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On LIHEAP, the RFS, and Section 401
STEPHEN BENNETT The ups and downs of the Low Income Home Energy
Assistance Program continue. Happily, the latest development is an“ up.” The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services Committee marked up its version of the FY 26 appropriations bill and it not only maintained funding for LIHEAP but increased it by $ 20 million to $ 4.045 billion, according to an appropriations update issued by the National Energy Assistance Directors Association.“ The Senate is clearly rejecting the President’ s budget to zero out LIHEAP for FY 26,” NEADA said in its update. For more on this development, turn to the News section, beginning on page 6.
The National Energy & Fuels Institute said it filed two letters with the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, one addressing how heating oil is treated under the Renewable Fuel Standard( RFS) and the other dealing with proposed regulatory reforms to expedite natural gas pipeline expansion. The letters follow recent testimony by NEFI President and CEO Jim Collura before the agency and ongoing engagement with senior administration officials. Regarding heating oil’ s status under the RFS, Collura wrote,“ The RFS is key to ensuring the availability of these fuels at competitive prices, enabling the heating oil industry to meet its voluntary commitments, comply with state blending requirements, remain competitive in an ever-changing market, and respond to growing demand for cleaner, American-produced fuels from customers – and to do so in a cost-effective manner that benefits small businesses and working families. Given this, NEFI is supportive of the higher renewable volume obligations( RVOs) for BBD.
“ However, we are deeply concerned with proposed changes that could undermine 15 years of successful policy. EPA’ s proposed changes with respect to the definition of‘ heating oil’ and the newly proposed definition of‘ renewable fuel oil’ threaten to impose burdensome and impractical requirements that could harm our mostly small family businesses and increase home heating costs for millions of American families.”
In the other letter, Collura wrote,“ We are closely monitoring the debate over Section 401 [ of the Clean Water Act ] and evaluating its impact on our industry, especially its role in preventing or delaying the buildout of new natural gas pipelines in New York and New England. With respect to this matter, there is a recurring misconception used to justify these projects and the broader need for Section 401 reforms: that more natural gas is needed to displace so-called‘ dirty’ home heating oil in the Northeast. Respectfully, this view is outdated and misleading. These comments serve to address this misinformation.”
To read more from the Institute’ s comments, turn to page 25.
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