Bill > S2291

This bill addresses the treatment of flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) in calculating fleet average carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions standards by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator to adjust the CO2 calculation method. Specifically, the bill mandates that within 120 days of enactment, the EPA must revise regulations to allow manufacturers to use a gram per mile CO2 value for flexible fuel vehicles that is 31 percent lower than the same vehicle model without flex fuel capabilities. The bill is based on findings from the GREET (Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies) model developed by Argonne National Laboratory, which indicates that E85 fuel made with average corn starch ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 37 percent per mile compared to standard gasoline. The legislation also provides the EPA Administrator flexibility to apply an even larger percentage reduction in CO2 values if future versions of the GREET model support such an adjustment. By creating this more favorable calculation method, the bill aims to incentivize the production and use of flexible fuel vehicles that can run on high-ethanol fuel blends like E85.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2291/all-info