No. 27, April 11, 2018 
IN REGULATION Updates From White House Meeting on RFS 
On Monday, President Trump met with Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Sonny Perdue, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt, and several others. We’re still getting reports from the meeting, but our understanding is that the discussions will continue for another three months and no resolution was reached. We will continue to keep everyone apprised of any further updates. For more details, contact Vice President of Government Relations John Fuher.
WORKING FOR YOU
ON THE HILL IN THE COURTS IN REGULATION AT THE PUMP E15 Growth Over the Past Five Years Has Skyrocketed AT THE PLANTS IN THE FASTLANE American Ethanol Green Flag Restart Award UPCOMING EVENTS
ON THE HILL Emily Skor to Testify in Front of Energy and Commerce 
On Friday morning, the Subcommittee on the Environment of the House Energy and Commerce Committee will examine the potential of high octane fuels and vehicles. Emily Skor will testify along with Chairman of Illinois Corn Paul Jeschke, Vice President of Propulsion Systems at General Motors Dan Nicholson, President and CEO of American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers Chet Thompson, and Tim Columbus on behalf of the Society of Independent Gasoline Marketers (SIGMA). Emily’s testimony will focus on the importance of mid-level blends to octane, the success of the RFS in achieving access to the marketplace for higher biofuel blends, and the perils of sunsetting the RFS for a high-octane fuel standard. For more details, contact Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley. Update Concerning the Small Refiner Waivers Growth Energy recently sent a letter to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt condemning the decision to award a small refinery waiver to one of the largest refiners in the U.S. and demanding a moratorium on waivers being issued by the EPA. In the letter, we asked that the EPA immediately cease issuing waivers and pause any waiver applications being considered until the agency conducts a full, transparent public comment process to help assure all stakeholders that the new expansion of small refinery waivers are consistent with the goals of the RFS. Furthermore, Reuters reported that there is a legislative effort, spearheaded by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.), to expand EPA waivers for small refiners. The Cornyn bill would give blanket exemptions to all oil refiners classified as small.
Use our action center today to ask your lawmakers to share their concerns with the EPA and put a stop to oil refiner handouts. The action center will allow you to contact your elected officials with just a few keystrokes and clicks, and should only take a minute! Over 900 people have already participated. This is the time when we need our voices to be heard loud and clear. For more details, contact Vice President of Government Relations John Fuher.
IN THE COURTS Growth Energy Disappointed in Court Decision to Approve PES Bankruptcy Settlement 
Following the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware’s decision to approve a settlement between the Carlyle Group-owned Philadelphia Energy Solutions (PES) and the EPA, Growth Energy released a statement stating our disappointment at the court's decision to not consider our objections. The EPA’s sue-and-settle-style settlement will give the Carlyle Group a free pass for skirting the law, even after they neglected the refinery while pocketing hundreds of millions of dollars in cash payouts. We will continue to combat these types of agreements which undermine the RFS. For more details, contact Vice President of Government Relations John Fuher.
IN REGULATION CAFE Standards 
On April 2, the EPA announced that the final vehicle standards for 2022-2025 are not appropriate and that a new rule-making process would soon be announced to propose what the revised standards should be. The EPA did acknowledge comments from Growth Energy and others around the importance of high-octane, mid-level ethanol blends and their contribution to greenhouse gas reduction and engine efficiency. We will continue to stay actively engaged on this issue as this process develops. For more details, contact Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Chris Bliley.
AT THE PUMP E15 Growth Over the Past Five Years Has Skyrocketed 
The E15 movement continues to expand its footprint across the United States. Today the number of sites selling E15 has climbed to 1,361 in twenty-nine states. That number is expected to grow to reach 1,800 stores by the end of 2018. As you can see from the trends below, over the past five years, the the growth of stores offering E15 has skyrocketed from a modest start of 40 in 2013 to 1,200 in 2017. Please see trends below: 2013: 40 stores 2014: 75 stores 2015: Just under 200 stores 2016: 600 stores 2017: 1,200 stores For more details, contact Vice President of Market Development Mike O'Brien. 
AT THE PLANTS Ethanol 2018: Emerging Issues Forum 
For more details, contact Vice President of Development Kelly Manning.
IN THE FASTLANE American Ethanol Green Flag Restart Award 
American Ethanol has been an integral part of the NASCAR experience since 2011 when the sport adopted E15 fuel across all three of its national series. The American Ethanol Green Flag starts every race, and since every driver is powered by Sunoco Green E15 made with American Ethanol, we always finish each race in the Victory Lane. We also sponsor a weekly contingency award, the American Ethanol Green Flag Restart Award, which is awarded to the driver who finishes on the lead lap and averaged the fastest speed on restarts. We are working with NASCAR to show more fans why high-octane, high-performance American Ethanol is such a great match for NASCAR. NASCAR.com ran a feature on our weekly award to help explain it to fans. Check out the story here for a quote from Emily Skor, and be sure to keep an eye on our American Ethanol social media accounts each week to see who wins the restart award! For more details, contact Manager of Communications Austin Dabney. 
The Weekly Rundown is the weekly newsletter for Growth Energy's members. It is published 51 times a year by the communications staff at Growth Energy. For more information, email team@growthenergy.org. You're receiving this newsletter because you've subscribed to Growth Energy's The Weekly Rundown. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe instantly. Copyright © 2018 Growth Energy. |
