Congressman Dusty Johnson (R) represents South Dakota in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was recently elected to his fourth term in office. During his time in Congress, Representative Johnson has been a steadfast leader and champion for biofuels.
We recently had the chance to discuss the importance of biofuels with Rep. Johnson.
Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
I live in Mitchell with my wife and three sons not far from the local POET plant. I serve as a co-Chair of the Congressional Biofuels Caucus, the Ag Trade Caucus, and also of the Sustainable Aviation Caucus. So, a lot of my time is spent on biofuels issues. And not just because it’s important to Mitchell and to South Dakota — although they certainly are — but also because I just fundamentally believe that biofuels are a huge part of how we’re going to power America for a long time.
Why is the biofuels industry important to you and South Dakota?
Obviously, there are a lot of reasons that biofuels are important. We often have a tendency to focus on their impact on corn basis, how having that additional buyer for corn can dramatically help producers. Sometimes, we focus on the environmental benefits. It’s clearly less carbon-intensive than gasoline alone. But I think my biggest passion for biofuels comes from the idea that this is American energy. We want America to be energy-strong. It’s exciting that South Dakota and the rest of the Corn Belt can play such a leading role in that.
The availability of E15 is growing in South Dakota. Why do you think it’s important that consumers have a choice to access higher blends of biofuels at the pump?
I’ve always been a big believer in freedom at the pump, and we know that when they’re given the option to buy E15, consumers are increasingly willing to do so. It is frustrating that we’re not able to have E15 year-round. I think we’d have even more adoption if that was a product that consumers knew would be there month in and month out. To me, it’s the biggest no-brainer policy for American energy space. There’s no good reason that we don’t have it available year-round. It would unleash an extra eight billion gallons a year of American fuel. Getting year-round E15 has been a top priority for the Congressional Biofuels Caucus, and it’s something that I’m hopeful we can get some movement on soon.
POET is the largest producer of bioethanol in the world. We grind U.S. corn to produce biofuel, and we access markets by rail, truck, etc. POET is also the 17th largest container shipper in the U.S. – shipping POET Distillers Grains to markets all over the world. Your committee work is focused on Ag and T&I. Tell us how that work is important to South Dakota, bioethanol, and rural economies.
My committee assignments of agriculture and transportation really are the perfect marriage. I think our office spends more time on supply chains than any other office in Congress because we understand that we can’t get American ag-based products to market if we don’t have a great supply chain. As the author of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act, which we passed last Congress, and the Ocean Shipping Reform Implementation Act, which we passed out of the House of this Congress, I just know that if American companies like POET are provided the infrastructure to be able to get their products to consumers, we’re all going to be better off.
Any parting thoughts for our readers today?
I think the best for biofuels is yet to come. I know there’s been a lot of attention paid to EVs, and I don’t have any doubt that over the next few years, EVs will increase their market share somewhat. But I still think that American biofuels are going to be playing an even bigger role ten years from now and twenty years from now than they are even today. I think the future is bright.
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