ICGA and Oil Industry Sue EPA

Jun 17, 2024

The IL Corn Growers Association (ICGA) joined 12 other state corn organizations, and oil industry representatives to sue the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for its inequitable and costly electrification of America’s vehicle fleet.

The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA), 25 state attorneys generals, the American Petrochemical Institute (API), the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufactures (AFPM), auto dealerships, and Valero were among the organizations who filed petitions against the agency.

“In its multipollutant rule, the EPA incentivized the electric vehicle industry for its ability to reduce carbon but refused to acknowledge the positive impact of renewable fuels,” ICGA President Dave Rylander said. “Ethanol is currently decarbonizing our atmosphere. Why are we penalizing our current solution for a technology that is not obtainable at its proposed level, today?”

The oil and agriculture industries request an approach that levels the playing field for all vehicle technologies and fuels to reduce emissions. The EPA’s summary predicts the final rule, released in March, will cost $870 billion in vehicle technology. ICGA’s petition argues the rule’s astronomical price tag requires congressional authorization.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.