WASHINGTON, DC - The House Energy and Commerce Committee is continuing its bipartisan review of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), releasing today the second in a series of white papers examining a number of issues emerging with the current system. Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Ranking Member Henry A. Waxman (D-CA) are leading this effort to review the law and its implementation and are soliciting input from interested stakeholders. The white paper released today addresses the impacts of the RFS on the nation’s agricultural sector.
The impact of the RFS on our nation’s rural economy and agricultural sector has been the subject of considerable debate in recent years as renewable fuel targets continue to rise. Nearly all the fuels currently produced under the RFS are derived from farm products, primarily corn for ethanol production and soybeans for biodiesel production. The RFS has strengthened demand for domestic corn and soybeans and these crop prices have risen. Some argue that these price increases are directly attributable to the RFS, while others question the law’s effect on crop and food prices.
The white paper examines a range of concerns over the RFS’s impact on our agricultural economy and poses a number of questions for discussion. The committee is requesting interested stakeholders respond by April 29, 2013, to RFS@mail.house.gov.
