White House OMB Reviewing Governors’ E15 Petition

WASHINGTON — The White House Office of Management and Budget is reviewing a request from nine Midwest governors who are seeking to permanently eliminate the 1-psi Reid vapor pressure waiver for E10 in their states.

Notice of the review was published Monday on RegInfo.gov. 

It comes seven months after Iowa’s Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds led seven of her Midwest counterparts in a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan requesting a permanent RVP waiver that will allow each state to continue selling E15 year-round without restriction. 

In addition to Iowa, the states include Nebraska, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. 

In June, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, also a Republican, joined the petition, bringing the total number of states to nine.

E15 is typically banned from June to September under the Clean Air Act because it evaporates more quickly than other fuel, raising air pollution concerns.

To reduce summer evaporative emissions, the EPA sets seasonal limits for gasoline’s RVP, a measure of its evaporation potential. 

This is why, in case you’ve ever wondered, most of the country uses different gasoline in the summer than the rest of the year.

The EPA requires summer gasoline to have an RVP less than 9 pounds per square inch. 

Regular summer gasoline without ethanol has an RVP of 9, but summer E10 and E15 both have RVPs around 10. 

Though both of these measures would seem to preclude the sale of both E10 and E15 in the summertime, Congress carved out an exemption for E10 during the energy crisis of the late 1970s allowing it to be sold year-round.

Allowing one and not the other to be sold — despite the fact their evaporation characteristics are similar — makes no sense to the governors.

In their letter to Regan, the governors formally ask that the EPA remove the disparity in how E10 and E15 gasoline is treated under current regulations.

In a written statement, Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Geoff Cooper said, “OMB review marks an important step in this process, and we are pleased to see that the governors’ petition is moving ahead. 

“This means the petition remains on track for approval before summer 2023, just as Administrator Regan outlined a few months ago,” Cooper said.

“Of course, a legislative fix that applies nationwide (like the one introduced last week by Sens. Fischer and Klobuchar) would obviate the need for this multi-state petition, and we are actively pursuing that approach for E15 market access as well.”

Earlier this month, Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Deb Fischer, R-Neb., both members of the Senate Agriculture Committee, introduced bipartisan legislation to make E15 available year-round. 

The Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2022 would enable the year-round, nationwide sale of ethanol blends higher than 10%, helping to lower fuel prices and provide certainty in fuel markets for farmers and consumers. 

“I have long pushed to make E15 available year-round because investing in affordable, readily available biofuels produced in the U.S. is good for drivers and farmers alike,” said Klobuchar in a written statement. 

“By ensuring consumers can access E15 gasoline throughout the year, our bipartisan legislation will benefit our economy, decrease prices at the pump and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. It’s critical that we diversify our fuel supply and invest in affordable energy solutions. I look forward to working with Sen. Fischer to pass this bipartisan bill.” 

“We’ve long known that unleashing the full power of ethanol saves consumers money at the pump, supports family farmers and boosts U.S. energy security,” Fischer agreed. 

“Now, however, we’ve been able to bring critical oil/gas, biofuel, ag and transportation stakeholders to the table around a common-sense solution. With this strong coalition of support, it’s time Congress act to make year-round E15 a reality,” she said.

The Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act of 2022 would allow for the year-round, nationwide sale of E15 by permanently extending RVP volatility waiver to ethanol blends above 10%. The bill would also prohibit the removal of the 1-psi waiver for E10 ethanol, ensuring uniformity across fuel markets and preventing a patchwork of regulations from disrupting the national fuel supply chain.

In addition to Klobuchar and Fischer, the legislation is sponsored by Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Tina Smith, D-Minn., John Thune, R-S.D., Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, Roger Marshall, R-Kan., Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Jerry Moran, R-Kan., Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., Ben Sasse. R-Neb., and Mike Rounds, R-S.D.

The legislation has been endorsed by the American Petroleum Institute, the National Corn Growers Association, the National Farmers Union, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Sorghum Producers, the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, the Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy, SIGMA, the National Association of Truck Stop Operators and the National Association of Convenience Stores.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue