The ethanol industry spent millions in 2025 lobbying Congress for a higher year-round ethanol blend in gasoline, only to watch their efforts rapidly collapse this week.
Domestic oil refiners, despite their relatively meager lobbying spend by comparison, won the day Thursday when the House’s appropriations package moved forward without language that would remove limits on when E15, a type of gasoline that contains more ethanol than the standard E10, can be sold.
“Corn growers are disgusted, disappointed and disillusioned that after spending years of calling for passage of E15, Congress has again punted,” National Corn Growers Association President Jed Bower said in a statement. “Congress is choosing to leave America’s 500,000 corn farmers behind in favor of a handful of refineries.”