Fuels Advisory: EPA Proposes Replacing RIN Confusion with Audit Nightmare

In response to concerns and Congressional pressure over widespread fraud in the renewable fuels market, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") is proposing to establish an innocent purchaser defense, for those companies that purchase Renewable Identification Numbers ("RINs") audited by an EPA-registered, third-party auditor.¹ At the heart of the program is a complicated and invasive auditing scheme, whereby an independent third-party would verify the validity of RINs generated by a renewable fuel producer through quarterly in-plant audits and records review and monitoring.