Clean Fuels Urges EPA to Finalize 2026-27 RFS Rule and Reallocate All Small Refinery Exemptions

Today, Clean Fuels Alliance America urged EPA to quickly finalize the overdue Renewable Fuel Standard rule for 2026 and 2027 and to fully reallocate all granted and expected small refinery exemptions. Clean Fuels’ comments are in reaction to EPA’s decision today to grant additional small refinery exemptions and return more RINs to the market. Kurt Kovarik, Clean Fuels’ Vice President of Federal Affairs, stated, “Clean Fuels calls on EPA to keep its commitment to farmers and clean fuel producers and fully reallocate all exemptions granted so far or expected in coming years. We appreciate EPA making decisions on exemptions in time to be accounted for in the pending rule, but we also ask the agency to finalize the overdue 2026 and 2027 RFS rule by December 31. And we emphasize that EPA must include both a full SRE reallocation volume for 2023 through 2025 exemptions as well as a prospective estimate of exempted volumes for 2026 and 2027.” EPA recently closed comments on a Supplemental Notice to increase 2026 and 2027 RFS obligations in order to reallocate small refinery exemptions granted in August. The agency notified stakeholders that it intends to include all exemptions granted before the rule is finalized in the reallocation calculation. “EPA understands that small refinery exemptions will destroy demand for biomass-based diesel over the next several years by enabling refiners to avoid RFS obligations. Clean Fuels recently provided EPA data showing that biodiesel and renewable diesel producers could lose billions of gallons of demand over the next two years and farmers stand to lose as much as forty cents on every bushel of soybeans, if the agency fails to reallocate small refinery exemptions. Accounting for 100% of the exemptions granted and expected is the only way to ensure that robust 2026 and 2027 RFS volumes will be met.”