WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, today made the following statement after the Environmental Protection Agency denied the state of Texas’ request to reduce the Renewable Fuel Standard requirement:

“I’m disappointed that EPA Administrator Johnson denied the Renewable Fuel Standard waiver for Texas. Now it is more important than ever that Speaker Pelosi allow a vote on an energy policy that our constituents and hungry people around the world can live with as we determine the realistic contribution that we can gain from renewable fuels.

“In the span of a year, the price of a dozen eggs rose by 35 percent, a gallon of milk by 23 percent and a loaf of bread by 16 percent. Fuel and fertilizer prices are making it harder for family farms to survive from one season to the next and the cost of the RFS mandate is now measured in billions of dollars. Denying the waiver will do nothing to help Texas families struggling to meet their budgets.”