U.S. Senators Introduce Bill to Expand E15 Gasoline Sales, with Support from Oil Group

November 30, 2022

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by Stephanie Kelly (Reuters) U.S. senators from Nebraska and Minnesota introduced legislation on Tuesday that would expand nationwide sales of E15, a gasoline with a higher blend of ethanol, after gaining support for the bill from an oil industry trade group for the first time, Senator Deb Fischer from Nebraska told Reuters.

The legislation, introduced by Fischer and Senator Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota and supported by the American Petroleum Institute (API), would mark a huge win for the ethanol industry and corn farmers who have repeatedly tried to expand sales of E15 but have faced hurdles.

While it is unknown if the bill has the support it needs to pass both the House and Senate to become law, the backing of the oil industry has lifted a notable political obstacle.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) anti-smog regulations currently restrict summertime sales of E15, even though research has shown the higher percentage blend may not increase smog relative to the 10% blend called E10 that is now sold year-round.

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"By allowing for the year-round sale of E15 nationwide while also preserving access to lower ethanol gasoline blends, this bipartisan legislation strengthens the reliability of the fuel supply chain and ensures American consumers have access to the fuels they depend on every day," said Will Hupman, API's vice president of downstream policy.

The legislation also has the support of Senator Kevin Cramer from North Dakota, a co-sponsor of the bill. Cramer's support is significant, as North Dakota is one of the top oil-producing states, Fischer said.

Organizations including the API, the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and the National Farmers Union wrote to congressional leaders this month to urge them to adopt legislation to expand nationwide E15 sales. read more READ MORE

RFA Welcomes Legislation Providing Year-Round E15 Availability (Renewable Fuels Association)

Bipartisan Senate bill would allow for summer E15 sales (AgriPulse)

How the oil sector came to embrace E15 after years of opposition (Houston Chronicle)

Senators Introduce Year-Round E15 Bill -- Senators Scramble to Bring Back E15 Year-Round Sales in Lame-Duck Session (DTN Progressive Farmer)

US oil group backs bill allowing year-round E15 (Argus Media)

Bipartisan biofuel supporters float year-round E15 bill -- Midwestern senators introduced a bill to make the higher-ethanol blend available year-round nationwide, superseding a regional proposal by several states. (E&E News/Politico Pro)

Fischer introduces bill to ensure year-round availability of E15 (Ethanol Producer Magazine)

Fischer Introduces Year-Round E15 Legislation with Landmark Support (Office of U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.))

Refinery-state Democrats plan bill to rein in biofuel blending compliance costs (Washington Examiner)

NEFU SAYS ALL AROUND APPROACH IS NEEDED TO BOOST ETHANOL WITH RFS, LEGISLATION (Brownfield Ag News)

Fischer, Klobuchar introduce year-round E15 legislation (High Plains Journal)

GRASSLEY SAYS E15 BILL MAY GET PUSHED TO NEW CONGRESS (Brownfield Ag News)

Over 250 Organizations, Companies Call for Quick Senate Passage of Year-Round E15 Bill (Renewable Fuels Association)

Year-round E15 legislation with landmark support comes into force (Biofuels International)

Ethanol Blog: E15 Companion Bill Introduced in House, Would Make Year-Round Sales Permanent (DTN Progressive Farmer)

EPA advances E15 petition as House members introduce companion legislation (Agri-Pulse)

Craig introduces a bill to ensure year-round availability of E15 (Ethanol Producer Magazine)

API Supports Legislation That Would Help Address Potential Fuel Supply Impacts in Midwest (American Petroleum Institute)

RFA Welcomes House Bill Providing Year-Round E15 Availability (Renewable Fuels Association)

Renewed push for year-round E15 fuel -- Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep. Angie Craig have bipartisan bills to remove the summertime ban on 15 percent ethanol fuel. (KARE)

Fischer, Smith propose year-round, nationwide sales of higher ethanol blends (Nebraska TV)

ETHANOL: Yes to year-round access (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

2022 WAS A GOOD YEAR FOR ETHANOL (Brownfield Ag News)

YEAR-ROUND E15 “CLOSER THAN EVER” (Brownfield Ag News)

Excerpt from Renewable Fuels Association: Specifically, the legislation would harmonize fuel volatility regulations for ethanol-blended fuels across the country, allowing for the year-round sale of E15 in conventional gasoline markets. The legislation would supersede an effort by eight Midwest state governors to make regulatory changes that would assure the availability of E15 sales year-round in their states.

