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MID-LEVEL ETHANOL BLENDS: 

CONSUMER AND TECHNICAL 

RESEARCH NEEDS 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT 

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND 

TECHNOLOGY 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2013 

Serial No. 113–7 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

( 

Available via the World Wide Web: http://science.house.gov 
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

HON. LAMAR S. SMITH, Texas, Chair 

DANA ROHRABACHER, California 

RALPH M. HALL, Texas 

F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, JR., 

Wisconsin 

FRANK D. LUCAS, Oklahoma 

RANDY NEUGEBAUER, Texas 

MICHAEL T. MCCAUL, Texas 

PAUL C. BROUN, Georgia 

STEVEN M. PALAZZO, Mississippi 

MO BROOKS, Alabama 

RANDY HULTGREN, Illinois 

LARRY BUCSHON, Indiana 

STEVE STOCKMAN, Texas 

BILL POSEY, Florida 

CYNTHIA LUMMIS, Wyoming 

DAVID SCHWEIKERT, Arizona 

THOMAS MASSIE, Kentucky 

KEVIN CRAMER, North Dakota 

JIM BRIDENSTINE, Oklahoma 

RANDY WEBER, Texas 

CHRIS STEWART, Utah 

VACANCY 

EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON, Texas 

ZOE LOFGREN, California 

DANIEL LIPINSKI, Illinois 

DONNA F. EDWARDS, Maryland 

FREDERICA S. WILSON, Florida 

SUZANNE BONAMICI, Oregon 

ERIC SWALWELL, California 

DAN MAFFEI, New York 

ALAN GRAYSON, Florida 

JOSEPH KENNEDY III, Massachusetts 

SCOTT PETERS, California 

DEREK KILMER, Washington 

AMI BERA, California 

ELIZABETH ESTY, Connecticut 

MARC VEASEY, Texas 

JULIA BROWNLEY, California 

MARK TAKANO, California 

VACANCY 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT

HON. , Chair 

CHRIS STEWART, Utah 

F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, JR., 

Wisconsin 

DANA ROHRABACHER, California 

RANDY NEUGEBAUER, Texas 

PAUL C. BROUN, Georgia 

RANDY WEBER, Texas 

LAMAR S. SMITH, Texas 

SUZANNE BONAMICI, Oregon 

JULIA BROWNLEY, California 

DONNA F. EDWARDS, Maryland 

MARC VEASEY, Texas 

MARK TAKANO, California 

ALAN GRAYSON, Florida 

EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON, Texas 
(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Tuesday, February 26, 2013 

Page 

Witness List ............................................................................................................. 2 

Hearing Charter ...................................................................................................... 3 

Opening Statements 

Statement by Representative Chris Stewart, Chairman, Subcommittee on 

Environment, Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, U.S. House 

of Representatives ................................................................................................ 10 

Written Statement ............................................................................................ 12 

Statement by Representative Suzanne Bonamici, Ranking Minority Member, 

Subcommittee on Environment, Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, U.S. House of Representatives ............................................................... 13 

Written Statement ............................................................................................ 14 

Witnesses: 

Mr. Robert L. Darbelnet, President and CEO, American Automobile Association 

Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 16 

Written Statement ............................................................................................ 18 

Hon. Wayne Allard, Vice President, Government Relations, American Motorcyclist Association 

Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 23 

Written Statement ............................................................................................ 25 

Mr. Mike Leister, Member, Board of Directors, Coordinating Research Council 

Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 31 

Written Statement ............................................................................................ 33 

Discussion ................................................................................................................. 41 

Appendix I: Answers to Post-Hearing Questions 

Mr. Robert L. Darbelnet, President and CEO, American Automobile Association ........................................................................................................................ 56

Hon. Wayne Allard, Vice President, Government Relations, American Motorcyclist Association ................................................................................................ 58 

Mr. Mike Leister, Member, Board of Directors, Coordinating Research Council ........................................................................................................................... 61 

Appendix II: Additional Material for the Record 

CRC Research on Mid-Level Ethanol Blends ........................................................ 66 

CRC Project CM-136-09-1B ..................................................................................... 83 

Durability of Fuel Pumps and Fuel Level Senders in Neat and Aggressive 

E15, CRC Report No. 664 .................................................................................... 91 

Letter to Subcommittee Chairman Chris Stewart from Matt Gruhn, MRAA 

President, Marine Retailers Association of the Americas ................................. 96 
Page

IV 

Letter to Hon. Lisa Jackson, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency, from Hon. Wayne Allard, Vice President, Government Relations, American Motorcyclist Association .............................................................................. 98 

Letter to Subcommittee Chairman Chris Stewart from Hon. Wayne Allard, 

Vice President, Government Relations, American Motorcyclist Association ... 101 

Letter to Former Subcommittee Chairman Andy Harris from William 

Woebkenberg, Mercedes-Benz Research and Development, North America ... 104 

Memo from Coordinating Research Council, Inc.(CRC) ....................................... 106 

Letter to Subcommittee on Environment from Renewable Fuels Association .... 108 

‘‘Getting It Right: Accurate Testing and Assessments Critical to Deploying 

the Next Generation of Auto Fuels,’’ by Patrick B. Davis ................................ 111 

Letter to Subcommittee on Environment from Algae Biomass Organization .... 113 

Letter to Subcommittee on Environment from Growth Energy .......................... 116 
(1) 

MID-LEVEL ETHANOL BLENDS: 

CONSUMER AND TECHNICAL 

RESEARCH NEEDS 

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2013 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY, Washington, DC. 

The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 2:01 p.m., in Room 

2318 of the Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Chris Stewart 

[Chairman of the Subcommittee] presiding. 
2 

LAMAR S. SMITH, Texas 

CHAIRMAN 

(tongress of the iinitcd ~tatcs 

'll\ousc: of 1Rcprc:scntatiuc:s 

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

2321 RAYBURN HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING 

WASHINGTON, DC 20515-6301 

(202) 225-6371 

www.sclence.house.gov 

Subcommittee on Environment 

EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON, Texas 

RANKING MEMBER 

Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and Technical Research Needs 

Tuesday, February 26,2013 

2:00 p.m. -4:00 p.m. 

2318 Rayburn House Office Building 

Witnesses 

Mr. Robert L. Darbelnet, President and CEO, American Automobile Association (AAA) 

The Honorable Wayne Allard, Vice President, Government Relations, American Motorcyclist 

Association (AMA) 

Mr. Mike Leister, Member, BOjll'd of Directors, Coordinating Research Council (CRe) 
3 

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT 

HEARL~G CHARTER 

Mid-Lel'el Ethanol Blellds: COllsumer alld Teclmical Research Neetls 

PURPOSE 

Tuesday, Febmmy 26,2013 

2:00 p,m, - 4:00 p,m. 

2318 Raybulll House Office Building 

On Tuesday, Febmary 26 at 2:00 p.m. in Room 2318 of tile Raybml1 House Office 

Building, the Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on Environment wiII hold a hearing 

titled, },fid-Level Etha1101 Blends: COIISlllller and Technical Research Needs. The purpose of this 

hearing is to examine the scientific, technical, and consumer impacts of tile Enviroml1ental 

Protection Agency's decision to allow the introduction of mid-level ethmlOl blends (EIS) into the 

marketplace. Additionally, the hearing will examine the impact of E 15 on engines and filel 

supply infrastmcture, and identify research gaps or m'eas in which policymakers and the public 

could benefit from more infollllation on the fuel. TIle subcommittee will also receive testimony 

on related draft legislation. 

WITNESS LIST 

• 11r. Robert L. Darbelnet, President and CEO, American Automobile Association 

(AAA) 

• The Honorable \Vayne Allard, Vice President, Govelllrnent Relations, American 

Motorcyclist Association (AMA) 

• :\lr. Mike Leister, Member, Board of Directors, Coordinating Resem'ch Council (CRC) 

BACKGROL"ND 

National consumption of gasoline aJld gasoline products has grown from 96.5 billion 

gallons a year in 1974 (the year the oil embargo ended) to 134 billion gallons a yem' in2011. 1 

As part of all etTort to reduce relimlce on foreign sources of oil, the Federal Govel11ment has 

supported numerous policies to increase efficiency of fuel use and supplant oil som'ces since the 

1970s. One ofthese initiatives includes the production and use ofbiofilels through various tax 

incentives. More recently, this support is evidenced in the establishment ofthe Renewable Fuel 

I Energy Infonnation Administration. http://w\\w.eia.go\.!tools/faqs/faq.cfin?id=23&t=10 

1 
4 

Standard (RFS) in the Energy Policy Act of2005 (EPAct)." The RFS mandates that 

transpOltation fuels contain renewable fuels, snch as biodiesel or com-based ethanol. This was 

accomplished by a mandate that required 4 billion gallons of renewable fuels be blended into in 

the national 11.1el mL,,{ by 2006, and 7.5 billion by 2012. 

Congress greatly expanded the RFS requirement in the Energy Independence and 

Security Act of2007 (EISA), lllandating blending ofl5.2 billion gallons ofbiofilels by 2012, 

and 36 billion gallons by 2022.3 The RFS expansion also required the use of advanced biofilels, 

and capped the alllOlmt of com-based ethanol that could be used to meet the mandated vohunes 

at 15 billion gallons. 

The use ofEIO, or ten percent ethanol blended gasoline, was authorized by the EPA for 

use in 1978. Despite this authorization, EI0 was not used on a widespread basis Imtil the Clean 

Air Act Amendments of 1990 mandated the use of an oxygenate in fuel. By that time, Ihe 

vehicle fleet had the necessary technology to absorb this level of ethanol in the fuel mix. 

