The Renewable Fuels Association is supporting an EPA proposal to restore renewable fuel volumes lost through small refinery exemptions under the Renewable Fuel Standard.
At a hearing Wednesday, RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper said the agency should reallocate all 770 million additional renewable identification numbers, or RINs, waived beyond the levels anticipated in its earlier rule.
Cooper says full reallocation is needed to prevent exempted gallons from reducing demand for newly produced renewable fuels in 2026 and 2027. He also criticized EPA’s process for granting small refinery exemptions, arguing the program was intended to provide temporary relief for refiners facing economic hardship, not become a permanent entitlement.
RFA says the exemptions undermine renewable fuel demand and discourage investment by farmers, biofuel producers, and fuel retailers. The group says restoring the waived volumes would help protect the Renewable Fuel Standard’s market benefits.
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