Over 250 organizations and companies signed a letter to Congressional leaders this week calling for quick passage of S. 5145, the Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2022, a bipartisan bill that allows for year-round of E15 by extending the 1-psi Reid vapor pressure (RVP) waiver to fuel blends containing gasoline and over 10 percent ethanol.
“Due to the current policy, it is extremely difficult for many fuel marketers and retailers that may desire to offer E15 to their customers in the summer months to source that product,” the letter states. “By ensuring uniformity across the nation’s fuel supply chain, federal legislation will provide more flexibility and result in more consistent outcomes than a state-by-state regulatory landscape. In the absence of such legislation, we could see gasoline marketplace uncertainty and political disputes over E15 continue to resurface every summer.”
The letter was signed by ethanol producer companies, organizations and stakeholders, farm groups, corn growers, petroleum interests, convenience store owners, and more. “We all agree that the marketplace desperately needs the certainty and stability that this legislation would provide,” said Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “And by ensuring consumers nationwide have uninterrupted access to E15, this bill would help lower pump prices, enhance our nation’s energy security, and reduce emissions of both greenhouse gases and the pollutants that contribute to air pollution and smog.”
Earlier this week, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said if they are unable to get the bill passed in the lame duck session it will be a priority in the new Congress. “I think that’s a very difficult thing to get done this year,” Grassley said during his weekly press call with farm reporters Tuesday. “But we are not going to stop fighting for it for sure.”