Blending filel at concentrations greater than E lOin order 10 meet the increased production 

volumes required by the RFS presents a challenge. Tlus challenge is referred to as the "blend 

wall," or upper limit to the total amount of ethanol that can be blended into the national gasoline 

supply using EIO. In all effo11 to avoid the blend wall, on March 6,2009, Growth Energy and 54 

ethanolmallufacturers petitioned EPA to allow E 15, a mid-level or intemleruate ethanol blend, 

into the cOlllmercialmarketplace. Under the Clean Air Act, the introduction of a new fuel is 

prohibited unless it is "substantially similar" to gasoline; however, the EPA is authorized to grant 

a waiver of this prolubition. 

The EPA issued a paIiial waiver for E 15 011 October 13, 2010, allowing the introduction 

ofE15 into tbe commercial marketplace for use inlllodel year 2007 and newer cars, light-duty 

trucks, and SUVs. 011 January 26, 2011, EPA granted another pattial waiver for use ofE15 in 

model year 2001 and newer vehicles. The EPA did not gratlt a waiver for the use of E 15 fuel in 

model years prior to 2001, non-road engines, vehicles, and equipment, motorcycles, or heavyduty gasoline engines. 

In order to grant these waivers, Section 211 (f) of the Cleatl Air Act requires the EPA to 

first detennine that E 15 would not "cause or contribnte to a failure of atl emission control device 

or system." This detennination by EPA was based lat'gely on a single set of tests conducted by 

the DepaItment of Energy (DOE) in 2009-10. Refetl'ed to as the DOE Catalyst Study, the testing 

program only included 8 models of vehicles made in 2001-2006, and 19 models representing 

2007 and newer vehicles. 

2 P.L. 109-58. Energy Policy Act of2005. Aug. 8,2005. 

l PL. 110.140. Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Dec. 19,2007. 

2 
5 

In June 201 L EPA issued a misfi.!eling mle intended to mitigate the potential for 

conSllmer confusion. The mle mandated a new label to be llsed on plUllpS at stations that sell 

E15. and it encom-ages, but does not require, measures to educate consumers about E15. The 

EPA's patiial waivers also include conditions that require each filel and fuel additive 

mauufacturer subject to waivers to submit a misfileliug mitigation plan (MrvIP). These conditions 

include measures for labeling El5 fuel plUnp dispensers, among other things. Despite several 

public concems raised to the EPA, the agency approved the Model MMP submitted by the 

Renewable Fuels Association as "sufficient" to satisfy the patiial waiver requu:ements on Mat'ch 

15. 2012. Since then, E 15 has been introduced into the conllllercial marketplace in Iowa and 

Nebraska and, driven by RFS requirements, is expected in other parts of the U.S. soon. 

Additionally, the EPA approved a new blender pump confignration on F eb11lat'Y 7, 20 I 3. This 

configlU'ation was submitted by the Renewable Fuels Association for use by retail stations that 

plan to dispense E15 and EIO from a common hose and nozzle. 

Coordillatil1g Research COl/lIcil Tests 

The Coordinating Reseat'ch COlll1cil is a non-profit research entity that directs 

engineering and environmental stndies on the interaction between automotive aud mobility 

equipment atld petrolelUll products. The CRC has a reSeatdl progratll on iutenllediate ethatlOl 

blends, atld has released two repolis on the Unpact ofEI5 filels conducted under the direction of 

the Advanced Vehicle/Fuel/Lubricants C onunittee. 

Tile fll'St of these studies, released iu April 2012, is the Intermediate-Level Ethanol 

Blends Engine Durability Stlldy.4 The study aiuled to "ulVestigate the effects of two 

intelluediate-Ievel ethanol blends on several models of current, on-road, non-Flex Fuel 

Vehicles." The study highlighted possible engine component wear caused by ethatlol content in 

EI5 atid E 20 fuels. atld identified various types offailures exhibited by engines nll111uIg on E15 

and E20. In slllllluary, the report noted, "12 out of28 engines were deemed to have failed the 

prescribed durability test." 

TIle CRC released a follow-up report to the engule dmability study, titled Durability of 

Fuel Pumps and Fue! Level Sellders ill Neat alld Aggressive E151ast January.5 The study 

assessed the impact of E 15 on the perfonnance and durability of filel pUlllpS and fuel level 

senders, and concluded that while some fuel systems survived testing on E 15, others experienced 

complete failmes that would prevent operation. Additionally, the study noted that the fhe! pumps 

, Coordinating Research COlmcil, Intermediate-Lewl Ethanol Blends Engine Durability Stlldy. April 2012, 

Accessible at: http:lh'iww.crcao.comlrepolisfrecentstudies20 12ICM-136-09-

IB%20Engine%20DurabilityICRC%20CM-136-09-IB%20Final%20Report.pdf 

, Coordinating Research Council, Dllrabllity of Fllel PlllllPS and Fuel Lel'el Sellders ill Neal and Aggressil'e £1 -'. 

January 2013. Accessible at: http://www.crcao.com/reportsfrecentstudies2013/CRC%20664%20%5BA VFL15a%5D/AVFL %2015a%20%5BCRC%20664%5D%20Final%20Report'lfo20only,pdf 

3 
6 

and level senders tbat "failed or exhibited otber effects dm'ing testing ... are used on a substantial 

number of tbe 29 million 2001-2007 model year vehicles ... " 

Warrallfy IsslIes 

Given the potential for El5 to negatively impact engines, concems have been raised and 

questiolls asked regarding wammty coverage for use of the fuel. Several manufacturers, 

including BMW, Nissall, Cillysler, Toyota, alld Volkswageu, have stated theu' walTallties will 

not cover fuel-related claims caused by the use ofEl5. Additionally, eight automakers, including 

GM, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, and Volvo, have indicated that usc of 

E15 does not comply with the fuel requu'ements in their O\\'ller's manual, alld Illay invalidate or 

void WalTanty coverage.6 

In June 2011, Rep. Sensenbrenner sent leiters to 14 automobile manufacturers inquiring 

as to the relationship between velucle druuage resulting ii-om the use ofEI5 illld velucle 

wanilllties. 7 Specifically, the letters asked three questions: (I) Will E15 dalnage engines of 

Model Year 2001 and later? (2) Will yourwananties cover dilll13ge froIll E15? And (3) Will EI5 

negatively afIeet fuel eflieieney. All 14 cOlllpallies responded with letters outlining their 

eOlleems witll E 15 use alld affilUled the potential for E 15 to negatively unpact their vehicles alld 

cause engine dalnage. FurthemlOre, the lllilllufacturers indicated that theu' vehicle fleets were not 

designed to operate on E 15, and stated that the walTilllties would not cover damage resulting 

Ii'om E15. as of JannalY 2013, only Ford alld Gcneral Motors have certified their Model Year 

2013 lines for use with E15. 

Legislative Summary and History 

In the 1l2ll

• Congl'ess, the Science, Space, alul Technology Committee passed H.R. 3199, 

authored by Rep. Sensenbrelmer. This legislation required that a comprehensive assessment of 

the scientific and technical research on the implications of the use of mid-level ethanol blends be 

conducted prior to the implementation of any waiver decision for E 15. The bill directed the EPA 

Administrator, acting through the Assistilllt Admiillst1'3tor of the Office of Reseal'e11 alld 

Development, to enter into all agreement with the National Academy of Science (NAS) to 

provide snch an assessment. 

The NAS assessment would provide a comparison of mid-level ethallol blends to gasoline 

blends containing both ten percent (EIO) and zero percent ethanol. Other components of the 

6 American Automobile Association, Netl' £15 Gasoline M",· Damage Vehicles and Calise Consllmer Confllsion, 

Ko\'ember 30.2012. Accessible at: http://newsroom.aaa.coIll/2012!11/new-eI5-gasoline-lllay-dalllage-vehic1es-andcause-consumcr-confusion! 

'Rep. Sensenbfeunef to Lisa Jackson, U.S. Em'irolUueutal Protection Agency, July 5, 201 I. 

http://sensenbrelUler.house.gov/uploadedfiles/e 15_ auto -"espollses.pdf 

4 
7 

assessment would include: (1) an evaluation of both short-teml and long-tenll environmental. 

safety, durability, and performance effects of the introduction of mid-level ethanol blends on 

olU'oad, nOlU'oad, and marine engines, olll'oad and nonroad vehicles, and related equipluent; and 

(2) an identification of gaps in research and lUlderstanding related to lllnuerous issues. The 

assessment would also identify areas of research, development, and testing necessary to: (1) 

ensure that existing motor fuel infrastmcture is not adversely impacted by mid-level ethanol 

blends, and (2) reduce the risk of misfueling by users at various points of the distribution and 

supply chain. 

Additional Reading: 

• Hearing Charter: Conflicts alld Unintended Consequences of Motor Fuels Stalldards, 

SUbCollullittee 011 Energy and Envirolllllent, Committee on Science, Space, and 

Technology. November 2,2011. 

• Hearing Charter: Hitting tlie Ethanol Blelld Wall: Examining the Science 011 E15, 

Subcolllmittee on Energy and EnvirolUllent, COlllmittee on Science, Space, and 

Teclmology. July 7, 2011. 

• National Academies of Science report, Rellewable Fllel Stal1dard: Potential Economic 

and Ellvirolllllellfal Effocts of us. Biofllel Policy. October 20 II. 

5 
8 

Discussion Draft 

Section-by-Section Analysis 

Purpose: To provide for a comprehensive assessment ofthe scientific and technical 

research on the implications of the usc of mid-level ethanol blends, and for other 

purposes. 

Section 1: Definitions 

Section 1 provides defmitions, including: "Administrator" and "Mid-Level Ethanol 

Blend." 

Section 2: El'aluation 

Section 2 (a) requires the Administrator, acting tlll'ough the Assistant Administrator of 

the Office of Research and Development at the Enviromllental Protection Agency to: (1) 

enter into an agrt.'Cll1enl with the National Academics of Sciences to provide a 

comprehensive assessment of the scientific and teclmical research on the implication of 

the use of mid-level ethanol blends, including a comparison of mid-level ethanol blends 

to gasoline containing ten percent or zero percent ethanol: and (2) transmit the report to 

the Committee on Science, Space and Teclmology and the Committee on Environment 

and Public Works within thirty days of receiving the results, along with the disagreement 

or agreement of the Administrator with the fmdings. 

