NBB members head to Washington

100 members of the US National Biodiesel Board (NBB) headed to Washington DC on 28 November to participate in the biannual ‘fly-in' to the country’s capital. According to a statement, NBB members plan to ‘storm the hill’ to encourage the reinstatement of the biodiesel tax credit that expired in December 2016.

The NBB is the US trade association representing the biodiesel and renewable diesel industries, including producers, feedstock suppliers and fuel distributors. The fly-in is an opportunity for NBB members to share firsthandand their experiences of operating in what the board dubs “an unstable business environment where the intermittent nature of the credit stymies investments".

In addition, NBB members will discuss the results of a new survey conducted with 1000 registered voters nationwide. The survey found that 82% of registered voters support a federal tax incentive. The same percentage of people expressed support for a national Renewable Fuel Standard.

“This fly-in couldn’t come at a better time, given the many federal policy priorities affecting the biodiesel industry. With the RFS volumes expected this week, reinstating the biodiesel tax credit is the next big policy issue we need to tackle to stabilize the business environment in which our industry is forced to operate,” said Doug Whitehead, chief operating officer of the National Biodiesel Board. 

In a recent letter to President Donald Trump, NBB’s governing board members reiterated the association’s request for at least 4.75 billion gallons of advanced biofuels for 2018 and at least 2.5 billion gallons for biomass-based diesel for 2019. The governing board includes members from a diverse group of states: Arkansas, California, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

The NBB’s statement stresses, however, that “the bottom line is that any growth is better than no growth”.