While governors and federal lawmakers in oil-producing states have asked the EPA for waivers to the Renewable Fuel Standard based on economic concerns, an environmental group has requested a...
Todd Neeley
DTN Staff Reporter
DTN staff reporter Todd Neeley is a lifelong resident of Lincoln, Neb., and a 1994 graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where he earned a bachelor's degree in news editorial.
Neeley worked as a reporter and photographer with the weekly newspaper The Milford Times in southeast Nebraska until 2002. He then went to work as the government reporter for The Hastings Tribune in central Nebraska, where he covered the Nebraska Legislature and city and county government. Neeley was hired as a staff reporter at DTN in August 2004, where he has worked on numerous in-depth reporting projects, covered the ethanol and crop insurance beats. He is now an environmental reporter for DTN, covering Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act and other issues important to farmers.
During his 18-year career, Neeley has earned more than 50 state and national awards for reporting and writing. In 2010 he was a Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Award finalist for a series of stories on ethanol and oil subsidies.
Recent Blogs by Author
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Ethanol groups lament EPA's 'lost opportunity' to update fuel's air-quality profile in new study.
More From This Author
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FDA Pulls Back on Sanitizer Restriction
The Food and Drug Administration has drawn back on recent restrictions placed on ethanol plants producing hand sanitizer.
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Farmer Prevails in Wetlands Case
Illinois farmer Kurt Wilke is awaiting a ruling on whether he will be reimbursed for engineering and legal expenses on a wetlands determination case.
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Ethanol Price Manipulation Case Moves
A federal judge will allow an ethanol-market manipulation case to continue against Archer Daniels Midland.
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Injunction Sought Against Water Rule
A federal court in New Mexico has been asked for a preliminary injunction against parts of the Navigable Waters Protection Rule.
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Sacketts to Continue Fight
A federal appeals court denied EPA's motion to dismiss an appeal by an Idaho property owner who has fought an alleged Clean Water Act violation for years.
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Ethanol Shows Signs of Life
As states begin to reopen during the COVID-19 crisis, ethanol begins to show signs of a comeback.
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Ethanol COVID-19 Relief Gains Momentum
Ethanol groups are pushing federal lawmakers to include some sort of financial relief for biofuel companies in a possible upcoming congressional package.
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Meatpacker Worker Deaths Spark Lawsuits
Two separate courts are asked to hold meatpacking companies accountable for two COVID-19 employee deaths.
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Corps Sued Over Miss. River Management
A new lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers points to instream structures along the Middle Mississippi River as the cause of flooding along a 195-mile stretch of the river.
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AGs: Mandate COVID-19 Safety at Plants
The chief law enforcement officers from 20 states told President Donald Trump on Tuesday that meatpacking plants need to be required to implement COVID-19 safety measures.
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Biofuel Groups Ask Congress for Relief
Biofuel groups on Monday told congressional leaders the industry needs direct economic relief.
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First Settlement Checks Go to June
The administrator in the Syngenta corn seed settlement case will continue sending out the first round of payments until June 1.
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Senators Ask Trump to Stand by RFS
In response to recent requests to waive Renewable Fuel Standard requirements in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators has asked the president to stand with...
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Stamps May Be Headed to Federal Trial
A Decatur, Michigan, farm couple may be heading to trial after their plea agreements were rejected.
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Enviro Lawsuit Aims at New Water Rule
Several environmental groups asked a federal court this week to vacate the new Navigable Waters Protection Act.
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Lawsuit Aims at New Water Rule
Several environmental groups asked a federal court this week to vacate the new Navigable Waters Protection Act.
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Lawsuit Alleges Water Rule Exposes Ag
An amended lawsuit filed in federal court takes aim at the new Navigable Waters Protection Act.
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Tax Groups, Think Tanks Want RFS Waiver
A group of 24 tax groups and think tanks have asked President Donald Trump to waive the 2020 RFS volumes in light of the COVID-19 epidemic.
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SCOTUS Vacates Maui Groundwater Case
A U.S. Supreme Court decision on Tuesday leaves the door open for the EPA to regulate groundwater.
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Ag Groups Rally for Glyphosate
A number of agriculture groups and companies have filed a motion in a federal appeals court to defend glyphosate.
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EPA New Water Rule in Effect by June 22
Publishing of the Navigable Waters Protection Rule in the Federal Register on Tuesday sets the stage for legal challenges.