Section 2 (b) invalidates allY waiver granted by the Agency plior to enactment under 

section 211 (f) (4) of the Clean Air Act that allows the introduction into commerce of 

mid-level ethanol blends. The Administrator is prohibited from granting new waivers 

Imder section 211 (f) (4) until after the submission of the report described in subsection 

(a) (2). 

Section 2 (c) requires the assessment perfonned under subsection (a) include: ' 

(l) an evaluation ofthe short and long-tenn environmental, safety, durability, and 

perfonnance effects ofthe introduction of mid-level ethanol blends 011 olU"oad, 1I0nroad, 

and marine engines, vehicles, and related equipment. The evaluation shall also include 

consideration of the impacts of qualifying mid-level ethanol blends or blends with higher 

ethanol concentration as a cel1ification fuel, and a review of all available scientific 

evidence, including all relevant govennl1ent and industry data and testing, including that 

which was relied upon by the Administrator and published in the federal register. 

Additionally, the study shall identify gaps in Imderstanding and research needs related to 

6 
9 

(A) tailpipe emissions; (8) evaporative systems; (C) engine and fuel system durability; 

(D) onboard diagnostics; (E) emissions inventory and other modeling effects; (F) 

materials compatibility; (G) operability and drivability: (H) fuel efficiency; (J) consumer 

education and satisfaction; (K) cost-effectiveness for the conSlUller; (L) catalyst 

durability; and (M) durability of storage tanks. piping, and dispensers for retail. 

TIle study shall also include: (2) An identitication of areas of research, development, and 

testing Ilecessaty to (A) ellSlU"e that existing motor fuel infrastl1.lcture is not adversely 

impacted by mid-level ethanol blends; and (8) reduce the risk of misfheling by users at 

various points in the distribution atul supply chain by: (i) assessing the best methods and 

practices to prevent misfueling; (ii) eXatllining misfueling mitigation strategies for 

blender pmups; (iii) assessing the adequacy and ability of rnisfheling mitigations plans 

approved by EPA: and (iv) examining the technical standards and recommendation of 

the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the American National Standards 

Institute. and the Intemational Orgatlization for Statldat"dizatioll regat"ding fuel pump 

labeling. 

Section 3: Authorization of Appropriations 

Section 3 requires the Administrator utilize up to $900,000 from the fimds made available 

for science and technology, including research atld development activities, at the 

EnviroIlmental Protection Agency to CatTY out this Act. 

7 
10 

Chairman STEWART. The Subcommittee on Environment will 

come to order. Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to today’s hearing entitled, ‘‘Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and Technical 

Research Needs.’’ 

Before we begin, I would like to take this opportunity to thank 

my esteemed colleague, Dr. Andy Harris, for his service to the 

Committee and to his leadership as Chairman of the Environment 

Subcommittee. We congratulate him on his appointment to the 

House Appropriations Committee but regret the loss of an active 

Member of this Committee. We thank him for his leadership and 

wish him the very best of luck in his new committee assignment. 

I am Chris Stewart. I am the Vice Chairman of this Subcommittee. I have been asked to pinch hit for Dr. Harris in his absence and hopefully we can stumble through this without too many 

incidents. I appreciate the presence of the witnesses with us today 

as well as other Members of the Subcommittee. 

In front of you are packets containing the written testimony, the 

biographies, and the truth in testimony disclosures for today’s witnesses. 

I know recognize myself for five minutes for an opening statement. 

Welcome to this afternoon’s hearing of the Environment Subcommittee entitled, ‘‘Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and 

Technical Research Needs.’’ 

This legislation hearing builds upon work of this Committee pursued last Congress involving technical aspects of the Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of mid-level ethanol blends for 

use in certain vehicles. Relying on a single set of narrow tests, EPA 

approved fuel with up to 15 percent ethanol, known as E15, for use 

in 2001, model year and newer passenger vehicles. Concurrently, 

and for the first time in the history of the Clean Air Act, EPA conducted a bifurcated fuel system, prohibiting E15 use in all other 

engines and vehicles. 

Unfortunately, the more E15 is studied, the more concerns are 

identified. In addition to potential widespread impacts on vehicle 

engines, EPA has led a haphazard transition to E15 usage, marked 

by regulatory confusion, bungled implementation, and a lack of 

consumer education. Today’s hearing is not a forum to discuss 

whether corn ethanol is good or bad, but rather it is designed to 

answer questions like: What have we learned about the effects of 

E15 since 2010? What types of research would be helpful before 

there is more widespread use throughout the United States? And 

finally, what types of research and development should be required 

ahead of the introduction of new fuels in the future? 

Toward answering these questions, our witnesses will be commenting on discussion draft legislation in your packets. This bill 

would require that EPA contract with the National Academy of 

Sciences to assess the state of the science regarding E15, including 

research needs, gaps in understanding, recent testing, and consumer education efforts. This draft is substantially similar to H.R. 

3199, bipartisan legislation co-sponsored by Congressman Sensenbrenner and passed overwhelmingly by the full Science, Space, and 

Technology Committee last year. 
11 

That legislation was also endorsed by a diverse coalition of 

groups concerned about EPA’s E15 science, including everyone from 

the Friends of the Earth and the National Turkey Federation to 

the American Petroleum Institute and Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers. For example, the now-President of the Environmental 

Working Group testified to this Subcommittee last Congress that, 

‘‘Our comprehensive review of the available scientific data indicates 

that E15 and higher ethanol blends could have significant adverse 

impacts on human and environmental health.’’ 

This hearing is focused on technical and consumer concerns 

about the potential engine damage, warranty issues, and 

misfueling associated with EPA’s approval of a bifurcated fueling 

system. The Clean Air Act does not allow a waiver for a new fuel 

if it would result in the failure of emission standards in cars manufactured after 1974. Recent research has found major problems resulting from the use of mid-level ethanol blends. This research has 

identified negative impacts to the engine durability, on-board 

diagnostics, fuel pumps, as well as non-road marine, outdoor power 

equipment, and snowmobile engines. Additional research has 

shown that consumers are completely unaware of this dramatic 

change, a 50 percent increase in the amount of ethanol per gallon, 

in the fuel they are putting in their vehicles and engines. 

Earlier this month, the National Marine Manufacturers Association conducted a survey that found of the 17 stations currently registered to sell E15 in a handful of States, six of those stations, fully 

35 percent, had failed to label the pumps according to EPA’s requirements. Confusion over misfueling has been magnified by the 

agency’s handling of blender pumps and non-approved vehicles. At 

one point last year, EPA even proposed a completely impractical 

and unenforceable mandate that all customers would have to buy 

at least four gallons from any E15 blender pump. This is not promising for the widespread adoption of this fuel, especially as the vast 

majority of vehicles and engines in America are either not approved for the use of E15 or may have their warranties voided by 

its use. 

While EPA’s Assistant Administrator Gina McCarthy has repeatedly stated that the agency is not currently requiring the use of 

E15, the agency has aggressively supported the Renewable Fuel 

Standard, the underlying mandate that will undeniably, at some 

point in the future, have to force fuel ethanol blends to exceed 10 

percent. And to be clear, RFS further guarantees that E15 is just 

the tip of the iceberg. RFS mandates 16 billion gallons of renewable 

fuel be blended for the sale in 2013. Over the next 10 years, this 

requirement will grow to 36 billion gallons. 

This policy is looking more and more like a monument of the 

folly of central energy planning and has entailed negative environmental outcomes, rising food costs here in the United States and 

in third world countries, and even outright fraud involving biofuel 

credits. This absurdity was demonstrated late last week when Ms. 

McCarthy, reportedly expected to be nominated for EPA Administrator, expressed excitement at her ‘‘personal milestone,’’ that the 

first credit for cellulosic ethanol had just been issued. What she 

failed to mention is that her agency had mandated 8.65 million gal-
12 

lons of this phantom fuel be paid for by consumers in 2012, even 

though virtually none existed. 

To reiterate, this hearing will not examine the RFS, but rather 

focus on its downstream impacts related to the technical and consumer research needed on the effects of E15 on all engines, as well 

as explore a potential path forward that is based on science and expert testing, not on politics. As our witnesses today will testify, 

there is increasing evidence that American consumers may have to 

pay the price for EPA’s cart-before-the-horse approach to E15 

science. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Stewart follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRMAN CHRIS STEWART

Welcome to this afternoon’s hearing of the Environment Subcommittee entitled 

‘‘Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and Technical Research Needs.’’ 

This legislative hearing builds upon work this Committee pursued last Congress 

involving technical aspects of the Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of 

mid-level ethanol blends for use in certain vehicles. Relying on a single set of narrow tests, EPA approved fuel with up to 15 percent ethanol—known as E15—for use 

in 2001 model-year and newer passenger vehicles. Concurrently, and for the first 

time in the history of the Clean Air Act, EPA created a birfurcated fuel system, prohibiting E15 use in all other engines and vehicles. 

Unfortunately, the more E15 is studied, the more concerns are identified. In addition to potential widespread impacts on vehicle engines, EPA has led a haphazard 

transition to E15 usage, marked by regulatory confusion, bungled implementation, 

and a lack of consumer education. Today’s hearing is not a forum to discuss whether 

corn ethanol is good or bad; rather, it is designed to answer questions like: What 

have we learned about the effects of E15 since 2010? What types of research would 

be helpful before there is more widespread use throughout the United States? Finally, what types of research and development should be required ahead of the introduction of new fuels in the future? 

