During the final hours of the previous Administration, three small refinery exemptions were issued to facilities operated by Sinclair Oil.

The EPA has petitioned the Tenth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to invalidate the exemptions on the grounds that the refineries were in all probability ineligible to receive the concessions with respect to Renewable Fuels Standard obligations for 2018 and 2019.

The action by the EPA is supported by the Renewable Fuels Association. Geoff Cooper the president of the organization stated, "if allowed to stand, these improperly granted exemptions would erase the demand for 260 million gallons of renewable fuels".