National Biodiesel Board urges Congress to extend biodiesel tax incentive

The National Biodiesel Board (NBB), together with members and stakeholders, has urged Congress to prioritise the extension of the multiyear biodiesel and renewable diesel tax incentive.

The tax incentive was retroactively extended by Congress for 2017 in February last year, which has left it expired from 2018 onwards.

In a letter to House leaders, the NBB and its stakeholders wrote: “The future of the credit has been unclear for more than 14 months. That uncertainty is curtailing investments in new plants and capital projects to upgrade existing plants.

“It is beginning to force some producers, blenders and distributors to cut back purchases of raw materials and deliveries of renewable fuel to consumers, which will have impacts across the economy.

“The US biodiesel and renewable diesel industry’s continued success is now at stake. Tens of thousands of American workers and manufacturers – as well as the millions of Americans who benefit from cleaner air and water – are depending on you to provide our industry the certainty we need to secure investments and continue growing over the next several years.”

Since 2005, when the tax incentive was introduced, the US biodiesel and renewable diesel market has increased from 100 million gallon to over 2.6 billion gallons in 2016.

NBB’s vice-president of federal affairs Kurt Kovarik added: “The biodiesel industry has long advocated for a multiyear extension of the tax incentive. But because the incentive has been expired for 15 months – the longest period of uncertainty for this policy since its start – it is urgent that Congress act immediately to provide the biodiesel industry certainty for 2018 and 2019.”

Read the full letter here.