Zach Lahn, the Republican nominee for Iowa governor, and Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, say Iowa will need to keep an eye on Washington, D.C., for the next several years to ensure the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) upholds the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). On Aug. 31, EPA announced it had granted 29 small-refinery exemptions (SREs) to 2025’s biofuel-blending requirements, exempting 1.76 billion Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs). However, the EPA has pledged to reallocate 100 percent of those RINs to the 2026 and 2027 blending requirements. While the EPA’s announcement was disappointing, Naig says he is optimistic the Trump administration will maintain its commitment to biofuels.
Naig acknowledges that it can be easy to view the EPA’s announcement as a blow to Iowa’s farmers; however, he reminds producers to remember all of the gains the biofuels industry in Iowa has made in recent years.
The EPA announcement comes as Iowa farmers face additional pressure from dropping net farm incomes, rising input costs, and low commodity prices. Lahn says the governor has no direct control of federal policy decisions, but a key tenet of his campaign is support for Iowa’s small- and mid-sized farm operations. Lahn says Iowa’s elected officials need to ensure Iowa’s perspective is a part of the decision-making process.
Lahn and Naig made their comments during a campaign stop Thursday at the Still Bar & Grill in Templeton. Both candidates find themselves in tight races heading into November. A recent Emerson College poll shows Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rob Sand leading Lahn 49-46, but within the margin of error. Internal campaign polls show Naig narrowly leading his Democratic challenger, Chris Jones.
