“I hate to say it, but I think farmers may get screwed again.”
That was the bleak forecast of Jed Bower, president of the National Corn Growers Association, in the wake of the unexpected decision by Congress not to allow year-round E15—that is, allowing 15% ethanol in gasoline year-round instead of only in winter months. Instead Congress plans to set up a “Rural Domestic Energy Council” to study “legislative solutions.” The group is tasked with creating a “viable, durable path forward” for year-round, nationwide E15. The rule stipulates that this council should produce solutions by Feb. 15, with Congress intending to consider the legislation by Feb. 25.
Bower laid out some of the backstory for High Plains Journal readers. “Back in late autumn, the White House came to us and told us we had to get with oil leaders to hammer out a deal on E15. That’s exactly what we did.”
The American Petroleum Institute was part of the discussion, along with the Renewable Fuels Association.
“We had oil in the room and we got a deal,” Bower said. “We didn’t get everything we wanted, oil didn’t get everything it wanted, but it was a solid deal and everyone was satisfied—or so we thought. We all thought it was going to happen. We had a lot of great champions in Congress and in the White House.”
When he told Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-LA, about the compromise, Bower said, Johnson told him he was frustrated by not being able to get E15 done the year before, due in part to disruptions including the DOGE cutbacks and government layoffs.
So what happened? Bower said the buzz is that the oil companies and their supporters in the Freedom Caucus Wing in the House felt they hadn’t gotten enough out of the deal.
Bower said he is not sure what the new council has left to study. The sense of betrayal in the farm community is palpable. “We had the discussions already, we made the deal we needed to make. But we still certainly stay engaged with this committee and make sure that U.S. farmers voices’ are represented.”
He stressed the need for every ag advocate to contact his or her member of Congress.
“Farmers have been the quiet minority for years,” Bower said. “We don’t like Band-Aids; we prefer market solutions, but it will take years for us to dig ourselves out of this hole we are in with commodity prices as low as they are. We are not going to make it without some sort of relief.”
One thing is clear: Advocates for year-round E15 will not be sitting on their hands until the new council acts.
David Murray can be reached at [email protected].
