[ST. PAUL, MN]— Today, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that no significant changes would be made to the proposed Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Volume obligation rule that would allow some refiners to bypass requirements to blend ethanol and other biofuels through small refinery exemptions (SREs). Harming farmers and biofuel producers, this decision makes it unlikely that the agency will meet its commitment of blending 15 billion gallons of biofuel in 2020. In response, Governor Tim Walz released the following statement:

“Farmers in Minnesota need real relief, not false promises. The Trump Administration’s decision to finalize EPA’s proposed rule on the Renewable Volume Obligations is an abandonment of their responsibility to enforce the Renewable Fuel Standard. They’re asking farmers to trust this EPA to protect the RFS despite the fact that they’ve done all they can to weaken it since they took office. I will continue to work to support Minnesota’s producers and biofuels industry.”

Governor Walz issued a joint letter with Republican South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem on the proposed rule in October.