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December 12, 2014
It’s not the latest pastry craze, rather an attempt to end a legislative session marked by a 16-day government shutdown and partisan gridlock on a high note. The $1.1 billion appropriations bill, which funds the federal government through next September, clocks in at 1,600 pages and is a hybrid omnibus and continuing resolution (CR). Most agencies receive the full treatment under the omnibus, with the Department of Homeland Security receiving a CR through February; an exception intended to garner votes from Republicans dissatisfied with President Obama’s Executive Order on immigration. The bill passed the House late Thursday evening and went to the Senate on Friday and is expected to pass. It provides new funds for defense spending in the Middle East, controlling the spread of Ebola, and handling the flow of minors from Central America. Meanwhile, domestic programs remain mostly intact, with some exceptions.
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Kansas and Nebraska Challenge EPA on Ethanol Emissions Model
On December 5, the state of Kansas, the state of Nebraska, the Energy Future Coalition and the Urban Air Initiative filed suit against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The suit is asking for the D.C. Court of Appeals to review EPA’s MOVES2014 model, a tool which states are tasked with using to model the contribution of various emissions to air pollution. The problem with the model, according to the Kansas and Nebraska Attorney Generals, is that the model was built on poorly-done studies of vehicle emissions that don’t reflect real-world fuel blending conditions. From these studies, EPA had concluded that an increase in ethanol volume in fuels causes an increase in toxic emissions. Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt commented on the reason for the suit, stating, “EPA’s requirement that states use this faulty model was unlawfully adopted without notice and opportunity for comment. This is an example of the EPA imposing its will on the states rather than working cooperatively toward the shared goal of cleaner air. We are asking that this model be rejected and replaced with a model that more accurately reflects the true emission effects of ethanol.”
RFS Update: House Lawmakers Question EPA on RFS Delays and on Core Intent of Renewable Fuels Statute
On December 3, the Committee on House Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing to examine EPA’s management of the Renewable Fuel Standard program. During the hearing, Republican and Democratic lawmakers grilled EPA Acting Administrator of Air and Radiation Janet McCabe on the year-plus delay of the new Renewable Volume Obligations (RVO) – the amount of biofuels that must be blended into the transportation fuel supply. Not only did committee members ask McCabe when, exactly, the 2014 and 2015 fuel volumes would be released, Chairman James Lankford (R-OK) also repeatedly raised the possibility of re-visiting the original statute. He referred to decreasing gasoline use in the United States, increasing domestic oil production, and environmental concerns to air and water quality.
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