A series of hearings on the Renewable Fuel Standard begins on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON – Tomorrow, the House Commerce and Energy Committee kicks off several hearings on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), eenews.net reports. The standard mandates that 36 billion gallons of biofuels be blended into the U.S. automotive fuel supply within a decade.

The hearing, under the House Energy and Power Subcommittee, will address “government perspectives” on the standard and use white papers by members of the entire committee. This week’s testimony will be from government officials.

“We want everybody to talk,” said Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY), who chairs the subcommittee. “I’m not much concerned about who comes from the government side; I’m more interested in the people out in the country who are being affected by it. We want to listen to all of those groups.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses the RFS to set annual goals for regular ethanol and next-generation biofuels. Those in favor think RFS will help reduce the country’s dependence on foreign oil. However, opponents think the standards trigger higher costs for food and gasoline.

Reps. Steve Scalise (R-LA), vice chair of the subcommittee, and Pete Olson (R-TX) have introduced a bill that would nix the standard, while Olson alone has sponsored legislation that would allow natural gas to be part of the RFS. Legislation that would eliminate the standard has also been introduced in the Senate.

See our past RFS Blogs here