Ag groups sue Biden emissions rules

Reuters reported on Tuesday that “top lobbying groups for the U.S. oil and corn industries said on Tuesday they are suing President Joe Biden’s administration over its plans to curb planet-warming tailpipe emissions from cars and trucks, arguing that the regulations will economic damage.”

“The American Petroleum Institute (API), the largest U.S. oil and gas lobbying group of which Exxon Mobil is a member, said Tuesday it is suing the Environmental Protection Agency over truck regulations just days after filing a separate federal lawsuit over the agency’s regulations regarding light and medium-duty vehicles,” Reuters reported. “…The National Corn Growers Association, the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association said they joined Tuesday’s lawsuit, arguing the administration is abandoning biofuels“

Additionally, Chris Clayton of Progressive Farmer reported on Tuesday that “The National Farmers Union and Renewable Fuels Association are joining a growing number of lawsuits against the Biden administration over light- and medium-duty vehicle emissions standards. The National Farmers Union (NFU) and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) filed a lawsuit against the EPA in the District of Columbia Court of Appeals on Monday over emissions regulations.

What do emissions regulations include?

Clayton said that “the light-duty and medium-duty vehicle regulations were finalized in mid-April and will take effect in 2027. The regulations are intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from light-duty vehicles, which account for approximately 16.5% of the nation’s total greenhouse gases.”

“By 2032, new vehicles will need to have 44% to 50% lower greenhouse gas emissions compared to 2026 vehicles.” Clayton reported. “The rule, if fully implemented, would reduce emissions by 7.2 billion tons by the end of 2055. EPA officials have maintained that the rule does not favor any one technology, but rather focuses heavily on electric capabilities, barely mentioning other reduction options emissions, such as the increased use of biofuels.”

Andrew Freedman of Axios reported in March that “the regulations do not require automakers to change their fleets to sell more electric vehicles by a specific date. However, with tighter emissions limits, manufacturers will likely favor more compliant electric vehicles. A fact sheet provided to reporters shows that in the 2030-2032 production years, automakers may choose to produce between 30% and 56% of new light commercial vehicles as battery electric vehicles, with the rest a mix of other clean vehicle technologies. .

In the case of semi-trucks, as Jason Cannon of the Commercial Carrier Journal reported in March, emissions regulations stipulate that “about 30% of heavy commercial vehicles will have to be zero-emission by 2032, and 40% of regional daily taxis. EPA’s Phase 3 regulations do not specify any specific emissions solution in their regulations, maintaining the promise of a “technology neutral” approach. However, achieving emissions levels will be difficult without the integration of hybrid, battery-electric or hydrogen-electric trucks.”

Why Ag Groups Oppose the Rules

Clayton reported that “RFA and NFU said the two groups filed the lawsuit “because the EPA clearly lacked the authority to adopt a regulation that essentially mandates the production of battery-powered electric vehicles while ignoring other technologies – such as low-emission ethanol and Flex Fuel vehicles – that reduce greenhouse gas emissions from light and medium-heavy transport”the groups said.”

Additionally, Clayton reported that “RFA and NFU added that they filed the lawsuit “separate from other complaints to ensure that ethanol producers and farmers have a strong and independent voice in the proceedings as the EPA regulation presents many issues and challenges unique to the ethanol industry and renewable feedstock farmers for fuel.”

Reuters reported that Ryan Meyers, senior vice president and general counsel of the American Petroleum Institute, said that “EPA is forcing a transition to a technology that simply does not currently exist for these types of vehicles – and even if it were possible one day, it will be possible will almost certainly have consequences for the average American.”

According to a Reuters report, National Corn Growers Association President Harold Wolle said that “the EPA has tried to impose a one-size-fits-all approach to combating climate change by favoring electric vehicles over other climate measures such as corn ethanol.”