Toward answering those questions, our witnesses will be commenting on discussion draft legislation in your packets. This bill would require that EPA contract with 

the National Academy of Sciences to assess the state of the science regarding E15, 

including research needs, gaps in understanding, recent testing, and consumer education efforts. This draft is substantially similar to H.R. 3199, bipartisan legislation 

sponsored by Congressman Sensenbrenner and passed overwhelmingly by the full 

Science, Space, and Technology Committee last year. 

That legislation was also endorsed by a diverse coalition of groups concerned 

about EPA’s E15 science, including everyone from Friends of the Earth and the National Turkey Federation to the American Petroleum Institute and the Alliance of 

Automobile Manufacturers. For example, the now-President of the Environmental 

Working Group testified to this Subcomiittee last Congress that ‘‘Our comprehensive 

review of the available scientific data indicates that E15 and higher ethanol blends 

could have significant adverse impacts on human and environmental health.’’ 

This hearing is focused on technical and consumer concerns about the potential 

engine damage, warranty issues, and misfueling associated with EPA’s approval of 

a bifurcated dueling system. The Clean Air Act does not allow a waiver for a new 

fuel if it would result in the failure of emission standards in cars manufactured 

after 1974. Recent research has found major problems resulting from the use of midlevel ethanol blends. This reserach has identified negative impacts to engine durability, on-board diagnostics, fuel pumps, as well as nonroad marine, outdoor power 

equipment, and snowmobile engines. Additional research has shown that consumers 

are completely unaware of this dramatic change—a 50 percent increase in the 

amount of ethanol per gallon—in the fuel they are putting in their vehicles and engines. 

Earlier this month, the National Marine Manufacturers Association conducted a 

survey that found that, of the 17 stations currently registered to sell E15 in a handful of States, six of those stations—35 percent—had failed to label the pumps according to EPA’s requirements. Confusion over misfueling has been magnified by 

the Agency’s handling of blender pumps and nonapproved vehicles; at one point last 

year, EPA even proposed a completely impractical and unenforceable mandate that 

all customers would have to buy at least four gallons from any E15 blender pump. 
13 

This is not promising for the widespred adoption of this fuel, especially as the vast 

majority of vehicles and engines in America are either not approved for the use of 

E15 or may have their warranties voided by its use. 

While EPA’s Assistant Administrator Gina McCarthy has repeatedly stated that 

the Agency is not currently requiring the use of E15, the Agency aggressively supports the Renewable Fuel Standard—the underlying mandate that will, undeniably, 

at some point in the future have to force fuel ethanol blends to exceed 10 percent. 

And to be clear—the RFS further guarantees that E15 is just the tip of the iceberg. 

The RFS mandates 16 billion gallons of renewable fuel be blended for sale in 2013. 

Over the next 10 years, this requirment will grow to 36 billion gallons. 

This policy is looking more and more like a monument to the folly of central energy planning, and has entailed negative environmental outcomes, rising food costs 

here in the United States and in third-world countries, and even outright fraud involving biofuel credits. This absurdity was demonstrated late last week, when Ms 

McCarthy—reportedly expected to be nominated for EPA Administrator—expressed 

excitement at her ‘‘personal milestone’’ that the first credit for cellulosic ethanol had 

just been issued. What she failed to mention is that her Agency had mandated 8.65 

million gallons of this phantom fuel be paid for by consumers in 2012, even though 

virtually none existed. 

To reiterate, this hearing will not examine the RFS but rather focus on its downstream impacts related to the technical and consumer research needed on the effects 

of E15 on all engines, as well as explore a potential path forward that is based on 

science and expert testing, not politics. As our witnesses today will testify, there is 

increasing evidence that American consumers may have to pay the price for EPS’s 

cart-before-the-horse approach to E15 science. 

Chairman STEWART. I would now like to recognize the Ranking 

Member, the gentlewoman from Oregon, Ms. Bonamici, for an 

opening statement. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you very much, Chairman Stewart. 

Renewable fuel from biomass, specifically corn-based ethanol, is 

a complex issue, and as this hearing demonstrates, the ethanol content in our Nation’s fuel supply has been the subject of much debate. In this Committee, we often cover policy areas about which 

there is disagreement in basic ideology and world view. 

But when we are faced with issues on which there is agreement, 

we should recognize that and work toward consensus solutions. 

For example, the Renewable Fuels Standard was first included 

in an energy bill that passed the House and the Senate with bipartisan support. That is a statement we don’t say frequently enough. 

One thing that many of us do say frequently is that we need to put 

this Nation on a path toward energy independence. Our reliance on 

foreign oil causes concerns in every sector, businesses and consumers worry about constantly fluctuating prices at the pump, our 

generals see a strategic disadvantage to relying on resources provided by countries with which we have experienced significant conflict, and many of our constituents rightly worry that continuing 

our current use of fossil fuels will harm our fragile environment. 

The Renewable Fuel Standard represents a bipartisan acknowledgement of the role that alternative fuels play in reducing our dependence on foreign oil. From my time in the Oregon legislature, 

I know well the concerns that some have about blend levels in gasoline, and I know that various States have made exceptions to accommodate these concerns. It makes sense to fully understand the 

impacts of our renewable policies before requiring consumers to 

comply. 

What does not make sense, however, is refusing to address the 

problem altogether. The blend wall should not be a reason to give 

up on renewable fuels. It should be a reason to promote technology 

that will meet the growing supply of renewables. Advanced eth-
14 

anol, cellulosic biomass, and developments in these fields are only 

going to increase the supply of blended fuels in the market, and 

these advancements will help us bring—come further toward energy security. 

This hearing is supposed to examine, among other things, scientific, technical, and consumer impacts of EPA’s decision to allow 

introduction by waiver of E15 in the market, and that is to allow, 

not to require. And we will also take comments on a draft bill that 

Mr. Sensenbrenner is circulating that would prevent the EPA from 

complying with its Congressionally mandated responsibilities under 

the Clean Air Act until additional research is performed on E15. 

The Department of Energy conducted much of the science that 

the EPA used in making its waiver decision. Although I agree that 

the EPA should not base decisions on incomplete information, neither should this Committee. I am concerned that in the hearing 

charter and in the witness testimony, the main literature that is 

being used to refute the EPA’s science on E15 is being provided by 

a group that is largely financed by the American Petroleum Institute and several automobile manufacturers 

In a Committee where science is paramount, I find it perplexing 

that the scientific studies we are discussing were largely funded by 

the oil industry, which has an obvious financial stake in the outcome, and this context is also worth pointing out at the outset that 

following the release of the study from the Coordinating Research 

Council, the Department of Energy did release a response questioning the methodology of the research. 

Clean and sustainable renewable fuels are already part of our 

economy. Investing in clean and renewable energy has and will 

continue to create jobs, reduce our impact on climate change, reduce our reliance on foreign fossil fuels, and strengthen our national security. We should work toward realizing a future of producing home-grown renewable fuels, and to meet that challenge, it 

is this Committee’s responsibility to focus on the science and technology that will help get our country on the road to a sustainable 

energy future. 

With that, I look forward to all of the witnesses’ testimony and 

to what I hope will be a productive discussion about the scientific 

and technological implications of alternative fuels. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Bonamici follows:] 

PREPARED STATEMENT OF SUBCOMMITTEE RANKING MEMBER SUZANNE BONAMICI

Thank you, Chairman Stewart. Renewable fuel from biomass, specifically cornbased ethanol, is a complex issue. And, as this hearing demonstrates, the ethanol 

content in our Nation’s fuel supply has been the subject of much debate. 

In this Committee, we often cover policy areas about which there is disagreement 

in basic ideology and world view. But when we are faced with issues on which there 

is agreement, we should recognize that and work toward consensus solutions. For 

example, the Renewable Fuels Standard was first included in an energy bill that 

passed the House and Senate with bipartisan support. That is a statement we don’t 

say frequently enough. 

One thing that many of us do say frequently is that we need to put this Nation 

on a path toward energy independence. Our reliance on foreign oil causes concern 

in every sector. Businesses and consumers worry about constantly fluctuating prices 

at the pump. Our Generals see a strategic disadvantage to relying on resources provided by countries with which we have experienced significant conflict. And many 
15 

of our constituents rightly worry that continuing our current use of fossil fuels will 

harm our fragile environment. 

The Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) represents a bipartisan acknowledgment of 

the role that alternative fuels play in reducing our dependence on foreign oil. From 

my time in the Oregon legislature, I know the concerns that some have about blend 

levels in gasoline, and I know that various States have made exceptions to accommodate these concerns. It makes sense to fully understand the impacts of our renewable policies before requiring consumers to comply. What does not make sense, 

however, is refusing to address the problem altogether. The ‘‘blend wall’ should not 

be a reason to give up on renewable fuels; it should be a reason to promote technology that will meeet the growing supply of renewables. Advanced ethanol, cellulosic biomass, developments in these fuels are only going to increase the supply 

of blended fuels on the market. Those advancements will help bring us further toward energy security. 

This hearing is supposed to examine—among other things—scientific, technical, 

and consumer impacts of EPA’s decision to allow introduction of E15 in the market. 

And we will also take comments on a draft bill that Mr. Sensenbrenner is circulating that would prevent the EPA from complying with its Congressionally mandated responsibilities under the Clean Air Act until additional research is performed 

on E15. 

The Department of Energy conducted much of the science that the EPA used in 

making its waiver decision. Although I agree that the EPA should not base decisions 

on incomplete information, neither should this Committee. I am concerned that in 

the Hearing Charter and in the witness testimony, the main literature that is being 

used to refute the EPA’s science on E15 is being provided by a group that is largely 

financed by the American Petroleum Institute and several automobile manufacturers. In a Committee where science is paramount, I find it perplexing that the scientific studies we are discussing were largely funded by the oil industry, which has 

an obvious financial stake in the outcome of this debate. 

Also, because the Department of Energy conducted the research on which the 

EPA based its decision, it is important to note for the record that the Majority invited neither the Department of Energy nor the Environmental Protection Agency 

to discuss the science and extensive testing on which EPS based its decision. 

