Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) this week introduced the bipartisan Ethanol for America Act to eliminate unnecessary barriers and make it easier for Americans to fuel their vehicles with homegrown E15.
The legislation would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to finalize rulemaking from 2021 to make the E15 fuel label clearer and more consumer-oriented. It would also confirm the compatibility of E15 with existing underground fuel storage and dispensing equipment, ensuring business owners are not required to make costly and unnecessary infrastructure changes.
Senators Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) have co-signed this bill. Representatives Adrian Smith (R-Neb.) and Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.) introduced this legislation in the U.S. House.
Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Geoff Cooper thanked the lawmakers for introducing the legislation, which he says would lower pump prices for American consumers, bolster U.S. energy security, and open new markets for our nation’s family farmers. “The most effective way to keep a lid on gas prices is to expand and diversify the domestic fuel supply with higher ethanol blends like E15. Knocking down regulatory barriers and allowing E15 to be stored and distributed in existing infrastructure will lower fuel costs for Americans and strengthen the market’s resilience against global supply disruptions.”
In a June letter to President Trump, Cooper detailed how outdated regulatory barriers are blocking larger volumes of ethanol and fuel blends like lower-cost, American-made E15 from reaching the marketplace. “Confusing and restrictive E15 infrastructure regulations remain in place, leading many U.S. retail station operators to mistakenly believe they must upgrade or replace their existing fuel dispensers, storage tanks, or other equipment before they can offer E15,” he wrote. “This hesitancy to offer E15 persists despite a substantial body of research demonstrating that the vast majority of existing equipment in the market today is fully compatible with E15.”