased fuel efficiency has led to shrinking gasoline demand," the letter said.
"This current reality, coupled with an increasing biofuels blending level requirement has exacerbated the onset of the E10 blend wall -- the point at which the gasoline supply is saturated with the maximum amount of ethanol that the current vehicle fleet, marine and other small engines and refueling infrastructure can safely accommodate. We are gravely concerned, however, that despite the agency's recognition of the blend wall, the 2016 proposal acknowledges that it will be breached nonetheless."
The members of Congress also claimed the 2016 volume requirements were not going to be met absent of building out infrastructure to sell more E15 and E85.
"Therefore, this proposal is problematic not only in principle, but it is also impractical since it would take decades, not months, to build out the compatible vehicle fleet and install the necessary retail infrastructure to accommodate the higher blends of ethanol," the letter said.
During the first Trump administration, Zeldin continued to oppose the RFS. In 2017, Zeldin cosponsored an unsuccessful bill to repeal the law.
Zeldin also signed a letter with 26 other members of Congress on Oct. 3, 2018, to then-EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler expressing "significant concern" about proposed 2019 RFS volumes.
"The proposed RVO would constitute a breach of the ethanol blend wall," the letter said, "jeopardizing automobile reliability and harming American consumers."
The ethanol industry still awaits action either from the EPA or Congress to make national E15 sales permanent year-round.
The 2018 letter signed by Zeldin raises questions about the validity of higher ethanol blends.
"EPA acknowledges that its RVO proposals are intended to increase the use of higher ethanol blends in order to meet the (RFS) mandate," the letter said. "However, blends like E15 and E85 raise concerns and now prove to be impractical and unnecessary."
In response to Zeldin's nomination, Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor said in a statement to DTN, "As Rep. Zeldin moves through the confirmation process, we look forward to discussing how biofuels like ethanol can help unleash American energy dominance and innovation while saving consumers money and maintaining environmental standards."
Geoff Cooper, president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, said in a statement to DTN that ethanol producers are hopeful the Trump EPA will re-examine policies supporting electric vehicles.
"We are hopeful that President Trump's EPA will prioritize efficient implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard, opening the market to higher-octane ethanol blends like E15, and revisiting regulations that force automakers to ramp up production of costly electric vehicles," Cooper said. "Our nation's economic and environmental goals can be achieved by simply empowering greater use of lower-cost, lower-carbon liquid fuels in more affordable internal-combustion-engine vehicles."
INFLATION REDUCTION ACT
As a member of Congress, Zeldin voted against the Inflation Reduction Act that passed the House on Aug. 15, 2022 (https://www.dtnpf.com/…), which included many significant provisions for farmers and ranchers.
The bill that became law spends hundreds of billions of dollars on climate initiatives including programs for climate-smart agriculture and renewable energy projects.
The law also includes hundreds of millions of dollars for installing blender pumps and other infrastructure to expand biofuels blending.
In addition, it created a $1.25-per-gallon tax credit for sustainable aviation fuel for 2023 and 2024.
On other issues, in March 2023, Zeldin joined the House majority in voting to overturn the Biden administration's waters of the U.S. rule, https://www.dtnpf.com/….
Read more on DTN:
"What Does Ag Really Want in WOTUS Rule?" https://www.dtnpf.com/…
Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com
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