A Democratic lawmaker announced plans to reintroduce a bipartisan bill that would get electric vehicles into the national biofuel blending program.
The legislation would allow electricity generated from renewable biomass to qualify for credits under the Renewable Fuel Standard. The White House recently stopped plans to do so for fear of lawsuits. Under the bill, companies that produce power generated from renewable gas used for charging EVs would be eligible to generate lucrative credits under the RFS. That’s a slight but important difference from the Environmental Protection Agency’s approach, which would have allowed EV manufacturers like Tesla to generate the credits.
“The manufacturers don’t produce the electricity,” says California Representative John Garamendi, the bill’s sponsor. “We know that the biomass/biogas industry can produce electricity in a way that benefits the overall economy and ecology of the nation.” The bill directs the EPA, which oversees the RFS, to implement the plan.