The second appearance before Congress on the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 budget for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did not see issues on biofuels raised nor was there a major focus on any agricultural regulatory issues in the House Appropriations subcommittee session.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan reiterated his stance that EPA will work with all stakeholders on various issues. Asked how to address jobs in fossil fuel, coal, natural gas and oil sectors with the push toward electric vehicles (EVs), Regan said EPA would seek to "leverage the technologies to do so," noting that there need to be a "robust conversation" on how to achieve the goals.
He noted EPA will come forward in July with its proposal on tailpipe emissions from automobiles and in September relative to methane emissions. On agriculture, Regan reiterated he has established good working relationship with USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack and referenced his actions as a state environmental regulator in terms of addressing issues in the sector.
In his appearance Wednesday before a Senate panel on the FY 2022 budget, Regan said that no fuel technology is being excluded as the agency looks at meeting climate goals. He observed that there needed to be a glide path toward alternatives like EVs, and that "ethanol plays a significant role in providing those resources here and now today and will evolve as we start to look at the new futures for advanced biofuels and electric vehicles."
As for corn-based ethanol, Regan said, "Agriculture is at the table and biofuel plays a role in reducing our carbon footprint and so do many of the voluntary practices of our ag community to capture carbon and operate in a sustainable manner."
His comments still are not perhaps providing a greater deal of clarity on issues surrounding biofuels and other regulatory actions that are expected from the agency.