WASHINTON, D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) today issued the following statement after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit dismissed a lawsuit filed against the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) decision to permit higher blends of ethanol in gasoline. He is a senior member and former Chairman of the United States Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee.
“This decision upholds EPA’s approval of E15 as a motor fuel, which allows motorists to buy and service stations to sell 15-percent ethanol blends. This will allow for the expansion of ethanol production and use and it is also critical to our national strategy of reducing dependence on foreign oil, to consumers around the country, and to job creation. The fact that this expansion will come mostly from non-feed and biomass feedstocks also helps with ongoing concerns over the drought.”
