The Iowa senators joined a bipartisan effort to expand year-round sales of E15 nationwide

December 1, 2022 - WASHINGTON – Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), members of the Agriculture Committee, joined a bipartisan group of Midwest senators on a push to expand the year-round sales of E15 nationwide. The Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act would extend the Reid vapor pressure (RVP) volatility waiver to ethanol blends above ten percent.

Earlier this year, eight governors across the Midwest – led by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds – requested the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issue a permanent RVP waiver to allow their states to sell E15 year-round without restriction. As the EPA sits on their request, the senators introduced this legislation to bring a unified solution and nationwide certainty to the sale of E15.

“As gas prices remain painfully high for many Americans, we consistently see E15 provides consumers with a more affordable option for filling up their tanks. Ethanol is good for the economy, good for national security and good for the environment. In addition to benefiting consumers, it’s time to give some certainty to our farmers and producers,” Grassley said.

“Homegrown ethanol is the cheaper, cleaner option to relieve pain at the pump, and we’ve seen the benefits of year-round E15 sales right here in Iowa,” Ernst said. “By ensuring the year-round sale of higher blends of ethanol across the country, we will bring much-needed certainty to our corn growers, who stand ready to fulfill demands from coast to coast.”

Grassley and Ernst joined Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), John Thune (R-S.D.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Kevin Kramer (R-N.D.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) on the bill.

The bill is also supported by the American Petroleum Institute, SIGMA, National Association of Truck Stop Operators, Renewable Fuels of Association, Growth Energy, National Corn Growers Association, American Coalition for Ethanol, National Farmers Union and the America Farm Bureau Federation.

Full text of the bill is available HERE.

This spring, Grassley and Ernst successfully pressed the Biden administration to allow E15 to be sold in the summer months to give Americans some relief at the pump. They also introduced the Home Front Energy Independence Act, which included a provision that would make E15 available year-round to provide consumers with a more affordable fuel option.
Source: Senator Chuck Grassley