Fuel Retailers Praise House Bill to Extend Biodiesel Tax Credit

NATSO, which represents America’s travel centers and truck stops; SIGMA: America’s Leading Fuel Marketers; and the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS) have praised a bipartisan group of lawmakers for introducing the “Biodiesel Tax Credit Extension Act of 2024.” This proposed legislation aims to extend the biodiesel blender’s tax credit and is sponsored by Representatives Mike Carey (R-Ohio), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), Ann Kuster (D-NH), and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa).

H.R. 9060 proposes a one-year extension of the biodiesel tax credit at the blender level. Extending this credit would immediately encourage fuel retailers across the country to purchase and blend more biodiesel, which is significantly more environmentally friendly than petroleum diesel. Since 2004, the biodiesel tax credit has successfully encouraged fuel retailers to invest in infrastructure for low-carbon alternative fuels and has prompted consumers to opt for renewable fuel blends because of their lower cost.. This tax credit contributes to job creation, reduces greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector, and allows fuel retailers to provide competitively priced diesel fuel.

A broad coalition of stakeholders backs this policy because it reduces the costs consumers incur for fueling their vehicles and heating their homes.

Biodiesel has traditionally been the most widely used biofuel in commercial trucking and offers the most promising opportunity to lower carbon emissions from the nation’s commercial trucking fleet in the near term.

The biodiesel tax credit reduces the cost of diesel fuel for truck drivers, which in turn lowers shipping expenses and, consequently, the price consumers pay for truck-delivered products. Extending the biodiesel tax credit will help motor carriers continue to cut carbon emissions from the nation’s commercial fleets while also keeping fuel prices down and reducing the cost of goods for consumers.

The biodiesel blender’s tax credit has effectively fostered the development of a strong renewable diesel industry in the United States, while also reducing carbon emissions linked to transportation fuel. The U.S. biodiesel and renewable diesel market has expanded significantly, reaching about 4 billion gallons in 2023, up from approximately 100 million gallons in 2005.

In 2020, biodiesel and renewable diesel reduced CO2 emissions by 15 million metric tons in California, which is equivalent to removing over 3 million passenger cars from the roads. Compared to petroleum-based diesel, renewable diesel and biodiesel can cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80 percent. The California Air Resources Board recently highlighted their crucial role in lowering carbon emissions, noting that renewable diesel and biodiesel now make up more than half of the state's diesel supply.