EPA discusses RFS plans in FY 2023 budget request justification

The U.S. EPA on April 5 released its fiscal year (FY) 2023 congressional budget justification, outlining the agency’s plans for the $11.88 billion in agency funding requested by President Biden in his FY 2023 budget request on March 28. Initiatives related to the Renewable Fuel Standard are among those discussed by the EPA in its 1,000-plus page document.  

According to the EPA, FY 2023 activity in the fuel sector will be centered on the implementation of the RFS program. Congress originally established renewable volume obligations (RVOs) through calendar year 2022, but left it up to the agency to establish RVOs for calendar year 2023 and beyond. “EPA’s schedule currently calls for the agency to issue a final ‘RFS Set Rule’ establishing such volumes in early FY 2023,” the agency wrote in its budget justification document.

The EPA said it will also continue efforts associated with the ongoing implementation of the RFS program, including updating and revising the regulations to improve program implementation and effectiveness and enable new sources of renewable fuel volumes; evaluating applications for new biofuels and/or their feedstocks; registering new renewable fuel facilities to enable them to generate renewable identification numbers (RINs); building critical new capacity in EPA’s Moderated Transaction System (EMTS); evaluating and implementing, if appropriate, enhancements to improve program operations, oversight and enforceability; evaluating and implementing IT systems modifications and enhancements; ensuring the integrity of the RFS program through enforcement actions against those using the program for fraudulent gain; and support the U.S. Department of Justice in defending the agency’s implementation of the RFS program in numerous challenges in court.

The EPA noted that the EMTS system, used to track the creation, trades and use of billions of RINs, handles 4,000 to 6,000 submissions per day, typically averaging more than 20,000 transactions per day, and the generation of more than 1.4 billion RINs per month.

The EPA’s budget document also includes information related to a 2016 report issued by the EPA Office of Inspector General recommending that the agency complete a required anti-backsliding report related to the RFS. That report is currently expected to be issued in September 2024.

A full copy of the EPA’s congressional budget justification is available on the agency’s website.