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Senator Baldwin supports biofuel bill, blames Putin for fuel prices

Senator Tammy Baldwin is among a bipartisan group of lawmakers calling for the expanded use of U.S. biofuels.

Baldwin has signed onto new legislation that if passed, would make E15 available year-round, establish an E15 and biodiesel tax credit, and direct the Environmental Protection Agency to finalize their E15 labeling rule.

The Wisconsin Democrat blames recent gasoline price spikes on Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and supports cutting Russian oil imports. “We can produce close to as much biofuel as we have historically imported oil from Russia, so we can replace it with renewables grown here in the upper Midwest, in the heartland.”

President Biden has been more focused on electric cars, but Baldwin believes he can support this bill. “I think the President is on board with doing anything he can to blunt the pain that U.S. citizens are experiencing at the pump that is all laying at the feet of Putin.”

The Home Front Energy Independence Act was introduced by Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and is also cosponsored by Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Roger Marshall (R-KS), and Deb Fischer (R-NE).  It combines elements of several previous pro-ethanol bills, including the Biofuel Infrastructure and Agricultural Product Market Expansion Act of 2021, the Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act, the Low Carbon Biofuel Credit Act, and the Biodiesel Tax Credit Extension Act of 2021.