Clean and sustainable renewable fuels are already a part of our economy. Investing in clean and renewable energy has and will continue to create jobs, reduce our 

impact on climate change, reduce our reliance on foreign fossil fuels, and strengthen 

our national security. We should work toward realizing a future of producing homegrown renewable fuels. To meet that challenge, it is this Committee’s responsibility 

to focus on the science and technology that will help get our country on the road 

to a sustainable energy future. 

With that, I look forward to all of the witnesses’ testimony and to what I hope 

will be a productive discussion about the scientific and technological implications of 

alternative fuels. 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, Ms. Bonamici. 

If there are other Members who wish to submit additional opening statements, your statements will be added to the record at this 

point. 

At this time I would like to introduce the witnesses. 

Our first witness is Mr. Robert L. Darbelnet, the President and 

CEO of American Automobile Association, known to most of us as 

AAA. Mr. Darbelnet has become AAA President and CEO in November 1994, after serving 11 years as CEO of the Canadian Automobile Association in Quebec. He currently serves as Chairman of 

the Global Mobility Alliance and Trustee of the AAA Foundation 

for Traffic Safety. 

Our next witness is the Honorable Wayne Allard, Vice President 

of Government Relations for the American Motorcyclist Association, 

or AMA. He previously served from 1997 to 2009 as a U.S. Senator 

for the State of Colorado. Senator Allard served as the Ranking 

Member of the Interior Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations 

Committee. Before that, Senator Allard was a Member of the U.S. 

House of Representatives from 1991 to 1997. 
16 

And the final witness today is Mr. Mike Leister, a member of the 

Board of the Directors of the Coordinating Research Council. He 

chairs the American Petroleum Institute Fuels Subcommittee and 

is a member of the API Economics Work Group and belongs to the 

American Fuels and Petrochemical Manufacturers Fuels Advisory 

Subcommittee. Mr. Leister has a Master’s of Science in chemical 

engineering and a Master’s of Business Administration. 

As our witnesses should know, spoken testimony is limited to 

five minutes each, after which the Members of the Committee will 

have five minutes each to ask questions. 

I would now like to recognize Mr. Darbelnet for five minutes to 

present his testimony. 

STATEMENT OF MR. ROBERT L. DARBELNET, 

PRESIDENT AND CEO, 

AMERICAN AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION 

Mr. DARBELNET. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. It is a 

pleasure to be here on behalf of AAA to share our views on this 

issue. I realize that you and your colleagues often deal with extremely complex questions, but the subject matter before us today 

is really quite simple, and that is that allowing the sale of E15 at 

this point in time is premature and irresponsible. 

In our view, there are three prerequisites for the introduction of 

a new fuel. The first one is adequate testing to ensure that the 

product that is being brought to market is safe. In this instance, 

that has not occurred. Granted, the EPA has conducted extensive 

testing, but the focus of that testing has been on the impact of E15 

on emission controls, not on the broader effect of the product on the 

engine itself. 

Industry testing reveals true and genuine concerns, and you will 

hear more about that later this afternoon, but clearly from our research or our review of the research, I should say, premature engine wear, potential fuel pump failures, and a series of other lesssignificant consequences can occur if this fuel is used in vehicles 

that were manufactured more recently than last year. Even the Renewable Fuel Association advises retailers to beware of the dangers 

and the damage that can result from putting E15 in underground 

storage systems. They speak of possible leaks and fires. Clearly 

there is something here. 

The second requirement, in our view, for introducing a new fuel 

to market is coordination between regulators, fuel retailers, and 

auto manufacturers. Now, the record is clear in that that has not 

occurred. A number of the retailers in this country are opposed to 

the sale of E15 and at the present time do not intend to bring it 

to market. Virtually every OEM or auto manufacturer in this country has indicated that using E15 in vehicles that were manufactured more recently than last year, with the exception of Porsches, 

will tell you that you could use it in a vehicle that is older than 

that, virtually all of the OEMs have said do not put this fuel in 

your tank unless you are accepting of the fact that it will void your 

warranty. 

And the third requirement for introducing a new product is outreach to consumers to mitigate the risk of misfueling, and that 
17 

hasn’t occurred either. Again, the record is clear. We conducted research recently that shows that 95 percent, 95 percent of the motoring public in this country does not know what E15 is, let alone 

whether they should be putting it in the tank of their vehicle. 

And to further complicate matters, the EPA ceded to pressures 

to tone down the message on the warning label which, incidentally, 

is rather small and generally lost in all of the advertising which 

is on today’s fuel pumps, but they agreed to tone down the message 

on that label from what was initially contemplated and would have 

started with the word ‘‘warning’’ to something less significant, in 

other words, ‘‘attention.’’ 

Now, I want to make clear the fact that AAA is not opposed to 

ethanol for automobiles. E10 is compatible with almost every vehicle on the road today. Automobiles, I should say, because you will 

hear from my colleagues that the same is not true for other types 

of vehicles. But for automobiles, E10 is safe. Our issue is not with 

ethanol. We see the benefit of reduced dependency on fossil fuel, we 

see the benefit of bringing to market alternative options for consumers. 

However, as I said at the outset, the sale of E15 at this point 

in time is irresponsible, and it should cease until adequate testing 

allows regulators, retailers, and auto manufacturers to reconcile 

their viewpoints to agree on which vehicles can safely consume 

E15, and to make sure that the consumer is adequately informed 

of the risks that follow the use of E15 in today’s automobiles. 

Thank you very much. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Darbelnet follows:] 
18 

Written Testimony of 

Robert L. Darbelnet 

President and CEO 

AAA 

Before the U.S. House Committee on Science, Space and Technology 

Subcommittee on Environment 

Written Testimony on "ll1id-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and 

Technical Research Needs" 

February 26, 2013 

Thank you, Chamnan Harris and Ranking Member Bonamici, for the oppommity to testilY at today's 

hearing. My name is Bob Darbelnet. and I am the president and CEO of AAA. 

AAA is a not-for-profit, fully taxpaying federation of motor clubs in the U.S. and Canada. AAA provides 

more than 53 million members with travel, insurance, fmancial and automotive-related services. Since its 

founding in 1902, AAA has been a leader and advocate for the safety and mobility of all travelers. 

Our advocacy ranges [rolll issues as diverse as distracted driving and teen chiver safety, to tracking retail 

gasoline prices, to forecasting holiday travel pattems, to partnerillg with regulators to develop and 

implement more consuIlIer-fiielldly fuel economy labels. We believe that consumer protection and 

education, supported by clear and thoughtful research. is not just a priority. it is an obligation. 

The introduction ofE15 gasoline to consumers has failed to meet this obligation. 

In November of last year - several months after E15 was first sold to motorists - a AAA survey fOlUld 

that 95 percent of conslllners had never heard of the fuel. Additionally, despite the Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) waiver. allowing the use ofE15 gasoline in model year 2001 and newer 

vehicles. we leamed that far fewer vehicles - a scant five percent - were actually approved for use llllder 

wllmlllty by their 1II11IlUfaclurer. Most alllIruingly. tbis new fuel entered the lII11Itet without adequate 

protections to prevent misfuelings and d<,'!;pite remaining questions about potential vehicle damage. even 
19 

for EPA-approved 2001 and newer vehicles. For these reasons, AAA called on the EPA and retailers to 

suspend the sale ofE15 untilmotolists were better protected. 

As tht: COlllluittee is aware, the EPA was first petitioned in 2009 to allow the salt: ofE 15. Siue<: that 

initial n:qm:sl, AA.;\ ha5 worked extensively with the Agellcy to ensure that the fud bleud would ouly be 

sold to motorists if it could be dOlle in a way that did uut put them at risk Despite evidence that drivers 

arc uot aware oftlit: fuel and could be lUlknowingly putting their cars in jeopardy, a handful of gas 

stations in Nebraska, Iowa and Kansas are selling this fueL and there is a strong likelihood that retailers 

will sell El5 in additional states soon unless immediate action is taken to protect consumers. To 

understand what steps are necessalY to COlTcct the ClllTent lack ofprotectioll and education, it is essential 

to understand the process necessary for the successfiil introduction of mly new fueL 

In our view, the first step for a new fuel being introduced to market is thorough mId thoughtful testing of 

how it will impact consUiners and their vehicles. This should include research that looks at the full impact 

of fuel use on emissions, fuel systems, drivability, fuel efficiency mld retail distlibution to motorists. The 

fud should 1I0t be approved for usc in any vehicle or cquipmclllthat is 1I0t proven appropriate. 

l'\ext, it is cIitical to implcrnellt COIISlUuer educatiou enorts to ensure that the new product is only used as 

directcd. This includes sufficient sleps to prevent misliIdings, including, but not limited to. consumer 

protections at the pUIllP and education efforts to enSlU'e motorists are fi1l1y aware ofthe fuel they are using 

in their vehicle. The importance of these steps only increases in the event of a partial waiver, where there 

is significantly greater potential for motorist confilsion and misfile1ing. 

Finally_ it is vital for regulators to work closely with industry stakeholders to enSlU'e that mmlUfacttu-ers 

SUppOlt federally-approved fuels marketed as safe to conSIUllers. Tlus is ml essential [mal step to prevent 

motorists from unknowingly using a fuel their vehicle's mmlufacturer does not deem safe and that could 

potentially void their wmTmlty and leave them liable for costly repairs. 

E15 has been introduced into the market without the successful completion of any uflhese necessary 

steps. 

Suppulters ofE 15 lightly nute that the Departllleut ufEnergy (DOE) rigorously tested the fud for exhaust 

emissions and components. This is consistent with the EPA's mission. It was however neither the rigor 

nor the duration"oflhis testing that fell short, it was the scope of impact that these tests were designed to 

capture. After reviewing this research, along with other studies that have been conducted, AAA's 

automotive experts have concerns about reduced engine life and fuel pump failure from E 15 use 

factors that DOE testing was not structlrred to meaSlU"e. 

