The Environmental Protection Agency has rejected a proposed policy change that created a stir in the ethanol industry earlier this year and led to the ejection of the Renewable Fuels Association from a coalition of biofuel supporters.

In an Oct. 19 letter, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said his agency would not change the current schedule for how much ethanol must be blended with motor fuel as required by the federal Renewable Fuel Standard, Reuters news agency reported.

The agency also rejected a proposal that would have shifted responsibility for blending ethanol from refiners to retailers—a policy change championed by former White House adviser Carl Icahn, who owns CVR Refining.

Biofuel industry groups such as Growth Industry and the Biotechnology Industry Organization opposed the changes. However, RFA announced in February that President Donald Trump would sign an executive order switching the blending burden from refiners to retailers. No order ever came.

Other biofuel groups fumed at what they viewed as RFA's support for the measure. The association was ejected from biofuel coalition Fuels America, which issued a statement saying "RFA's position is no longer aligned with America's biofuel industry." At the time, RFA CEO Bob Dinneen said there had been "misinformation" about his group's communications concerning the executive order.

RFA opposed the proposed reductions in the amount of ethanol to be blended with motor fuels. Dinneen told Reuters that the ethanol industry was "grateful for Administrator Pruitt's epiphany on the road to the RFS." http://bit.ly/2yxry9j

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