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Ethanol Could See $10 Billion in Losses
The ethanol industry looks for economic relief following a denial by USDA in the latest round of COVID-19 funds for agriculture.
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COVID-19 Cited in Waiver Request
Ethanol industry leaders respond to a request from governors in five states to waive volume obligations in the Renewable Fuel Standard.
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Hog Farmers Could Face $5 Billion Loss
The loss of demand from a closed food service sector has led to falling hog prices and calls for help from hog farmers. The National Pork Producers Council wants USDA to buy at least $1 billion in pork for food-aid programs, as...
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EPA Challenged in Court
Though the EPA has asked a federal court to dismiss a Clean Water Act case against an Idaho property owner, the owners want legal certainty about the future of their land.
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EPA Challenged in Court
Though the EPA has asked a federal court to dismiss a Clean Water Act case against an Idaho property owner, the owners want legal certainty about the future of their land.
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Mo Basin Faces Above Average Runoff
Annual runoff in the Missouri River basin expected to be nowhere near 2019 levels, but still above average.
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Pork Plant Closed Temporarily
Smithfield Foods is the latest food company to close down operations to protect workers from COVID-19.
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USDA to Expand Cattle Price Inquiry
The Trump administration has decided to expand a current USDA investigation into cattle market prices to include market moves during the COVID-19 outbreak.
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Court Rejects SRE Program Rehearing
Refiners have 90 days to file a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court after a circuit court denied refiners' request for a rehearing on a case alleging EPA improperly granted small-refinery exemptions to the Renewable Fuel Standard...
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POET Idles Three Plants, Delays Startup
Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based POET Inc. announced it is idling three ethanol plants and delaying start-up of a new plant.
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Kansas 'Ag-Gag' Law Permanently Blocked
A federal judge has ruled the state of Kansas can no longer enforce its "ag-gag" law.
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Coronavirus Actions Puts Strain on Ag
Farmers' struggle during uncertain economic times is being made more difficult by measures taken in response to COVID-19.
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EPA Drops Compliance Order on Sacketts
The EPA has ended an administrative compliance order for an Idaho landowner who was to have allegedly violated the Clean Water Act.
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Court Changes Course on Checkoff Speech
A new court ruling may have ended a legal fight about how beef checkoff dollars are spent.
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EPA Holds Off on RFS Waivers Decision
The EPA quietly announced the next steps on the small-refinery exemptions program following recent court action.
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Valero Halts Some Ethanol Production
One of the nation's largest ethanol companies has temporarily stopped production at two of its plants in response to falling gasoline demand from the COVID-19 outbreak.
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Valero Ethanol Plants Halt Production
One of the nation's largest ethanol companies has temporarily stopped production at two of its plants in response to falling gasoline demand from the COVID-19 outbreak.
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DOJ Decides Not to Appeal SRE Ruling
The U.S. Department of Justice missed the March 24 deadline to file an appeal of a recent court ruling on EPA's small-refinery exemptions program.
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Small Refiners Appeal Ruling on Waiver
Small refiners have filed an appeal with a federal court on a recent small-refinery exemptions decision. As of Tuesday afternoon the federal government had not filed an appeal.
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Small Refiners Appeal Ruling on Waivers
Small refiners have filed an appeal with a federal court on a recent small-refinery exemptions decision. As of Tuesday afternoon, the federal government had not filed an appeal.
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POET Changes Corn Buying at Plants
Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based POET LLC has changed its corn-buying habits at seven of its 27 corn-ethanol plants.
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EPA Glyphosate Decision Challenged
EPA's interim approval of the herbicide glyphosate faces a legal challenge in a federal appeals court.
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Energy Markets Erode Ethanol Margins
An oil war between Saudi Arabia and falling gasoline demand as the result of COVID-19 is putting the ethanol industry in a precarious position.
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Troubled Missouri River Waters Lurking
Peru, Nebraska, farmer Brett Adams expects floodwaters to return at some point in 2020, as he continues to think about the future of his family farm.
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Syngenta Corn Payments to Hit Mailboxes
Syngenta corn settlement payments to farmers and agriculture businesses are set to hit the mail this week.
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Trump to Appeal RFS Waivers Ruling
With a Monday deadline approaching, the Trump administration reportedly is set to appeal a recent court decision on small-refinery exemptions.