DES MOINES, Iowa - Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird and Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers have filed suit in federal court against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), demanding a final determination on a request from eight Midwest governors to equalize regulations for E10 and E15 ethanol blends, thereby allowing E15 to be sold year-round.
A bipartisan coalition of governors, led by Iowa’s Kim Reynolds, asked the EPA on April 28, 2022, to allow the sale of E15 gasoline through the summer. Despite the Clean Air Act requiring the EPA to comply within 90 days, the EPA remained silent. It has now been over 376 days since the expiration of that 90-day deadline.
“The Biden Administration has dragged its feet long enough,” says Attorney General Bird. “Hardworking Iowans deserve a cheaper, cleaner option at the gas pump. But despite the Governors’ request, the EPA has refused to allow Iowans to buy the fuel they want. Well, Iowans are done waiting. We’re taking President Biden and the EPA to court to make E15 available year-round.”
Governor Kim Reynolds issued the following statement:
“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.”
“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. I applaud Attorney General Bird for bringing this lawsuit holding the federal government accountable. Enough is enough.”
