Energy

EPA is preparing for May 7 oral argument to defend several waivers it issued to small refiners relieving them of fuel production mandates under the renewable fuel standard (RFS), and is separately fighting biofuels producers’ push for a court injunction barring the agency from making a final decision on dozens of still-pending waiver requests.

A group of 15 GOP senators is urging EPA to cut ethanol blending volumes required under the renewable fuel standard (RFS) in the agency’s forthcoming proposal to “reset” statutory volumes for low-carbon cellulosic, signaling a coming fight with biofuel groups that are calling for EPA to increase corn ethanol volumes under the reset.

Appellate judges at May 1 oral argument appeared split on environmentalists’ suit over EPA’s delay until 2020 of two provisions in the Obama-era power plant effluent rule, with one judge strongly backing the government and a second judge appearing to favor critics of the delay -- leaving the third judge hearing the case as a swing vote.

Appellate judges at May 1 oral argument wrestled with which circuit court has jurisdiction to hear environmentalists’ suit claiming a major Trump administration shift in Clean Air Act permitting policy barring the agency from “second guessing” states’ permit decisions is unlawful, but the judges did not indicate how they might rule.