AA.;\ would support E15 gasoline coming to market, but only following complete mId conclusive testing 

demonstrating it was safe for approved vehicles and once nccessmy conSlUuer awareness mld protections 

were put in place. Testing by the National Academy of Sciences, wluch would be required by the 

legislation being discussed today_ would be an illlpoltmit !irst step in resolving SOllle oftlIt: outstanding 

questions about the impact o1'EI5 usc. 

Consumer education efforts to date and safeguards at the pUlllP are also severely lacking. As previously 

discussed, AAA found that lllore than 95% of conSIUllers have not heard ofEl5. In the best of 

circulllstances, when filling up at a pump that dispenses the fuel, motorists have only a 3 and S,8 inches 
20 

wide by 3 and 1:8 inches high label (attached) to wam that they may be using a new product not designed 

for use ill their vehicle. As AAA noted in our public COllllllellts submitted to the EPA in 2011. this label 

alolle is insufficient. It is easily overlooked by motOlists among the other stickers and signage on the 

pump and the linal version is 3 watercd-do\\~1 and less atlcntion-!,'rabbing version offhe illitiallabcl 

proposed by the EPA. The risk is only more alal1ning considering a reccnt stllvey cited by the National 

Maline Manu/actm'crs Association that /onnd 35 percent of the cutTent registered sellers ofE15 _. six of 

the 18 registered program sites - had not even bothered to label the pump at aiL This combination of 

uninf0l111ed consumers and insufficient identification at the ptullp puts motorists at tlllIleCeSSalY and 

llllacceptable risk alld is a recipe for misfuelings and vehicle damage. 

Finally. both the EPA and the Renewable Fuel Association (a vocal supporter ofEIS's approval), agree 

that "it lllay be necessary for consumers to consult their vehiclemallllfactlU.er.s website or all authorized 

dealership, to detel111ine recommendations on the use ofEI5 in their vehicle." AAA took the guesswork 

out of that reconlIllendation alld checked. Automakers have approved less thall 5% of Cal'S on the road to 

liSt; E15. 

TIlis leaves a substantial gap between the limited lIlunber of vehicles that automakers will cover and the 

slightly more than 50% of vehicles the EPA has approved to usc the fueL This sort of couflicting 

infol1l1atioll confuses motorists. and AAA bcliL"Ves it is bolh premature and i1Tesponsible to sell E 15 to 

consumers while these issues remain unresolved. 

While supporters publically alld vocally deny and dismiss the potential damage to motorists' vehicles and 

fueling infrastmcture that EI5 may cause, these same groups do admit that higher ethanol blends may 

cause damage when it suits their business interests, 

In a tJSA Today article in November 2012, Bob Dinneen, CEO of the Renewable Fuel Association 

(RF A), stated "there are no cotTosive issues with E15. If there's an issue with El5 (damaging vehicles) 

we're going to know about it." This statement is in stark contrast to the RFA's own "E15 Retailer 

Halldbook," which clearly oullines potential issues with the Ihe!. The handbook not only advises retailers 

that "some UndcrgrOlmd Storage Tank syst,:ms and related uuderground equipment IIIay not be 

cOIllpatible with EI5 blends" but also cites the Underwriters Laboratories' waming that "some etluipmeul. 

both new and used ... demonstrated limited ability to safely accommodate exposure to fuels such as EI5." 

Perhaps most alanningly. the renewable fuels iudustry testified before Congress in SUpp0l1 of the 

Domestic Fuels Protection Act. This legislation was appropriately named in that it provided blanket 

liability protections to fuel producers. while providing no protections to motorists. If these proponents of 

higher ethanol blends aren't confident enough to take responsibility for the risks ofEl5, it is not just 

inappropriate bur inexclIsable that the risk be passed on 10 lUisuspectillg COllSlUncrs. 

Some groups have cliosento misrepresent AAA's position and the reasons that we have called for E15 

sales to be suspended. rather thall discuss the material cOllcems we have raised ou behalf of motodsls. 

AAA is not opposed 10 ethanoL We arc cOllcemed with the way that this one palticular blend has hecn 

brougbtlo market and is being sold to consumers. AAA believes that ethanol blcnded fuels have the 

potential to provide drivers with a welcome choice at the pump that sUpp0l1S Americanjobs. promotes 

American energy independence and Call save Americans money. In order to realize these benefits, it is 

imperative that increased ethanol blends are only brought to market when conSlUners have been clearly 
21 

infOimed and protected. AAA would support a motorists' right to choose E15 but not tUltil the impact on 

vehicles is clear and only once basic thresholds of conSlUner education and protection have been met. 

With this goal illllliud. AAA has called OlHegulators aud iudusll-Y to suspend the salt: ofEI5 until 

motorists an: bener protected. We welcome the COllullince's support in achieving this goal. 

Thank you agaillto the Committee for the opporllmity to testify here today and I look fOlward to your 

questions. 
22 

ROBERT L. DARBELNET - AAA, PRESIDENT AND CEO 

APPOINTED TO THE AAA BOARD OF DIRECTORS IN 2005. 

Robert l. Darbelnet is president and CEO of AAA, a 

not-for-profit federation of 50 motor clubs that serves 

more than 53 million members in the United States 

and Canada. 

Darbelnet became AAA president and CEO in November 1994, after serving 11 

years as CEO of CAA-Quebec. He began his AAA career as an emergency road 

service driver for the Quebec Automobile Club in 1973. 

Darbelnet is a past Chairman of ITS America and the Alliance Internationale de 

Tourisme (AIT) based in Geneva. He served as Deputy President for Mobility of 

the FIA (Federation Internationale de I' Automobile) from 2001 to 2005, as an 

elected member of the FIA Senate from 1997 to 2005, as President of FIA Region 

III from 2005 to 2009 and as Trustee of the FIA Foundation from 2003 to 2011. 

Darbelnet currently serves as Chairman of the Global Mobility Alliance and 

trustee of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. 

Darbelnet is a graduate of Sainte-Foy College and laval University in Quebec City. 
23 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, sir. 

I now recognize Senator Allard for five minutes for his testimony. 

STATEMENT OF HON. WAYNE ALLARD, 

VICE PRESIDENT, GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, 

AMERICAN MOTORCYCLIST ASSOCIATION 

Mr. ALLARD. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I want to congratulate you on Chairing your first Committee. 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you. It is really quite exciting. 

Mr. ALLARD. Acting Chairman Chris Stewart and Ranking Member Suzanne Bonamici and Members of the Subcommittee, thank 

you for the opportunity to provide comment on ‘‘Mid-Level Ethanol 

Blends: Consumer and Technical Research Needs.’’ 

I was in public office for 26 years, but I still shake my head over 

the ability of the Federal Government to reach, or maybe I should 

say overreach, into the lives of the American people and the power 

wielded by bureaucrats to do so. 

One case in point is E15, a gasoline formulation that contains up 

to 15 percent ethanol by volume, which could damage motorcycle 

and all-terrain vehicle engines. 

The American Motorcyclist Association believes extensive, independent testing needs to be done before E15 becomes more widely 

available. The key for the AMA and our members is that E15 must 

be proven safe for motorcycle and ATV engines. To the best of our 

knowledge, E15 is not approved for use in any original-equipment 

motorcycles or ATVs, and in fact, its use can void many manufacturer’s warranties. 

As of today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has only 

approved the use of E15 in model year 2001, and newer cars, lightduty trucks, and medium-duty passenger vehicles. This list does 

not include motorcycles or ATVs. 

How is the Federal Government going to prevent motorcyclists 

from inadvertently putting E15 in our gas tanks or gas cans when 

getting gas at a blender pump with a single hose? 

Here is what the EPA—here is where the EPA overreached. Initially, the EPA decided that you must buy at least four gallons of 

gas from that blender pump. Not one gallon, not two gallons, not 

three gallons. Yes, the government mandated you buy at least four 

gallons to dilute the residual E15 in the hose. 

The EPA revealed the four-gallon minimum mandate to the AMA 

in a letter last August responding to AMA concerns that E15 could 

be put in motorcycle and ATV gas tanks inadvertently when consumers use blender pumps. Unlike an automobile or SUV that has 

a large fuel tank, the residual fuel left in a fueling hose could be 

detrimental to the performance of motorcycle or ATV engines due 

to the small size of their fuel tanks and the higher concentration 

of ethanol that would, therefore, be present in the fuel. 

In addition, the use of E15 will lower fuel efficiency and possibly 

cause premature engine failure. In off-road engines, the effect can 

even be dangerous for users. 

Another problem with that new EPA policy is that not all motorcycle and ATV gas tanks hold four gallons or more gallons. Not 

only did we find it unacceptable for the EPA to mandate that ev-
24 

eryone, including our members, buy minimum amounts of gas, but 

that the EPA answer simply would not work because of the sizes 

of many motorcycle and ATV gas tanks and the fact that off-highway riders take containers of gas with them on their trips. Most 

times these containers are much smaller than four gallons. 

We stress that the EPA needed to come up with a better solution, 

so on February 7, in response to concerns expressed by the AMA 

and power equipment makers, the EPA issued new guidelines to 

help ensure that motorcyclists and others don’t inadvertently use 

E15 fuel. 

Under the new option, retailers who use a blender pump to see 

E15 and E10 fuel through the same hose must also have a separate 

E10/E0 fuel pump. Those retailers would be required to have a 

label on the blender pump that reads passenger vehicles only. Use 

in other vehicles, engines, and equipment may violate federal law. 

Retailers would also be required to have signs indicating the location of the dedicated E10 or lower fuel pump. There would be no 

minimum fuel purchase requirement at that pump. 

Now, we can only imagine how many motorists and motorcyclists 

will be lining up at that single pump to get E10 or lower fuel. Retailers who want to sell E15 also have the option of having a dedicated E15 pump or hose or a pump that dispenses E15 and higher 

ethanol blends through a single hose. If a blender pump dispenses 

multiple fuels that include E15 and higher ethanol blends, the EPA 

may require a minimum purchase requirement. 

