Letter to Donald J. Trump, President of the United States - Reject RFS-Weakening Proposals

Letter

Dear Mr. President:

As Governors representing America's heartland, we write to thank you for your continued support of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and urge you to reject proposals designed to weaken -- or waive -- this key pillar of the farm economy. Our nation's farmers represent the very best of American values, and they deserve the very best from our government.

As noted by Secretary Sonny Perdue, economic conditions today "are testing the resilience of the American farmer," and many farmers "continue to face tight bottom lines, even negative returns in some cases." These challenges would only be exacerbated by demand-destroying alterations to the RFS -- a policy which has been a lifeline for farmers, driving job growth and attracting billions of dollars of investment to rural areas where opportunities are needed most.

At the core of this debate is Senator Ted Cruz's RFS waiver credit proposal, or "RIN cap," which would allow refiners to skirt their RFS obligations, slashing demand for biofuels. Simply put, for every waiver credit issued by the EPA under the Cruz plan, the 15 billion-gallon RFS level would be reduced by one gallon. According to multiple studies by Midwest universities, that demand destruction for biofuels would exceed one billion gallons.

As you stated during the 2016 campaign, "The EPA should ensure that biofuel RVOs, or blend levels, match the statutory level set by Congress under the RFS." We could not agree more. But make no mistake, adopting Senator Cruz's RFS waiver credit proposal would have the same real-world effect as reducing RFS levels during an annual rule-making. It would directly violate your promise to rural voters to uphold RFS levels. A common sense solution would be to grant E15 the same RVP treatment as E10. This would drive down the cost of RINS.

Your leadership has given a voice to rural communities, and we are grateful for your continued attention to the issues impacting farm families. That is why we are counting on you to reject any "RIN cap" or waiver credit proposal to reduce RFS levels.