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Branstad says there’s ‘no truth’ to RFS rumors

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad says there’s no truth to the reports that the Trump Administration is going to alter Renewable Fuels Standard procedures.

“It’s not going to happen. I’ve been assured about that by a lot of people. It’s not going to happen,” Branstad says. “I know the rumors and I know who is involved in it and I can tell you they’re not true. My son, Eric, as you know, is out in D.C. and I’ve talked to him about it and he has assured me it’s not going to happen.”

Eric Branstad, the state director for Trump’s presidential campaign, is now a White House liason in the U.S. Commerce Department.

News reports have indicated the administration wants to shift the burden for complying with the biofuel quotas from refiners to fuel blenders. Governor Branstad says that would be impractical.

“It would be much more difficult to enforce the Renewable Fuels Standards if you had to deal with all the retailers in the nation rather than the people that are distributing the fuel,” Branstad says. “That’s the reason why, practically, it doesn’t make sense and that’s the reason why it was shot down real quick when the rumor surfaced.”

Branstad made his comments Monday morning during his weekly news conference.

Radio Iowa contributed to this story.