AFPM suing U.S. EPA over RFS ‘Set 2 rule,’ the administration’s most expensive regulation
The American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) filed a lawsuit Friday in the DC Circuit court challenging the 2026-2027 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volumes finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in March. EPA’s “Set 2 rule” is the largest and most expensive RFS iteration in history and is the single most expensive regulation of President Trump’s second term. AFPM President and CEO Chet Thompson issued the following statement on the filing:
“The cost of complying with the RFS recently hit a new all-time high, exceeding 35-cents per gallon for the first time. This is the inevitable consequence of EPA finalizing an unlawful, impracticable regulation, which AFPM is formally challenging on behalf of our members — the refineries that supply gasoline and diesel fuel to the United States market — and consumers of these fuels around the country.”
AFPM’s full case against the RFS Set 2 rule will be detailed in a coming brief.
Additional background: The cost of complying with the RFS Set 2 mandate is expected to exceed $106 billion over the next two years, or$0.26/gal-$0.35/gal for every gallon of gasoline and diesel supplied to the U.S. market. EPA’s own regulatory impact analysis shows the RFS Set 2 rule will cost Americans > $20 B/yr, while offering just $400 million in benefits. Refineries and American consumers substantially bear these costs.
Without a solvent RIN bank, the only way to comply with the RFS will be by reducing the amount of transportation fuel supplied to the U.S. market as only gasoline and diesel fuel sold domestically incurs an RFS obligation, while exported fuels do not.
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