Ag, Biofuel Groups Continue Call for Year-Round Sales of Lower-Cost E15

January 07, 2026

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(Renewable Fuels Association) In a letter sent today to congressional leadership, a coalition of more than 70 biofuel and agricultural organizations called for the immediate passage of legislation to allow year-round nationwide sales of the American-made E15 fuel blend, containing 15 percent ethanol. Year-round E15 would benefit drivers with savings of 10 to 30 cents per gallon and improve markets for America’s farmers.

“The U.S. Department of Agriculture projects a record 16.8-billion-bushel corn harvest in 2025—up roughly 13 percent from 2024,” the groups wrote. “While this demonstrates the strength and productivity of America’s farmers, it also intensifies pressure on corn prices and farm incomes. Expanding E15 access is one of the most immediate and practical ways to address this imbalance. When fully scaled, year-round, nationwide E15 is poised to create new domestic demand for billions of bushels of corn and sorghum, help stabilize markets, support farmers, and deliver consumer savings at the pump.”

The letter was led by the Renewable Fuels Association, American Farm Bureau Federation, Growth Energy, and the National Corn Growers Association.

In recent years, the organizations noted, E15 availability during the summer driving season has depended on temporary emergency waivers. While these annual actions provide short-term relief, they are not a sustainable or reliable solution. Year-to-year uncertainty discourages investment in fuel infrastructure, confuses consumers, and undermines confidence among retailers and refiners.

“With a record corn crop filling bins across America, farmers cannot afford another season of uncertainty and negative margins. Markets need consistency and predictability, which requires permanent legislative action by Congress. We respectfully urge you to act this year to pass year-round E15 legislation,” the groups wrote. Read the full letter here. READ MORE

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Excerpt from Argus Media: But there are still thorny issues to resolve — such as the effective date for any changes — and some provisions risk riling energy and farm interests otherwise on board with reining in exemptions.

Adding to, rather than replacing, the current E15 bill would, for instance, keep a provision effectively compensating some small refineries for past biofuel mandates. That draft would return compliance credits to certain refiners and — unlike current rules where credits expire — allow their use in future years. Even small facilities can spend tens of millions of dollars each year buying enough credits to comply with the mandates, and returned credits usable indefinitely would be even more valuable.

Eligibility is limited to small refineries that retired credits to meet biofuel mandates in 2016, 2017 or 2018 and had hardship petitions outstanding to start December 2022, as well as companies that complied with 2018 quotas and had petitions denied before July 2022. EPA exemption data those years is limited, making it unclear which companies would benefit.

Calling on Congress

The groups working on revised bill text have another challenge: convincing Congress to act.

Growth Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association and dozens of other farm and biofuel groups urged Congress to pass some E15 fix "as soon as possible" in a joint letter to House and Senate leaders on Wednesday, a nod to the looming deadline to fund the government before a potential shutdown later this month.

E15 legislation is unlikely to pass on its own, so lobbyists are closely tracking the legislative calendar for opportunities to add it to larger packages. The letter does not mention the API talks, which are proceeding separately.

Small refiners worried about losing access to relief — at the same time as the Trump administration readies what could be record-high biofuel quotas for the next two years — will also press sympathetic lawmakers.

Notably, a statement accompanying a bipartisan appropriations bill draft released this week recommends that EPA rethink "policies and procedures" for exemptions in response to a 2022 Government Accountability Office analysis that criticized the agency's approach. That watchdog report questioned EPA's argument that small refineries can easily pass on the costs of meeting biofuel mandates in fuel sales.

Energy lobbyists noted that the statement's recommendations are nonbinding and that similar language around exemptions has appeared in past statements accompanying appropriations bills. But it signals that some members of Congress might oppose any changes to fuel policy that could raise costs for refineries in their districts and states. READ MORE

Excerpt from Politico Pro: Senate Ag Republicans want to use this month's spending bills to implement year-round sales of E15 fuel, a move that could open more consistent markets for struggling farmers.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) told reporters Thursday that year-round E15 needs to be attached to a vehicle like the spending bills in order to pass: “We shouldn't have to spend a single minute talking about E15 on the floor of the United States Senate, we shouldn't have to worry about getting 60 votes.”

“We need to get it done. That’s my comment,” said Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.).

Passing year-round E15 would allow gas stations to sell fuel with a blend of 15 percent ethanol, which proponents argue is more cost-effective and would give American farmers more markets for feedstock commodities like corn.

Lawmakers and a coalition of agriculture and biofuels groups have tried to attach year-round E15 provisions to funding bills and other must-pass vehicles for years. They’ve all been stripped out or otherwise rebuked. READ MORE

Excerpt from Energy.AgWired.com: U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins addressed the American Farm Bureau Federation convention for the first time Monday, hitting on key issues being discussed by the nation’s largest general farm organization this week, including the need for nationwide, year-round E15.

