Kansas Corn Joins 23 Corn States in Letter Asking Trump to Defend Ethanol

Sept. 27, 2019–Kansas Corn Growers Association was one of 23 state corn organizations to send a letter to President Trump, calling on him to follow the law and keep the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) whole. The letter to the President comes on the heels of the Trump Administration’s August approval of 31 new RFS waivers to big oil companies. A total of 85 waivers approved under the Trump Administration amount to 4.04 billion gallons, resulting in reduced corn demand due to lower ethanol blending and consumption and a rising number of ethanol producers slowing or idling production.

“EPA’s latest round of ethanol exemptions to refiners destroyed demand for another 1.4 billion gallons of ethanol, bringing the total to more than 4 billion gallons of market loss for ethanol,” KCGA CEO Greg Krissek said. “This has a direct impact on our ethanol plants and on our farmers who sell corn to those plants. Corn farmers are already hurting from low prices and lost markets due to trade disputes. The disruption caused by EPA’s ethanol waivers is another factor that is directly damaging our farmers’ businesses.”

In the letter, signed by KCGA President Steve Rome, state corn grower leaders urge the President to stop the harm caused by waivers and restore integrity to the RFS by directing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to account for projected waivers beginning with the pending 2020 RFS volume rule.

Full text of the letter is below and available as a PDF here.

President Donald J. Trump

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Trump,

We are writing on behalf of the more than 300,000 corn farmers across the country who are being negatively impacted by a perfect storm of challenges in rural America. The 31 new Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) waivers to big oil companies, recently approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and bringing total waivers issued under your Administration to 85, could not have come at a worse time for agriculture.

Ethanol plants in several states, including Iowa, Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota and Mississippi have closed or idled. These closures have cost 2,700 rural jobs and impacted demand for more than 300 million bushels of corn. Corn farmers are beginning harvest and continuing to lose markets to deliver their corn. Frustration in the countryside is growing.

Corn farmers are not asking for a special deal. We are simply asking, as we have been for the past two years, that your EPA uphold the law.

To effectively stop the harm caused by RFS waivers, EPA needs to account for projected waivers beginning with the pending 2020 RFS volume rule. Accounting for waivers in the annual RFS volume process restores integrity to the RFS. It also allows your Administration to continue granting waivers, as allowed by the law, while keeping the RFS whole.

While adding gallons and improving market access for higher blends of ethanol are all policies farmers appreciate and support, future waivers will continue to minimize the RFS, unless your Administration acts to account for waivers beginning this coming year first.

We were pleased to see press reports indicating that, following a meeting with farm-state lawmakers, an agreement had been reached to address the harm caused by waivers. With more than 4 billion gallons waived out of the RFS, we appreciate you listening to our elected representatives about what is needed to restore meaning to the RFS. Farmers across the country are anxiously awaiting the release of more details about this agreement. Ethanol plants will continue to close if you don’t act soon, creating a rippling effect throughout the rural economy.

Corn farmers are appreciative of your past support for agriculture and ethanol. We especially appreciate your efforts to remove the barrier to year-round sales of E15, but EPA’s current use of waivers undermines growth potential for higher blends of ethanol, reduces demand, lowers the value of our crop, and puts the outlook for the rural economy in jeopardy.

Mr. President, we firmly ask that you uphold your commitment to America’s farmers and the RFS.

Sincerely,

Jeremy Wilson, President

Alabama Soybean and Corn Association

Dave Eckhardt, President

Colorado Corn Growers Association

Rodney Harrell, President

Georgia Corn Growers Association

Ted Mottaz, President

Illinois Corn Growers Association

Sarah Delbecq, President

Indiana Corn Growers Association

Jim Greif, President

Iowa Corn Growers Association

Steve Rome, President

Kansas Corn Growers Association

Mark Roberts, President

Kentucky Corn Growers Association

Jason Condrey, President

Louisiana Cotton and Grain Association

Lenny Evan Miles, Jr., President

Maryland Grain Producers Association

Matt Frostic, President

Michigan Corn Growers Association

Brian Thalmann, President

Minnesota Corn Growers Association

Mike Pannell, President

Mississippi Corn Growers Association

Mark Scott, President

Missouri Corn Growers Association

Dan Nerud, President

Nebraska Corn Growers Association

Jason Swede, President

New York Corn and Soybean Growers Association

Alex Jordan, President

Corn Growers Association of North Carolina

Randy Melvin, President

North Dakota Corn Growers Association

Jon Miller, President

Ohio Corn and Wheat

Elizabeth Hinkel, President

Pennsylvania Corn Growers Association

Doug Noem, President

South Dakota Corn Growers Association