A group of Midwest governors requested the Biden administration grant them the ability to sell E15 year-round, and that request hasn’t been granted. Lawmakers in both Congressional chambers are pushing for approval.
Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) are demanding the Office of Management and Budget finalize the necessary waiver quickly. That would allow retailers time to prepare for summer 2024 sales. The Iowa lawmakers are leading the bicameral push alongside Representative Brad Finstad (R-MN).
“This rulemaking should have been completed in July 2022, and unfortunately, we still have no regulatory certainty for our fuel retailers, fuel blenders, or biofuel producers more than 16 months later,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to the administration. “Homegrown American-produced ethanol strengthens our national security and ensures lower vehicle emissions to achieve the administration’s climate goals.”
Lawmakers want the governors’ request finalized quickly to bring much-needed certainty to farmers, retailers, and consumers.