Smith, Bipartisan Colleagues Call for E15 Waiver to Provide Fuel Price Relief
Washington, DC — Representatives Adrian Smith (R-NE), Angie Craig (D-MN), Ashley Hinson (R-IA), and Mark Pocan (D-WI) led 25 members of Congress urging the administration to lower prices at the gas pump by allowing the nationwide sale of E-15 this summer. The bipartisan letter asked President Donald Trump to extend the Reid vapor pressure (RVP) waiver to permit the sale of ethanol blends up to 15 percent from June 1 through September 15, 2025 and engage directly with requests from eight Midwestern states, including Nebraska, to maintain uniform access to ethanol blends.
In the letter the members wrote:
“To safeguard our energy supply, we must preserve the home-grown, affordable option higher ethanol blends provide. The administration’s efforts to unleash American energy independence is a long-term goal but can begin in the short term with preserving flexibility in our domestic energy production and supply through this emergency waiver.”
“Extending the nationwide sale of E15 can again bolster our nation’s energy resilience by adding billions of gallons of ethanol to the nation’s fuel supply, lowering the cost of gas for American families at a time when prices are already too high. As affirmed when you first allowed for year-round E15 in 2019, and those approved for the summers afterward, the sale of higher blends of biofuels during the summer months supports the domestic fuel supply, reduces consumer costs, and promotes American biofuels and agriculture feedstocks.”
Read full text of the letter here.
BACKGROUND:
Congressman Smith first introduced a bill to approve year-round sale of E15 in 2015.
On February 6, 2025, Smith and Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN) led nearly 30 colleagues in sending a bipartisan letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. The letter emphasized the important role of the American biofuels industry in maximizing energy abundance and affordability while encouraging the EPA to issue timely and science-driven guidance to fulfill the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS).
On February 13, Smith and Craig introduced the Nationwide Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act to enable the year-round, nationwide sale of E15. Read more about the bipartisan, bicameral legislation here.
On March 11, Smith led a bipartisan press conference highlighting grassroots support for eliminating restrictions on E15 sales.
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