Rollins says President Trump is arguably the most pro-biofuels leader in history. “While the Trump administration has gone as far as we can regulatory-wise to provide EPA E15 waivers, Congress must now do its job and pass nationwide, year-round E15 legislation to continue to drive domestic crop demand, a clear win-win for farmers and consumers.”

In addition, Rollins noted that the Trump EPA has “proposed the highest and most aggressive renewable volume obligation, or RVO, proposal in history, which, once final, will ensure corn and soy and sorghum producers have a long-term certainty and a demand stream domestically that is already helping consumer prices at the pump.”

Talking about trade and increased exports, Rollins said ethanol was a big winner in 2025, with exports increasing by 11 percent, and she highlighted the importance of extending the 45Z biofuel tax credit through 2029 in the One Big Beautiful Bill.

Listen to Rollins’ full remarks here:
Play AFBF26 USDA Secy Rollins address 29:59 READ MORE

Excerpt from Syngenta Canada: The USDA has revised its 2025 US corn production higher — not lower as much of the trade had expected — leading to an upward revision in ending stocks and reinforcing the view that supplies will remain burdensome in the 2025-26 marketing year.

In its much-anticipated monthly supply-demand update on Monday, the USDA pegged last year’s American corn crop at record 17.021 billion bu, an increase of 269 million bu from the government’s November estimate and a hefty 14% above a year earlier.

The revision was driven by a 0.5-bu/acre increase in the average yield to a record 186.5 bu, up 7.2 bu from a year earlier, along with a 1.3-million-acre rise in harvested area to 91.3 million acres.

Since July, US estimated US harvested area has expanded by 4.5 million acres and now sits 10% above 2024.

The 2025 crop blows the doors off the previous high set in 2023 by 1.7 billion bu, or more than 40 million tonnes.

Beginning stocks for 2025-26 were also revised 17 million bu higher this month to 1.551 billion bu, bringing the total estimated marketing year supply to 18.597 billion bu, up from 18.309 billion previously and well above 16.677 billion in 2024-25.

On the demand side, total US corn use for 2025-26 was revised higher by 90 million bu to 16.37 billion bu, largely reflecting stronger feed and residual demand. Feed and residual use was raised 100 million bu to 6.2 billion, based on indicated disappearance during the September–November quarter as shown in the latest Grain Stocks report, also released today.

Partially offsetting that increase, food, seed, and industrial use was trimmed slightly due to reduced corn use for glucose, dextrose, and high fructose corn syrup. Export demand was left unchanged at 3.2 billion bu, while ethanol demand also remained steady at 5.6 billion.

With supply growth outpacing demand, U.S. ending stocks were raised 198 million bu month over month to 2.227 billion bu, well above the average trade guess of 1.985 billion bu. On a year-over-year basis, ending stocks are now up roughly 46%, highlighting the scale of the supply buildup.

Despite the heavier balance sheet, the USDA raised the season-average farm price received by producers by a dime to $4.10/bu, reflecting recent strength in cash markets and feed demand.

Globally, coarse grain production for 2025-26 was also revised higher, up 14.8 million metric tons to 1.591 billion tonnes. Foreign corn production increased, led by China, where output was raised to a record 301.2 million tonnes, up from 295 million previously and 294.92 million a year ago.

As a result, global corn ending stocks were lifted 11.8 million tonnes this month to 290.91 million, adding to the broader narrative of ample world supplies.

Corn futures reacted strongly negatively to today’s report, with contracts down between 15-25 cents this afternoon. READ MORE

Excerpt from DTN Progressive Farmer: Shortly after USDA released its latest crop estimates on Monday, in which the agency bumped 2025 corn production to a record 17.02 billion bushels (bb), a national biofuels group and a commodity group sounded the alarm on what that much corn in the market could mean for U.S. farmers.

The latest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates places the crop at 186.5 bushels per acre (bpa), which was far above pre-report estimates.

The report prompted the Renewable Fuels Association to renew its calls for permanent, year-round E15 nationally to boost corn demand.

"Today's surprise USDA report serves as a sobering wake-up call about the state of the farm economy and underscores the need for lawmakers to take immediate action to expand markets for America's corn growers," said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper.

"The fastest and easiest way to shore up the growing supply-demand imbalance in the corn market is to permanently remove the summertime barrier on E15 sales and eliminate obsolete fuel retail infrastructure rules. These decades-old regulatory barriers are literally choking off demand and shortchanging America's farmers."

Allowing year-round E15, he said, would create new demand for more than 2 billion bushels of corn and sorghum.

