(ST. PAUL, Minn.) – In Thursday’s hearing of the Senate Taxes Committee Senator Rob Kupec (DFL-Moorhead) presented legislation that can help Minnesota become a national leader in the growing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) industry.
Produced from many sources, including used cooking oil, municipal waste and renewable feedstocks, SAF is a growing piece of the effort to decarbonize the aviation industry. According to the recently created MN SAF Hub, demand for SAF is expected to increase to 3.5 billion gallons by 2030, but total domestic production was only 15.8 million gallons in 2022. Bringing SAF production up to scale is critical to these goals.
“Sustainable aviation fuel has the potential to rapidly decarbonize the aviation industry, provide additional revenue streams for a wide array of farmers, communities, and industries, and create good-paying jobs throughout Minnesota. But this only happens if we take steps to bring production to scale,” said Sen. Kupec. “This is more than just a win-win for our state, it’s a win-win-win-win. We can support our farmers, reduce our carbon emissions and grow our economy, and this bill will help us do so.”
In Thursday’s hearing, Sen. Kupec co-presented SF 1312, which expands an existing SAF credit which was created in 2023. The proposal provides $7.4 million for 2025, 2026, and 2027, and $2.1 million yearly from 2028 through 2035. It also updates the definition of SAF, incentivizes carbon intensity reduction, and allows any unused allocation of the credit to carry forward.
Thanks to a strong and diversified agriculture sector, Minnesota is well-positioned to be a leader in this new industry, and plans are already in motion to develop the industry within the state. In November, Moorhead was selected as the future home of a SAF processing facility which will begin production in 2030. This facility will create an estimated 650 jobs.
“This is an opportunity for Minnesota to once again lead the way, and the broad, bipartisan support behind SAF makes it one of our top priorities for this year,” said Sen. Kupec. “I’m proud to be a co-author on this bill with Republican and DFL colleagues, and I look forward to making it a reality in our state.”
S.F. 1312, which is co-authored by Sen. Kupec, is also authored by Senate Tax Chair Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope), Sen. John Jasinski (R-Faribault) who co-presented in Thursday’s hearing, Sen. Bill Weber (R-Luverne), and Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis).
At the conclusion of Thursday’s hearing the bill passed on a voice vote and now moves to the Senate Floor for a future vote.
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