Additional bill co-sponsors, listed alphabetically, include Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Ben Sasse (R-NE), Tina Smith (D-MN) and John Thune (R-SD).

Last week, RFA and the American Petroleum Institute led a broad coalition of energy and agriculture organizations that called on Congress to quickly adopt legislation, like the bill introduced today, that would permanently resolve inconsistent fuel volatility regulations.

“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 stated. “Our groups have come together—for the first time ever—to support legislation that would resolve this issue once and for all. … We urge Congress to act quickly to adopt legislation that will bring certainty and consistency to the fuel market, while also finally resolving long-standing differences among many stakeholders about fuel volatility regulations.”

In addition to RFA and API, the letter was signed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, Association of Equipment Manufacturers, Growth Energy, National Association of Convenience Stores, National Corn Growers Association, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, National Farmers Union, National Sorghum Producers, NATSO, representing truck stops and travel plazas, and SIGMA: America's Leading Fuel Marketers.

RFA estimates that nearly 97 percent of registered vehicles on the road today are legally approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to use E15, and the vast majority also carry the manufacturer’s endorsement to use E15. Recent analyses by RFA and the U.S. Energy Information Administration confirm that expanded use of E15 provided meaningful consumer savings at the pump last summer, as war in Ukraine pushed crude oil and gasoline prices to historic highs. A new survey released by CSP found that one out of every five fuel retailers plan to add the E15 blend at their locations in the coming year; more than 2,800 fuel stations currently carry the blend. READ MORE

Excerpt from Houston Chronicle: The shift in attitude within the oil sector comes as biofuels becomes an increasingly large part of their business, and companies seek to take advantage of subsidies for low-carbon fuels in states such as California and Oregon.

Companies including San Antonio-based Valero and Houston-based Phillips 66 have converted oil refineries to renewable diesel, which is made mostly from vegetable oil. By 2025 renewable fuel output is expected to double in the United States to 238,000 barrels a day, according to analysis by the research firm Energy Intelligence.

And oil companies' obligation to blend biofuels into the fuel supply under the federal Renewable Fuel Standard is also increasing, as the Biden administration eliminates exemptions for small refineries. READ MORE

Excerpt from Washington Examiner: Congressional lawmakers are drawing up legislation to cut down the near-record compliance costs associated with the Renewable Fuel Standard, which has pitted corn staters and some in the oil industry against each other for more than a decade.

The bicameral effort would seek to control the volatile prices of Renewable Identification Numbers, according to an announcement Friday from the office of Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA). Refiners must blend a specified amount of biofuels, to which RINs are attached, into their fuel products in a given year. They may also purchase RINs as credits in lieu of blending the volumes, a common strategy especially among small refiners.

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The announcement follows the EPA's release on Thursday of its proposed renewable fuel blending requirements for years 2023-2025, which would raise the volume of ethanol and other biofuels to new highs. READ MORE

Excerpt from DTN Progressive Farmer: Congress may be moving closer to a vote on establishing year-round E15 sales on a national basis, after members of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday introduced companion legislation to a U.S. Senate bill introduced in recent weeks.

The prospects of re-establishing year-round sales at least to some degree have improved in recent days. The White House has launched a review of petitions filed by nine governors to make E15 sales permanent and now both chambers in Congress are moving legislation.
The Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2022 was introduced by Reps. Angie Craig, D-Minn. and Adrian Smith, R-Neb., and has 21 co-sponsors.

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The RFA said in a news release that an estimated 97% of registered vehicles on the road are legally approved by the EPA to use E15, and the vast majority also carry the manufacturer's endorsement to use E15.

