Biofuels groups applaud governor inquiry into state solution for year-round E15

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Biofuels groups applaud governor inquiry into state solution for year-round E15

Biofuels groups are thanking the eight Midwestern governors who are inquiring about a state-level solution to secure year-round E15.

Troy Bredenkamp with the Renewable Fuels Association says the governors of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin are looking outside the box to ensure fuel retailers can sell E15 to consumers without interruption.

“And they’re not waiting around for Washington to come up with a solution, they’re actually being proactive in thinking about what they can do themselves.”

The governors sent a letter to EPA administrator Michael Regan Wednesday expressing interest in requesting changes to Reid Vapor Pressure regulations that would re-open the door to year-round E15 sales.

Iowa Renewable Fuels Association executive director Monte Shaw says the future of ethanol hangs on the ability to make biofuels more available.

“If we are capped at E10, we are at best stuck in neutral. But in reality with better mileage cars, changes in driving habits, and the penetration of electric vehicles, we’re actually in reverse and we will wither away.”

Earlier this year, a D.C. Circuit Court overturned EPA’s 2019 regulation that facilitated year-round E15 sales.  That ruling has been petitioned to the Supreme Court, which has not said whether it will hear the case.

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