New Act Mandates EIA to Track Sustainable Aviation Fuel Supply Chain, Including Feedstock Origin and Imports

The Sustainable Aviation Fuel Information Act is pretty straightforward: it tells the federal government’s data arm, the Energy Information Administration (EIA), to start tracking a whole lot more information about Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). Specifically, it requires the EIA to include detailed SAF data in its regular reports, like the Petroleum Supply Monthly and the Weekly Petroleum Status Report.

What the EIA Has to Start Counting

Think of this bill as handing the EIA a new, highly specific inventory list. The goal is to get a clear picture of where SAF is coming from, how it’s made, and how much is available. The bill mandates tracking three main things, all of which need to be broken down by U.S. state or region where possible: the feedstock (the raw materials) used to produce SAF, including its type and origin; the total production volume within the U.S.; and the total import volume, noting the countries of origin (SEC. 2).

For example, if a SAF producer in Iowa is using corn oil as feedstock, the EIA now needs to track the volume and origin of that corn oil, the amount of SAF produced from it, and make sure that data is statistically sound. Crucially, the bill explicitly bans “double counting,” meaning they can’t count the feedstock and the finished fuel twice, which keeps the data clean and reliable. This new requirement means more administrative work for the EIA, which has to develop new systems to collect this data from producers and suppliers.

Why This Matters for the Real World

This isn't just bureaucratic paperwork; it’s about transparency in a growing market. SAF is key to the aviation industry’s climate goals, but right now, solid, centralized data on its supply chain can be hard to find. For airlines and logistics companies trying to plan their shift to greener fuels, this data is gold. It tells them which states are producing the most SAF, which feedstocks are most common, and how reliant the U.S. is on imports. For investors and policymakers, this new inventory helps identify bottlenecks and opportunities in the supply chain—like knowing if we have enough used cooking oil (a common SAF feedstock) to meet future demand.

Defining the Fuel

To keep things consistent, the bill doesn't create a new definition for the fuel itself. Instead, it points directly to the existing federal tax code (Section 40B(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) to define what counts as “sustainable aviation fuel” (SEC. 3). This is a smart move that avoids regulatory confusion, ensuring that the fuel the EIA is tracking is the exact same fuel that qualifies for existing tax credits. The biggest practical challenge here might be the requirement for the EIA to track feedstock details from foreign countries “whenever possible.” That kind of data collection relies on the cooperation of external entities, which can make a complete picture difficult to assemble.