U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, recently co-led the reintroduction of the Adopt Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation (GREET) Act. The legislation would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to update its greenhouse gas modeling for all renewable fuels under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).
Specifically, the bill would require EPA to apply the Argonne National Lab’s GREET Model to any fuel for which EPA has approved a pathway and deemed qualified for the RFS. EPA would then be required to update its modeling every five years or report to Congress to affirm its modeling is current or otherwise explain why no updates were made. U.S. Senators John Thune (R-S.D.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) led the introduction of the legislation.
“The biofuels industry is on the frontlines of innovation, and it’s critical that the EPA’s modeling is updated to reflect the latest science and technology — including in the biofuels industry. Our bipartisan legislation would ensure that the EPA is using the GREET Model to more efficiently and accurately recognize how biofuels can be a source of clean, homegrown energy,” said Senator Fischer.
In addition to Senators Fischer, Thune, and Klobuchar, the legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.).
The legislation is supported by Growth Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association, the American Coalition for Ethanol, POET, the National Corn Growers Association, Gevo, and the National Oilseed Processors Association.
In June, Senator Fischer co-led the introduction of the Sustainable Aviation Fuels Accuracy Act of 2023. The legislation would require the federal government to use the most up-to-date lifecycle emissions models, including the GREET model, for sustainable aviation fuels.
In July, Senator Fischer secured language in the Fiscal Year 2024 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act directing the EPA to update emissions modeling for biofuels to more accurately capture environmental benefits using the GREET model.