INFORM June 2026

30 INFORM JUNE 2026 , VOL. 37, NO. 6

EPA INCREASES MANDATORY AMOUNT OF BIOFUELS IN GAS AND DIESEL

Regulatory Review features updates on regulatory matters concerning oils- and fats-related industries.

Rebecca Guenard

In late March the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final rule to establish required Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volumes and percentage standards for 2026 and 2027. President Trump announced the “Set 2” final rule during the Great American Agriculture Celebration, the “Set 1” was established by the Biden Harris administration. “In the 20th year of the RFS program, ‘Set 2’ establishes the renewable fuel volume requirements for 2026 and 2027 at the highest levels in program history,” the EPA said. The agency estimates that compared to 2025 volumes biodiesel and renewable diesel production and use will increase by over 60 percent. The Trump administration believes these renewable volume obligations (RVO) will drive renewed demand for American soybean producers. The EPA said in a statement the rule will generate over $10 billion for rural economies and create over 100,000 new jobs in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors. To provide continued certainty for American corn growers and ethanol producers, EPA

said it will maintain the 15 billion conventional biofuel level for 2026 and 2027. “EPA’s final rule demonstrates the Trump administration’s ongoing commitment to America’s farmers and unleashing American energy by reducing America’s reliance on foreign oil, delivering long-term certainty and stability for America’s farmers and biofuel producers, and ultimately creating a path for rural economies to boom,” the EPA statement said. Business groups are urging legislators to take the ruling a step further and enact biofuel tax incentives to help bring down retail fuel costs. They claim that when the RFS is combined with incentives like the former, now lapsed, Section 40A Biodiesel

Tax Credit, it improves the economics for fuel retailers to buy and blend biofuels. These cost savings are passed on to consumers. “Strong RVOs send an important market signal, but they work best when paired with consumer-friendly fuel tax policy,” said Matt Durand in a press release. Durand is deputy general counsel for the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS). “When Congress aligns the RFS with proven incentives like the Biodiesel Tax Credit, fuel retailers and their suppliers are better positioned to deliver lower-cost fuels to end users.” NACS sent a letter to congressional leaders to emphasize that reinstating the lapsed 40A biodiesel blenders credit could control rising