Nebraska pushes for permanent year-round use of E-15

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - The state is pushing for the permanent availability of E-15, a gasoline that has more ethanol in it than regular gas.

The fuel is a mixture of gasoline and corn-based ethanol. It consists of 15% ethanol compared to regular gas, which has 10% ethanol.

President Biden has lifted restrictions on E-15 usage for this summer with an emergency waiver.

E-15 fuel is usually banned from being sold from June 1 to September 15. However, the Nebraska Corn Board said that drivers can fuel up for a better price for the rest of this year, thanks to the temporary waiver.

According to the White House, the average savings for E-15 is about 10 cents a gallon. However, at some gas stations it is even cheaper.

Jay Reiners, a Juniata farmer and chair of the Nebraska Corn Board, said it needs to be sold year-round for farmers to be impacted in a positive way. The EPA said it is safe for vehicles made in 2001 or newer and according to GasBuddy, it has a similar fuel economy to regular gas.

The Nebraska Corn Board hopes to see the EPA make the fuel permanently available year-round. However, without federal legislation, it would require another waiver in order to be sold in summer of 2023.

GasBuddy said you can find gas stations nearby that offer E-15 by searching UNL88, which stands for unleaded 88, on their website.

Governor Ricketts released a statement Wednesday thanking President Biden and also pushing for permanent year-round use of this type of gasoline.