"Unlocking that opportunity now would deliver much-needed economic relief to farming communities across the Heartland, while also saving consumers an estimated 10 to 30 cents per gallon at the pump," Cooper said in a statement.

The National Corn Growers Association said on Monday the surplus supply promises to keep corn prices low as farmers struggle to pay high input costs.

"We need long-term market solutions, and we need them quickly, or this is going to deepen the economic crisis in the countryside," said Ohio farmer and NCGA President Jed Bower.

"The urgency for Congress and the president to open new markets abroad and expand consumer access to ethanol just increased exponentially."

Bower said an immediate boost to demand would be the passage of legislation authorizing year-round consumer access to E15, and at no cost to consumers and without a need to invest in infrastructure.

NCGA said it continues to push the administration to "quickly broker" additional high-volume deals with other countries and finalize details on deals already announced.

"We expect the economic and financial challenges growers are already facing will only worsen with excess supply," Bower said.

Cooper and the RFA also called for several policy and regulatory changes to "help prevent a broader economic downturn" in agriculture.

Cooper called on Congress to adopt legislation permitting year-round, nationwide sales of E15 without relying on temporary emergency waivers, as well as passing the "Ethanol for America Act," which would simplify regulatory requirements related to E15 pump labeling and equipment compatibility.

"Congress and the administration should repeal antiquated 'denaturant' rules that require ethanol producers to add toxic substances to their clean, renewable fuel -- rules that complicate the production of sustainable aviation fuel and ultimately reduce corn demand by displacing ethanol with low-quality hydrocarbon additives," RFA said in a news release.

The group also called on the Trump administration to finalize the latest Renewable Fuel Standard volumes and to reallocate any exempted volumes. "While EPA's proposed RFS volumes for 2026 and 2027 would help strengthen demand for farmers, those benefits depend on ensuring that exemptions do not erode the program's integrity," RFA said.

Last week, a group of more than 70 national and state agriculture and biofuel organizations sent a letter to congressional leadership urging them to ensure year-round E15 legislation as soon as possible to strengthen agricultural markets as farmers prepare for the 2026 planting season. READ MORE

Excerpt from Renewable Fuels Association: The U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed today that farmers harvested a record-large corn crop in 2025, estimated at more than 17 billion bushels. At the same time, corn stockpiles are expected to climb to their highest level in eight years, while prices are projected to fall to lows not seen in six years. The Renewable Fuels Association said the latest USDA report underscores the pressing need to eliminate regulatory obstacles that are suppressing demand and limiting market opportunities for corn and ethanol alike.

“Today’s surprise USDA report serves as a sobering wake-up call about the state of farm economy and underscores the need for lawmakers to take immediate action to expand markets for America's corn growers,” said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “The fastest and easiest way to shore up the growing supply-demand imbalance in the corn market is to permanently remove the summertime barrier on E15 sales and eliminate obsolete fuel retail infrastructure rules. These decades-old regulatory barriers are literally choking off demand and shortchanging America’s farmers.”

Cooper added that expanding access to higher ethanol blends represents the most effective path to creating long-term stability in the corn market. “Allowing E15 to be sold year-round nationwide could, over time, create new demand for more than 2 billion bushels of corn and sorghum,” he said. “Unlocking that opportunity now would deliver much-needed economic relief to farming communities across the Heartland, while also saving consumers an estimated 10 to 30 cents per gallon at the pump.”

According to RFA, several policy and regulatory changes are necessary to help prevent a broader economic downturn in the agricultural sector:

Congress should adopt legislation permitting year-round, nationwide sales of E15 without relying on temporary emergency waivers.
Lawmakers should pass the Ethanol for America Act, which would simplify regulatory requirements related to E15 pump labeling and equipment compatibility.
Congress and the administration should repeal antiquated “denaturant” rules that require ethanol producers to add toxic substances to their clean, renewable fuel—rules that complicate the production of sustainable aviation fuel and ultimately reduce corn demand by displacing ethanol with low-quality hydrocarbon additives.
The administration should also finalize the robust Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volume requirements it proposed last year, restrict small refinery exemptions (SREs), and reallocate any exempted volumes. While EPA’s proposed RFS volumes for 2026 and 2027 would help strengthen demand for farmers, those benefits depend on ensuring that exemptions do not erode the program’s integrity. The last time corn supplies were this large and prices this low—during the 2018–19 period—widespread SRE approvals significantly undermined demand for ethanol, biodiesel, corn, and soybeans.

“By taking these straightforward actions, Congress and the administration can reinforce the strength of American agriculture and help avert a looming crisis in farm country,” Cooper said. “We’re calling on policymakers to act swiftly to remove barriers to expanded ethanol use and open new markets for U.S. farmers.”