Farm Bill Impact Series: Biofuels

Floor Speech

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Mr. MANN. Madam Speaker, in preparation for reauthorizing the farm bill in 2023, I rise today to deliver the next installment of my farm bill impact series, where I am highlighting various aspects of the farm bill that deserve Congress' awareness and support.

If America is going to thrive, then the people who feed, fuel, and clothe America must thrive, and the farm bill contains certain programs that have been critical to the success of agricultural producers in my district and the energy independence of our country.

Every committee in this Congress should work to develop a sound, 21st century energy policy, one that embraces American energy independence, one that employs an all-of-the-above strategy embracing both fossil fuels and biofuels, and one that is not a mandated approach from the government.

For example, the House Energy and Commerce Committee should continue to pressure the Biden administration to reapprove the Keystone XL pipeline while it also considers the Year-Round Fuel Choice Act, and the House Agriculture Committee should weigh in on the enforcement of the renewable fuel standard while it also includes strong biofuels language in the next farm bill.

Energy policy has an impact on every American and cannot be crafted in a vacuum. When it comes to the farm bill, we know that we can strengthen our access to reliable, affordable, and efficient energy, like biofuels.

The Rural Energy For America Program provides financial assistance to promote energy independence and efficiency and renewable energy development for agricultural producers and rural small businesses.

Kansas Ethanol LLC, based in Lyons, Kansas, has utilized the REAP program twice. The first time they used it, they were able to expand their facility and went from producing 65 million gallons of ethanol to 80 million gallons of ethanol per year. The second time, the program helped them put in the infrastructure to produce their own electricity. They now produce their own heat and power through a gas turbine for their facility and export some power to the grid.

As Kansas produces nearly 500 million gallons of ethanol each year, programs like the Biodiesel Fuel Education Program and the Biomass Crop Assistance Program are important for Kansas and for the rest of this country. The Biodiesel Fuel Education Program awards competitive grants to nonprofit organizations and institutes of higher education that educate the public, as well as government and private entities, about the benefits of biodiesel fuel use.

The Biomass Crop Assistance Program supports the establishment and production of eligible crops for conversion to bioenergy and assists agricultural landowners and operators with the collection, harvest, storage, and transportation of eligible material for use in a biomass conversion facility.

These programs, and many more, are investments in the future of our country, and they must remain strong in the 2023 farm bill if America is going to be energy independent. That is why the farm bill is so important. It is not just about food and farming. It is about ensuring the security and self-determination of our country. We must support not only the efforts of farmers, ranchers, and agriculture producers who aim to keep us food-secure, but also the efforts of the renewable energy pioneers in our country, like Kansas corn growers and Kansas sorghum growers who aim to keep us energy independent.

I will be back on the floor soon to deliver another installment of my farm bill impact series and highlight more programs and titles within the bill that I believe Congress must understand and support to ensure that agriculture thrives in America.

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