Sen. Donnelly calls on president to allow E15 gasoline sales in summer months
With gasoline prices forecasted to edge closer to $3 per gallon this summer, U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-IN) called on Monday for easing federal restrictions on the sale of gasoline blended with biofuels during the summer moments to help hold prices in check.
In a letter to President Donald Trump, Donnelly voiced concern that the current Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) regulation prohibiting most retailers from selling blended fuels like E15 in the summer months strains local communities and economies by contributing to higher gas prices.
“According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, average gas prices are expected to reach almost $3 a gallon next month, while averaging at least $2.90 a gallon during the during the April to September summer driving season,” the letter stated. “That is a 20 percent increase in fuel costs over last summer’s average of $2.41 a gallon. With the Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting that the average American household spends approximately 9.3 percent of their income on transportation costs, a 20 percent increase in gas prices would place significant strain on the budgets of families and businesses. And with ever-increasing instability around the world, those increases could be driven even higher.”
Donnelly introduced legislation, the Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act, with U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) in March 2017 that would extend the RVP waiver to ethanol blends above 10 percent, allowing retailers to sell E15 year-round.
“…One step that would help mitigate the circumstances causing an increase in gas prices would be to lift the current restrictions on the year-round sale of fuels containing higher blends of biofuels,” the letter stated. “I ask that (the president) commit to working to remove the problems with this regulation.”
Ethanol producers Green Plains and POET have supported Donnelly’s efforts. Green Plains CEO Todd Becker said farmers and consumers alike would benefit from year-round sales of E15, “but an outdated Washington regulation takes this more affordable fuel option off the table during the busy summer driving season.”
Rob Walther, the vice president of federal advocacy at POET, agreed that “E15 ensures economic gains for farmers and consumers alike” and applauded Donnelly’s leadership on the issue.