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The House bill includes the following co-sponsors: Reps. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa; James R. Baird, R-Ind.; Jim Banks, R-Ind.; Ken Buck, R-Colo.; Cheri Bustos, D-Ill.; James Comer, R-Ky.; Ron Estes, R-Kan.; Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa; Brad Finstad, R-Minn.; Michelle Fischbach, R-Minn.; Mike Flood, R-Neb.; Sam Graves, R-Mo.; Vicky Hartzler, R-Mo.; Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa; Dusty Johnson, R-S.D.; Dan Kildee, D-Mich.; Jake LaTurner, R-Kan.; Tracey Mann, R-Kan.; Mary Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa; Tim Ryan, D-Ohio; and Jason Smith, R-Mo. READ MORE

Excerpt from Minneapolis Star Tribune: The Dec. 14 Star Tribune article on 15% ethanol blends, or E15, contains several inaccuracies and misleading statements ("E15 ethanol could go year-round"). The legislation introduced recently by Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep. Angie Craig would not "peel back an ozone-protection regulation," as the reporter asserted. It would simply remove a nonsensical, decades-old regulatory barrier that has had the unintended consequence of preventing broader sales of E15 in the summertime.

In fact, vehicle testing conducted this year by the University of California, with support from the California EPA, shows that E15 reduces the potential for ozone compared to today's standard gasoline, while also cutting greenhouse gas emissions. And for evidence of E15's price savings at the pump, just go to any one of the 442 stations offering the fuel in Minnesota. One out of every five gas stations in the state sells E15, and data from the Commerce Department shows that E15 has been priced 25 cents per gallon lower than regular gasoline, on average, over the last four months. If there's any "greenwashing" going on, it's the article's claim that electric vehicles "lack fuel-burning emissions." To the contrary, half of the electricity (i.e., fuel for EVs) generated in Minnesota comes from burning coal and natural gas, and electricity generation is the top source of industrial greenhouse gas emissions in the state.

We applaud Gov. Tim Walz and Minnesota's bipartisan congressional delegation for taking action to allow lower-cost, lower-carbon options — like E15 — at the pump every day of the year. It's the right thing to do.

Geoff Cooper, Ellisville, Mo. The writer is president and CEO, Renewable Fuels Association. READ MORE

Excerpt from Brownfield Ag News: Bredenkamp (Troy Bredenkamp with the Renewable Fuels Association) tells Brownfield that ethanol use was boosted by midwestern governors opting out of the Reid Vapor Pressure program, prompting the ethanol and gas industries to agree on a policy. “People can’t recall when it happened, but RFA and API, the American Petroleum Institute were on the same side when it came to legislation to try and get year-round E15.”

That legislation didn’t pass Congress, but Bredenkamp says the Inflation Reduction Act became the most important legislation for biofuels since the Renewable Fuel Standard expansion 15 years ago. “It included a clean fuel production credit. It included a sustainable aviation fuel tax credit, which we think corn-based ethanol is going to play a pretty huge role in. It also had a carbon capture sequestration provision in there, and then it had 500 million toward higher blends.”

Bredenkamp says in 2023, the RFA will be looking to push forward a final year-round E15 bill, and a long-term clean fuels bill. READ MORE

Excerpt from Brownfield Ag News: “I think we’re at a better than 50% chance to get this done by the end of the year,” says Troy Bredenkamp.

Without a special waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency, the use of a 15% blend of ethanol in gasoline is not allowed in the summer due to smog concerns, but research has shown E15 has the same affects as E10.

He says it’s been difficult to get a permanent fix to allow year-round E15 use. A bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate by Nebraska’s Deb Fischer and Minnesota’s Amy Klobuchar called the Consumer and Retailers Choice Act for 2023 still needs to clear a few hurdles.

“Getting it to a point to where we can get it through the Environment and Public Works Committee and Senator Carper and once we’re able to breakthrough on that, the idea is to get a House introduction quick and attach it to the continuing resolution or farm bill extension so it can be passed by the end of the year.”

Bredenkamp says while it’s a tough political environment in Washington D.C., he’s optimistic the legislation can make it across the finish line allowing year-round E15 READ MORE