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Perdue says he needs congressional authority to help biofuel producers

Ag Secretary Sonny Perdue says he is not opposed to providing coronavirus-related financial assistance to the biofuels industry.  But Perdue tells Brownfield he has neither the authority nor the appropriations to do that.

“It’s not that I’m not willing.  It’s that I am unable, from a statutory perspective, in that way,” Perdue says. “If Congress wants to appropriate the money and direct us to do that, I would be more than delighted to participate and implement that program.”

Biofuels groups were disappointed that the USDA did not provide support to biofuels producers when it announced the first coronavirus aid program for agriculture in April.  But Perdue says Congress did not specify that any of the aid should go to processors of ag products.

“The fact is, there’s not money nor authority to do that, in further processing, today,” he says.

The latest COVID relief bill passed by the House creates a program to assist biofuels producers.  The Senate relief package does not specifically mention biofuels, but does include the word “processors” in the ag funding part of the proposal.  However, the two bodies have been unable to agree on another relief package.

Brownfield’s Nicole Heslip contributed to this story.