The AMA has repeatedly expressed concerns to government officials and federal lawmakers about possible damage to motorcycle 

and ATV engines caused by the inadvertent use of E15 when the 

new fuel becomes widely available. The AMA has also asked that 

motorcycles and ATVs be part of any scientific study into the effects of E15 to ensure that the new fuel blend would not damage 

those engines. 

It is my sincere hope that this Subcommittee continues to be 

proactive on this important issue affecting motorcyclists and ATV 

riders. The AMA and its members stand ready to serve as a resource for you and your staff as you further deliberate making our 

Nation’s fuel supply safer for all users. 

Again, I wish to thank the Chairman, the Ranking Member, and 

the Subcommittee for holding this legislative hearing on E15. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Allard follows:] 
25 

Statement of U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard 

Vice President, Government Relations 

American Motorcyclist Association 

u.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Environment ofthe 

Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

Hearing on "Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and Technical 

Research Needs" 

February 26, 2013 
26 

Chainnau Andy HatTis. Ranking Member Suzatme BOllatnici atld members of tile Subcommittee. 

thank you for the opportunity to provide comment on Mid-Level Ethanol Ble1lds: COIISlImer alld 

Tecllllical Research Needs. 

I was in public otIice for 26 yeat·s, bnt I still shake my head over the ability of the federal 

govenuneut to reach -- or ovelTeach -- into the lives of the Americatl people, atld tile power 

wielded by bmeaucrats to do so. 

Que case in point is E 15 -- a gasoline fonnulation that contains up to 15 percent ethanol by 

volumc --which could damage motorcycle and all-teITain vehicle engines. 

The American Motorcyclist Association believes extensive independent testing nceds to be done 

before E 15 becomes more widely available. The key for the AMA atld our members is that E 15 

must be proven safe for motorcycle and ATV engines. To the best of om knowledge, EI5 is not 

approved for nse in atly original-equipment motorcycles or A TV s. In fact, its use can void many 

manufacturers' watTatlties. 

As of today, tIle U.S. EnvirolJlnental Protection Agency has only approved tIle use ofEIS in 

model year 2001 and newer cars, light-duty tillcks and medium-duty passenger vehicles. This list 

does not include motorcycles or A TV s. 

How is the federal government going to prevent motorcyclists from inadvertcntly putting E 15 in 

their gas tatlks or gas cans when getting gas at a "blender plmlp" with a single hose? 

Here's where the EPA oven·eached. 

Initially the EPA decided that yonlllust buy at least fOllr gallons of gas from that blender pUlllp. 

Not one gallon. Not two gallons. Not even t1n'ee gallons. Yes, tIle goVel1llllent matldated you buy 

at least four gallons to dilute the residual E 15 in the hose. 

The EPA revealed the fOlU'-gallon minimlUn matldate to the MiA ill a letter last August 

respouding to AMA concerns that E 15 could be put in motorcycle and A TV gas tanks 

inadve11ently when consumers use blender plUllpS. 

Unlike an automobile or SUV that has a large fuel tank, the residual fhelleft ill a fueling hose 

could be detrimental to the perfonnancc of motorcycle or A TV engines due to the small size of 

their fhel tatlks atld the higher concentration of ethatlol iliat would, therefore, be present ill the 

fueL 

In addition, the use of E 15 will lower fhel efficiency and possibly Ca\L~e prematme engine 

failure. In off-road engines, the effects can even be dangerous for users. 

Another problem with that new EPA policy is that not all motorcycle and ATV gas tanks hold 

fonr or more gallons. 

2 
27 

Not ouly did we find it lmacceptable for the EPA to mandate that evelyone -- including our 

members -- buy minimum amounts of gas, but the EPA answer simply would not work because 

of the sizes of many motorcycle and A TV gas tanks and the fact that off-highway riders take 

containers of gas with them on their trips. and most times those containers are much smaller than 

four gallons. 

We stressed that the EPA needed to come up with a better solution. 

So on Feb. 7, in response to concerns expressed by the AMA and power equipment makers, the 

EPA issued new guidelines to help ensure that motorcyclists and others don't inadvertently use 

E15 fuel. 

Under the new option, retailers who use a blender plUllp to sell E 15 and E 1 0 filel tlll'ough the 

same hose must also have a separate E IOIEO filel pump. Those retailers would be required to 

have a label on the blender pIllllp that reads: "Passenger Vehicles Only. Use in Other Vehicles, 

Engines and Equipment May Violate Federal Law." Retailers would also be required to have 

signs indicating the location of the dedicated ElO-or-lower fuel pump. There would be no 

minimum-filel-purchase requirement at that pump. 

We can only imagine how many motorists and motorcyclists will be lining up at that single pump 

to get EIO-or-Iower file!. 

Retailers who want to sell E15 also have the option of having a dedicated E15 pump or hose, or a 

pump that dispenses E 15 and higher ethanol blends through a single hose. If a blender plUllp 

dispenses multiple fuels that include EI5 and higher ethanol blends, the EPA !Uay require a 

minimum pm'chase requirement. 

The AMA has repeatedly expressed concems to govel1l1uent oflicials and federal lawmakers 

about possible damage to motorcycle and ATV engines caused by the inadvertent use ofE15 

when the new fuel beeomes widely available. The AMA also has asked that motorcycles and 

ATVs be part of any scientific study into the effects ofEIS to ensm'e that the new fitel blend 

would not damage those engines. 

It is my sincere hope that this Subcommittee continues to be proactive on this impOliant issue 

affecting motorcyclists and A TV riders. The AMA and its members stand ready to serve as a 

resource for you and your staff as you filliher deliberate making our nation's filel supply safer for 

all users. 

Again, I wish to thank the Chail111an, the Ranking Member and the Subcommittee for holding 

this legislative hearing on E 15. 

3 
28 

I. Family 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Curriculum Vitae 

Dr. Wayne Allard, D.V.M. 

2757 Glebe Road #210 

Arlington, Virginia 22206 

February 21,2013 

He was born on December 2, 1943 at Fort Collins, Colorado to S. Jean Allard and Amos W Allard. 

He married Joan E Malcolm and they have 2 daughters: Christine and Cheryl. 

They have 7 grandkids: Colin, Christian and Colton (twins), Cody Johnson; Evan Smith; Abbie and 

Alex Doble. 

II. Education 

A. Wayne and his wife Joan both graduated from Colorado State University. She received a degree in 

microbiology and he received a doctor of veterinary medicine degree. Dr. Allard is one of 45 

veterinarians in the United States and Canada who was a charter member of the American Board 

of Veterinary Practitioners-Companion Animal. 

III. Publications 

A. Professional 

1. "Yersinia Tuberculosis in Cats" 

2. "Skin Testing for Allergies in the Dog" 

3. "Mastocytosis in the Cat" 

4. "Lawn Burn from Dog Urine" 

B. Political articles and writings are numerous. 

C. Books published 

1. The Centennial State's U.S. Senators 1876-2000. 

IV. Memberships 

A. Charter life Member of the Colorado State University Alumni Association 

B. Life Member of the Larimer County 4-H Club Foundation 

C. Charter Diplomat of the Board of Veterinary Practitioners. Now, an honorary member of the board. 

D. American Animal Hospital Association 

E. American Veterinary Medical Association 

F. University and Legislative Affairs Committee for the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association. 

G. Long Peak Veterinary Medical Association 

H. larimer County Veterinary Medical Association 

I. Chairman Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education for Veterinary Medicine. 

J. loveland Chamber of Commerce 

K. National Federation of Independent Businesses 

l. Honorary board member for Baker-Cotton University (Northeastem Junior College affiliate) 

M. Rotarian 

N. National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution 

O. Colorado Society of the Sons of the American Revolution 

P. Honorary Membership in the American-Scottish Military Society 

V, Veterinary Career 

A. Started his own practice in loveland in 1970, Part-time health officer for City of Loveland for 8 

years and eventually eliminated his own position because of duplication with other agencies, 

practice grew to 10 employees; Wife, Joan was the bookkeeper, lab aSSistant, and part-time 

secretary; daughters also worked part-time in the practice 

B. Health Officer for the City of Loveland 

C. Founder and CEO of the Prion Research Institute. 

VI. Employment 

A. 1952-1962 Worked in hay field of Allard Cattle Company owned by parents 

B. 1962-1967 Various summer jobs while attending Colorado State University 
29 

1. 1962- private contractor for bucking bales and harvesting com 

2. 19163-Worked for Wildlife Service in Dillingham, Alaska and guarded the jail on a part time 

for the State Trooper. 

3. 1964-Research assistant for Dr. Lechleitner involving prairie dogs and bubonic plague. 

4. 1964-Tutoredfor1 quarter chemistry 

5. 1965-Kennel assistant and large animal assistant for Rankin Veterinary Clinic in Salem, 

Oregan. 

6. 1967 -Summer intern at Colorado State University veterinary hospital. 

C. 1968 through 1969-Veterinarian at Moffat-Minnick Veterinary Hospital in Kent, Washington. It was a 

mixed practice. 

D. 1970 Started own small animal practice as Allard Animal Hospital, Loveland, Colorado until March 

of 1991. 

E. 1970-1978 Part time health officer for the City of Loveland. 

F. 1983-1991 Member of the Colorado State Senate 

G. 1991-1997 Member of the United States House of Representatives 

H. 1997-2009 Member of the United States Senate 

I. 2009-Current: Founder and managing partner in Wayne Allard Associates, LLC 

J. 2009-2012: Founder and CEO of the Prion Research Institute 

K. 2012-Current: American Motorcyclist Association, Vice President of Government Relations. 

VII. Political Activities 

A. 1974 Republican precinct committeeman 

B. 1978 Larimer County Republican executive committee, Republican Central Committee of the 

Fourth Congressional District, Central Committee of the Colorado Republican Party, Precinct 

Chairman for "Bill Armstrong for U.S. Senate." 

