Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday, accusing the agency of illegally delaying a rulemaking process that would allow the sale of E15 fuel year-round.
The lawsuit, joined by Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers, alleges the EPA repeatedly missed deadlines that were required by law after being petitioned by several states’ governors to adjust rules around the sale of ethanol-blended gasoline. The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa and names the EPA and Administrator Michael Regan as defendants.
In April 2022, Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and six other state governors sent a letter to the EPA asking to remove a volatility waiver afforded to E10 gasoline, which would put it on the same footing as E15, gasoline with 15 percent ethanol blended in. The change would allow the sale of the higher blend during the summer.
E15 generally cannot be sold in the summer months because of concerns that the fuel contributes to smog in hot weather. Some research has shown E10 gasoline, the vast majority of gasoline sold in the U.S., has largely the same effect on air quality.
The governors’ request was made under a section of the Clean Air Act, the first of its kind since the law was written. The lawsuit argues the Clean Air Act requires the EPA to create rules no more than 90 days after the governors make that request — a deadline the state says the EPA has missed by more than a year.
“It is now more than 90 days after the end of the notice-and-comment period, and EPA has not issued a final rule — a final rule that the Clean Air Act required take effect more than two months ago; a final rule the Clean Air Act required EPA to promulgate last July,” the lawsuit says.
The agency put out a proposed rulemaking in March of this year and held a public hearing on March 21. The rulemaking proposed lifting the waiver on E10 gasoline in eight states that made requests, thereby allowing year-round E15 sales, starting in April 2024.
At the time, Bird and other Iowa leaders said the proposed start date was too late. In its proposed rulemaking, the EPA cited the potential impact to the supply of gasoline in the affected states as its reasoning for delaying the implementation.
But the EPA also granted a waiver to allow the sale of E15 in the 2023 summer months nationwide in April, citing the high cost of gasoline because of the war in Ukraine. E15 is generally about 10 cents cheaper than fuel with lower ethanol blends.
Newsletter Signup
Delivered to your inbox every day
The lawsuit asks the court to require the EPA to create a final rule no later than six months before the 2024 summer driving season and award the cost of litigation and attorney’s fees to the states.
A spokesperson for the EPA did not respond to a request for comment.
Reynolds, ethanol industry weigh in
Reynolds criticized the EPA’s decision to delay the rule in a statement on Monday, and she applauded Bird for bringing the lawsuit.
“The EPA’s ongoing failure to act following our E15 notification more than two years ago is nothing more than a thinly veiled disguise of their disdain towards clean, renewable, American-produced ethanol. The EPA disfavors anything that doesn’t have the word 'electric' in its name,” Reynolds said. “American energy independence, including Iowa’s renewable energies, should be the goal of any presidential administration - especially when it saves Americans money at the gas tank.”
Reynolds signed a law last year, passed with bipartisan support from state lawmakers, to mandate the sale of E15 at most Iowa gas stations.
Iowa is the leading producer in the nation of ethanol, and the corn used to manufacture it. Iowa’s 42 ethanol plants can produce more than 4.1 billion gallons a year.
Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw said a final rule would provide certainty for consumers and fuel retailers going into 2024.
“This is not a complex issue and it’s mindboggling it has taken this long,” he said in a statement. “Midwest consumers and fuel retailers deserve to know that E15 will be a year-round option in 2024. Every day of delay jeopardizes investments that can reduce fuel costs, clean our air, and make us more energy independent.”
www.thegazette.com
The lawsuit, joined by Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers, alleges the EPA repeatedly missed deadlines that were required by law after being petitioned by several states’ governors to adjust rules around the sale of ethanol-blended gasoline. The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa and names the EPA and Administrator Michael Regan as defendants.
In April 2022, Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds and six other state governors sent a letter to the EPA asking to remove a volatility waiver afforded to E10 gasoline, which would put it on the same footing as E15, gasoline with 15 percent ethanol blended in. The change would allow the sale of the higher blend during the summer.
E15 generally cannot be sold in the summer months because of concerns that the fuel contributes to smog in hot weather. Some research has shown E10 gasoline, the vast majority of gasoline sold in the U.S., has largely the same effect on air quality.
The governors’ request was made under a section of the Clean Air Act, the first of its kind since the law was written. The lawsuit argues the Clean Air Act requires the EPA to create rules no more than 90 days after the governors make that request — a deadline the state says the EPA has missed by more than a year.
“It is now more than 90 days after the end of the notice-and-comment period, and EPA has not issued a final rule — a final rule that the Clean Air Act required take effect more than two months ago; a final rule the Clean Air Act required EPA to promulgate last July,” the lawsuit says.
The agency put out a proposed rulemaking in March of this year and held a public hearing on March 21. The rulemaking proposed lifting the waiver on E10 gasoline in eight states that made requests, thereby allowing year-round E15 sales, starting in April 2024.
At the time, Bird and other Iowa leaders said the proposed start date was too late. In its proposed rulemaking, the EPA cited the potential impact to the supply of gasoline in the affected states as its reasoning for delaying the implementation.
But the EPA also granted a waiver to allow the sale of E15 in the 2023 summer months nationwide in April, citing the high cost of gasoline because of the war in Ukraine. E15 is generally about 10 cents cheaper than fuel with lower ethanol blends.
Daily News
Newsletter Signup
The lawsuit asks the court to require the EPA to create a final rule no later than six months before the 2024 summer driving season and award the cost of litigation and attorney’s fees to the states.
A spokesperson for the EPA did not respond to a request for comment.
Reynolds, ethanol industry weigh in
Reynolds criticized the EPA’s decision to delay the rule in a statement on Monday, and she applauded Bird for bringing the lawsuit.
“The EPA’s ongoing failure to act following our E15 notification more than two years ago is nothing more than a thinly veiled disguise of their disdain towards clean, renewable, American-produced ethanol. The EPA disfavors anything that doesn’t have the word 'electric' in its name,” Reynolds said. “American energy independence, including Iowa’s renewable energies, should be the goal of any presidential administration - especially when it saves Americans money at the gas tank.”
Reynolds signed a law last year, passed with bipartisan support from state lawmakers, to mandate the sale of E15 at most Iowa gas stations.
Iowa is the leading producer in the nation of ethanol, and the corn used to manufacture it. Iowa’s 42 ethanol plants can produce more than 4.1 billion gallons a year.
Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw said a final rule would provide certainty for consumers and fuel retailers going into 2024.
“This is not a complex issue and it’s mindboggling it has taken this long,” he said in a statement. “Midwest consumers and fuel retailers deserve to know that E15 will be a year-round option in 2024. Every day of delay jeopardizes investments that can reduce fuel costs, clean our air, and make us more energy independent.”
Iowa Attorney General sues EPA over ethanol blend rules
The lawsuit, joined by Nebraska Attorney General Michael Hilgers, alleges the EPA repeatedly missed deadlines that were required by law after being petitioned by several states’ governors to adjust rules around the sale of ethanol-blended gasoline.
www.thegazette.com
