Title 40

SECTION 80.1164

80.1164 What are the attest engagement requirements under the RFS program

§ 80.1164 What are the attest engagement requirements under the RFS program?

The requirements regarding annual attest engagements in §§ 80.125 through 80.127, and 80.130, also apply to any attest engagement procedures required under this subpart. In addition to any other applicable attest engagement procedures, the following annual attest engagement procedures are required under this subpart.

(a) The following attest procedures shall be completed for any obligated party as stated in § 80.1106(a) or exporter of renewable fuel that is subject to the renewable fuel standard under § 80.1105:

(1) Annual compliance demonstration report. (i) Obtain and read a copy of the annual compliance demonstration report required under § 80.1152(a)(1) which contains information regarding all the following:

(A) The obligated party's volume of finished gasoline, reformulated gasoline blendstock for oxygenate blending (RBOB), and conventional gasoline blendstock that becomes finished conventional gasoline upon the addition of oxygenate (CBOB) produced or imported during the reporting year.

(B) Renewable volume obligation (RVO).

(ii) Obtain documentation of any volumes of renewable fuel used in gasoline at the refinery or import facility or exported during the reporting year; compute and report as a finding the total volumes of renewable fuel represented in these documents.

(iii) Compare the volumes of gasoline reported to EPA in the report required under § 80.1152(a)(1) with the volumes, excluding any renewable fuel volumes, contained in the inventory reconciliation analysis under § 80.133, and verify that the volumes reported to EPA agree with the volumes in the inventory reconciliation analysis.

(iv) Compute and report as a finding the obligated party's or exporter's RVO, and any deficit RVO carried over from the previous year or carried into the subsequent year, and verify that the values agree with the values reported to EPA.

(v) Obtain the database, spreadsheet, or other documentation for all RINs used for compliance during the year being reviewed; calculate the total number of RINs used for compliance by year of generation represented in these documents; state whether this information agrees with the report to EPA and report as a finding any exceptions.

(vi) Identify a representative sample, selected in accordance with the guidelines in § 80.127, of RINs used for compliance during the year being reviewed.

(vii) Obtain contracts, invoices or other documentation for RINs in the representative sample obtained in paragraph (a)(1)(vi) of this section, and the product transfer documents for the RINs in the representative sample; state whether the information in these documents agrees with the information in the party's report to EPA and report as a finding any exceptions.

(viii) Verify that the product transfer documents for the representative sample of RINs used for compliance contain the applicable information required under § 80.1153 and report as a finding any product transfer document that does not contain the required information; verify the accuracy of the information contained in the product transfer documents for the representative sample and report as a finding any exceptions.

(2) RIN transaction reports. (i) Identify a representative sample, selected in accordance with the guidelines in § 80.127, separately for each RIN transaction type (RINs purchased, RINs sold, RINs retired) included in the RIN transaction reports required under § 80.1152(a)(2) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain contracts, invoices, or other documentation for each of the representative samples of RIN transactions, and the product transfer documents for each of the representative samples of RIN transactions; compute the transaction types, transaction dates, and RINs traded; state whether the information agrees with the party's reports to EPA and report as a finding any exceptions.

(iii) Verify that the product transfer documents for the representative sample of RINs sold and the representative sample of RINs purchased contain the applicable information required under § 80.1153 and report as a finding any product transfer document that does not contain the required information; verify the accuracy of the information contained in the product transfer documents for the representative samples and report as a finding any exceptions.

(3) Gallon-RIN activity reports. (i) Obtain and read copies of all quarterly gallon-RIN activity reports required under § 80.1152(a)(3) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain the database, spreadsheet, or other documentation used to generate the information in the gallon-RIN activity reports; compare the RIN transaction samples reviewed under paragraph (a)(2) of this section with the corresponding entries in the database or spreadsheet and report as a finding any discrepancies; compute the total number of current-year and prior-year gallon-RINs owned at the start and end of the quarter, purchased, sold and retired, and for parties that reported gallon-RIN activity for RINs assigned to a volume of renewable fuel, the volume of renewable fuel owned at the end of the quarter, as represented in these documents; and state whether this information agrees with the party's reports to EPA.

(b) The following attest procedures shall be completed for any renewable fuel producer or importer:

(1) RIN-generation reports. (i) Obtain and read copies of the quarterly RIN generation reports required under § 80.1152(b)(1) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain production data for each renewable fuel batch produced or imported during the year being reviewed; compute the RIN numbers, production dates, types, volumes of denaturant and applicable equivalence values, and production volumes for each batch; state whether this information agrees with the party's reports to EPA and report as a finding any exceptions.

