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ACE: renewable fuels must be included in future COVID-19 relief package
American Coalition for Ethanol CEO Brian Jennings is asking the Trump administration to include the renewable fuels industry in any future coronavirus relief packages.
“We touch a number of areas of the economy that are really important and that just underscores the reason why the president, his cabinet, and congress need to make sure ethanol is part of any relief package that comes next from Washington,” he says.
More than half of US ethanol production capacity is offline, and Jennings says producers’ working capital is vanishing.
Jennings says he’s hopeful renewable fuels will be included in a fourth stimulus bill…“The Senate is going back into session next week, the House is not coming back in but is promising to work remotely and we have every expectation that the fourth stimulus bill will be taken up by Congress in May and so our efforts on the Congressional side of things is making sure Congress includes something for renewable fuels,” he says.
He says the administration must support renewable fuels like it has the oil and gas industry.
“As the administration seems to be in a rush to put together some sort of relief or rescue package for the oil and gas sector and I don’t diminish the fact that oil and gas producers are under economic stress, but where is the mobilization effort from the administration when it comes to helping ethanol producers who are so important fabric of rural America,” he says. “We need to see an equal emphasis in making sure renewable fuels are not left behind.”
Jennings says the administration has authority to act now. ACE is asking the administration to recognize that renewable fuels are a critical part of the economy if it considers acting sooner than Congress.
