B&C® Biobased and Sustainable Chemicals Blog

On September 18, 2013, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a December 2011 district court ruling and held that California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) does not violate the Dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution on its face. The district court had sided with groups from the oil and gas, ethanol, and trucking industries and found that the LCFS violated the Dormant Commerce Clause because the statute gave higher carbon intensity values to...

On September 12, 2013, Representative Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) introduced H.R. 3084, the "Qualifying Renewable Chemical Production Tax Credit Act," to provide tax parity for the renewable chemical industry in the United States. Along with Representative Pascrell, the original co-sponsors of the bi-partisan bill are Representatives Steve Stockman (R-TX), Allyson Schwartz (D-PA), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), and Richard Neal (D-MA). Essentially, the bill would extend the current production tax...

Improved utility of data, transparent supply chains, and transformative innovation were just some of the topics discussed by regulators, researchers, and industry at the 3rd Safer Consumer Products Summit: National Policy Outlook held in Washington, D.C. this week. Summit Chair Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner, B&C, opened the main summit by noting the dramatic shift in environmental law from the regulation of discharges of chemical substances into the environment (and their subsequent...

On September 18, 2013, the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing on "Regulation of Existing Chemicals and the Role of Pre-Emption under Sections 6 and 18 of the Toxic Substances Control Act." This was the third hearing in a series held by the Committee on the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). It comes at a time when the Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works (EPW) is also considering TSCA...

The group of four Republican members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee tasked with examining proposals to reform the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) are reportedly still considering options for reform and compromise. This week, one of the members of the task force, Representative John Shimkus (R-IL), stated publicly that there may be avenues for compromise under the RFS' Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credit trading program. Other members of the task force include...

USDA is continuing its work to promote the U.S. biofuels industry, which USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack believes helps bolster the U.S. agriculture sector and rural economy. On September 12, 2013, USDA announced that it will provide a total of $15.5 million to 188 advanced biofuel producers under USDA's Advanced Biofuel Payment Program, which was created under the 2008 Farm Bill (P.L. 110-234, the "Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008"). It is reported that through...

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that it will provide $40 million for a Center of Excellence (COE) on sustainable aviation fuel and the environment. The funds will be distributed in $4 million increments each year for the next ten years. Washington State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology will be leading the effort, and several other universities will be involved. For a full list of participants and more information on the initiative,...

This week, the National Advanced Biofuels Conference and Expo was held in Omaha, Nebraska. During the three-day conference, industry leaders presented on and discussed major issues facing the industry, from legal considerations to advancing the aviation biofuels industry, supply, and feedstock successes and challenges. During the conference, Michael McAdams, President of the Advanced Biofuels Association, and Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board, discussed some of their current federal...

On Wednesday, September 11, 2013, the European Parliament voted 356-327 to cap conventional biofuels at six percent of the European Union's (EU) transportation fuel by 2020 due to food-versus-fuel concerns. It also voted to require that 2.5 percent of EU transportation fuel consist of advanced biofuels by 2020, and to target that fuel to contain a 7.5 percent ethanol blend. The legislation does not require that indirect land use change be taken into account until...

Congress returned from its August recess this week, and, as expected, the Republican leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives is looking toward passing legislation on the remaining nutrition portion of the Farm Bill, including $40 billion in cuts to food stamp programs over the next ten years. The bill could come up for a vote next week. House Republican leaders, including House Committee on Agriculture Chair Frank Lucas (R-OK), have stated they do not...