(iii) Verify that the proper number of RINs were generated and assigned for each batch of renewable fuel produced or imported, as required under § 80.1126.

(iv) Identify a representative sample, selected in accordance with the guidelines in § 80.127, of renewable fuel batches produced or imported during the year being reviewed; obtain product transfer documents for the representative sample; verify that the product transfer documents contain the applicable information required under § 80.1153; verify the accuracy of the information contained in the product transfer documents; report as a finding any product transfer document that does not contain the applicable information required under § 80.1153.

(2) RIN transaction reports. (i) Identify a representative sample, selected in accordance with the guidelines in § 80.127, separately for each transaction type (RINs purchased, RINs sold, RINs retired) included in the RIN transaction reports required under § 80.1152(b)(2) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain contracts, invoices, or other documentation for each of the representative samples of RIN transactions, and the product transfer documents for each of the representative samples of RIN transactions; compute the transaction types, transaction dates, and the RINs traded; state whether this information agrees with the party's reports to EPA and report as a finding any exceptions.

(3) Gallon-RIN activity reports. (i) Obtain and read copies of the quarterly gallon-RIN activity reports required under § 80.1152(b)(3) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain the database, spreadsheet, or other documentation used to generate the information in the gallon-RIN activity reports; compare the RIN transaction samples reviewed under paragraph (b)(2) of this section with the corresponding entries in the data base or spreadsheet and report as a finding any discrepancies; compute the total number of current-year and prior-year gallon-RINs owned at the start and end of the quarter, purchased, sold and retired, and for parties that reported gallon-RIN activity for RINs assigned to a volume of renewable fuel, the volume of renewable fuel owned at the end of the quarter, as represented in these documents; and state whether this information agrees with the party's reports to EPA.

(c) The following attest procedures shall be completed for any party other than an obligated party or renewable fuel producer or importer that owns any RINs during a calendar year.

(1) RIN transaction reports. (i) Identify a representative sample, selected in accordance with the guidelines in § 80.127, separately for each RIN transaction type (RINs purchased, RINs sold, RINs retired) included in the RIN transaction reports required under § 80.1152(c)(1) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain contracts, invoices, or other documentation for the representative samples of RIN transactions, and the product transfer documents for the representative samples of RIN transactions; compute the transaction types, transaction dates, and the RINs traded; state whether this information agrees with the party's reports to EPA and report as a finding any exceptions.

(iii) Verify that the transfer documents for the representative sample of RINs sold and the representative sample of RINs purchased contain the applicable information required under § 80.1153 and report as a finding any product transfer document that does not contain the required information; verify the accuracy of the information contained in the product transfer documents for the representative samples and report as a finding any exceptions.

(2) Gallon-RIN activity reports. (i) Obtain and read copies of the gallon-RIN activity reports required under § 80.1152(c)(2) for the compliance year.

(ii) Obtain the database, spreadsheet, or other documentation used to generate the information in the gallon-RIN activity reports; compare the RIN transaction samples reviewed under paragraph (c)(1) of this section with the corresponding entries in the data base or spreadsheet and report as a finding any discrepancies; compute the total number of current-year and prior-year gallon-RINs owned at the start and end of the quarter, purchased, sold and retired, and for parties that reported gallon-RIN activity for RINs assigned to a volume of renewable fuel, the volume of renewable fuel owned at the end of the quarter, as represented in these documents; and state whether this information agrees with the party's reports to EPA.

(d) The following submission dates apply to the attest engagements required under this section. (1) For each compliance year, each party subject to the attest engagement requirements under this section shall cause the reports required under this section to be submitted to EPA by May 31 of the year following the compliance year.

(2) For the 2007 compliance year only, the attest engagement required under paragraph (a) of this section may be submitted to EPA with the attest engagement for the 2008 compliance year.

(e) The party conducting the procedures under this section shall obtain a written representation from a company representative that the copies of the reports required by this section are complete and accurate copies of the reports filed with EPA.

(f) The party conducting the procedures under this section shall identify and report as a finding the commercial computer program used by the party to track the data required by the regulations in this subpart, if any.

[72 FR 24004, May 1, 2007, as amended at 73 FR 57257, Oct. 2, 2008]