C. 1980 Organized the Larimer County Republican Club and chaired it for 2 years. 

D. 1984-1986 Campaign chairman for U.S. Congressman Hank Brown in the 4th Congressional 

District of Colorado. 

E. 1988 4th Congressional District coordinator for the "Bush for President" campaign and on the 

Western United States Advisory Committee chairing the Agriculture section for the Bush for 

President campaign. 

F. 1992 Colorado Honorary Co-Chair for "Bush for Presidenf' 

G. 1999-2000 Chairman of the Inner Circle for the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Met an 

historic high when raised more money than outlined in the budget. 

H. 2004 Co-chair with Governor Owens for the Colorado "George W Bush for President" campaign. 

VIII. Positions held in elected office: 

A. 1978 The first elected position was as a Republican Committeeman when this position was put on 

the primary ballot 

B. 1983 Sworn into the Colorado State Senate 

a. Elected Caucus Chair for 6 years 

C. 1991 Sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives 

a. Elected as Freshman Class to House Committee on Committees 

b. Elected as Sophomore Class to House Committee on Committees 

D. 1997 Sworn into the U.S. Senate 

a. Assistant Majority whip 

b. Assistant Minority whip 

E. Took voluntary term limit growth and served 8 years in Colorado Senate, 6 years in the U.S. House 

of Representatives, and 12 years in the U.S. Senate. 

X Civic Activities and Honors 

A. Attended CSU on Fort Collins Lions Club Future Citizen of Tomorrow Award and Scholarship 

(1962). 

B. Honored as one of top 4 Colorado 4-Her's in leadership in 1963. 

C. Professional Chairman of Loveland United Way-1972 

D. 4-H leader-1970 thru 1976. 

E. Scout advisor on dog care 

F. CSU Young Alumni Committee 

G. Chairman of Loveland Capital Improvement Citizen Committee-1980 

H. Vice Chair of Larimer County Government Study Committee-1981 

I. Volunteer veterinarian at Annual Cosmopolitan Mutt Derby 1970-1980 

J. Volunteer Loveland Corn Festival 1984, 1985. 

K. Volunteer Veterinarian at Estes Park Scottish Highland Festival-1986 

L. Member Larimer County Farm Bureau 
30 

M. Board of Director of Colorado Agriculture Leadership Council-September-1985 

N. Board of Director of Larimer County Mutual Affordable Housing Association-1986. 

O. Listed in Marquis Who's Who in the West. 

P. Guardian Advisory Committee for National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB)-1987. 

Q. Member of Honorary Committee supporting "Scouting for Food"-1988 

R. The Friendship Force of Northern Colorado program participant to foster better international 

relations and presented Colorado flag in 1986, 1988, 1989. 

S. 1990 Honor Alumnus of C.S.U. from the Department of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical 

Science. 

T. 1992 Honoree George H. Glover Gallery of Distinguished Faculty and Alumni at Colorado State 

University. 

U. 1991-2000 Presidential apPOintment to the James Madison Foundation Board of Directors. 

V. 1999 CSU Alumni Chartes A Lory Public Service Award. 

W. American Veterinary Medical Association President's Award. 

X. Habitat for Humanity (Philadelphia House, House the Senate Built and Loveland Senate House 

sponsored. Loveland House was first in Colorado sponsored) 

Y. Honorary Member Award of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners granted on May 3, 

2003. 

Z. 2005 Recipient of the George E Brown Jr. Congressional Honor Award for leadership in imaging 

and geospatial information. 

AA. University of Colorado Alumni Association 2005 Congressional legislator of the Year. 

BB, 20006 reCipient of the AVMA Meritorious Service Award 
31 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, Senator. On a personal note, I 

will note that your home State of Colorado is almost as beautiful 

as my home State of Utah, and I look forward to joining you on 

your next motorcycle ride through the land. 

I now recognize Mr. Leister for his testimony. 

STATEMENT OF MR. MIKE LEISTER, 

MEMBER, BOARD OF DIRECTORS, 

COORDINATING RESEARCH COUNCIL 

Mr. LEISTER. Good afternoon. Thank you for inviting me here 

today to testify on mid-level ethanol research programs conducted 

by the Coordination Research Council, CRC. I am a Senior Fuels 

Policy Advisor for Marathon Petroleum Corporation, but today I am 

here to represent CRC. I am currently a member of the CRC Board 

of Directors, and I am a past President of the Board. 

CRC is a research organization that has been around for more 

than 70 years. You may not have heard of it much before, but it 

has done significant research throughout the two World Wars and 

since then. About two-thirds of the CRC budget is paid for by automobile manufacturers and the American Petroleum Institute. The 

remaining funding is paid for on a project-by-project basis by outside organizations. CRC is the gold standard of vehicle and fuels 

research. 

In recent years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the 

U.S. Department of Energy, the California Air Board, the National 

Renewable Energy Lab, and even the Renewable Fuels Association 

and Growth Energy have contributed significant funds to CRC research projects. 

I would like to stress at the outset that my testimony for CRC 

does not engage in any advocacy. CRC stays out of advocacy. We 

try to conduct straightforward research and report the facts that 

have been learned. CRC leaves it to other parties to apply political 

interpretation to these results. My written testimony has some additional background on CRC. 

Shortly after the enactment of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the auto, oil industries, and even DOE and EPA 

recognized that substantial research was needed to assess the compatibility of higher-level ethanol blends with existing vehicles and 

small engines. The Coordinating Research Council developed and 

funded a comprehensive, multi-year testing program. In the early 

stages of this program, DOE and NREL participated in the design 

of various projects and even helped write some of the preliminary 

reports. The CRC has spent close to $14 million looking at midlevel ethanol blends research over the past years, and we are committed to finishing the projects that we have underway. 

Attachment One of my testimony lists the CRC programs and 

their schedules. The chief programs in this area are, first of all, the 

durability of the engine itself, particularly engine valves and valve 

seats. That program has been completed. The durability of the vehicle onboard fuel storage and handling equipment. That project 

has also been completed. The computerized onboard diagnostic system, or OBD, which the driver often sees as the check engine light 

coming on and off, that project is still ongoing, and finally, the last 
32 

major part of our research has been the vehicle evaporative emissions control system, which minimizes the release of fuel vapors to 

the atmosphere, and that project has been completed. 

This comprehensive set of test programs will be completed this 

spring with the OBD Program being completed. However, the test 

results on at least two of the programs, the engine durability and 

the fuel system durability, suggest that E15 has the potential to 

damage millions of vehicles in the current U.S. fleet. 

CRC, along with EPA and DOE, participated in all eight of the 

mid-level ethanol stakeholder meetings that have been held since 

May of 2008. On each occasion, we shared our research schedule 

and preliminary test results. However, EPA chose to ignore this research. Instead of waiting for CRC studies to be completed and 

thoroughly evaluated, EPA improperly used data from a DOE catalyst durability program and drew conclusions about E15 effects 

that the DOE Program was simply not designed to evaluate. 

My testimony today will highlight the results of the CRC E15 research on engine durability and fuel system durability. 

On engine durability, that research demonstrated that E15 and 

E20 could cause engine damage, specifically excess valve and seat 

wear under certain driving conditions in some of the existing vehicles that were expected to be sensitive to ethanol concentrations. 

Two out of eight models tested in the program failed on E15 and 

E20 but not on E0. The failures that occurred were compression 

failures, and they can result in the loss of power, increased emissions, and high repair costs for the consumer. 

On fuel system durability, the research identified an elevated incidence of fuel pump failures, fuel system component swelling, impairment of the fuel level measurements in some of the vehicles 

tested. E15 can cause erratic and misleading fuel gauge readings 

and cause improper check engine light illuminations. Fuel pump 

failures will stop the flow of fuel to the engine, which can result 

in breakdowns on the highway or busy streets. A fuel system components problems did not develop when CRC tested E10 or E0 on 

these components. 

Discovering these problems was not really very surprising, because valve and valve seat upgrades are typically what an auto 

manufacturer does to make a vehicle E85 compatible. Fuel pumps 

and level sender problems are also not surprising, because these 

components also are typically upgraded to make flex fuel vehicles 

for E85. 

I would like to point out that CRC only tested a small sample 

of vehicles, engines, and components in the current U.S. vehicle 

fleet, and that most of the sampled vehicles, engines, and components demonstrated no problem with E15; however, the problems 

uncovered represent serious concerns over the useful life of millions 

of the vehicles in the current fleet. Until 2012, no vehicles in the 

U.S. fleet, except for flex fuel vehicles, were really designed to handle E15, so it was not surprising these problems were found. 

CRC simply believes that the research demonstrates that millions of the vehicles, engines, or components in the U.S. fleet could 

be damaged by E15. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Leister follows:] 
33 

Testimony for Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Technical and Consumer Research 

Needs 

Date: February 26,2013 

Representative Andy Harris, Chairman 

Representative Suzanne Bonamici, Ranking Member 

House Science, Space and Technology Subcommittee on Environment 

Mike Leister, Board Member 

Coordinating Research Council 

3650 Mansell Road 

Suite 140 

Alpharetta, Georgia 30022 

Chairman Harris, Ranking Member Bonamici, and members of the Subcommittee: 

1 
34 

Good Afternoon. My name is Mike Leister. I would like to thank you for inviting 

me here today to testifY on midlevel ethanol research programs conducted by the 

Coordinating Research Council (CRC). I am a senior fuels policy advisor for 

Marathon Petroleum Corporation but I am here today to testifY for the CRC. I am 

currently a member ofthe CRC board and a past president of the board. CRC is a 

research organization that has been around for more than 70 years conducting 

research into fuels, engines and vehicles. About two thirds of the CRC budget is 

paid for by automobile manufacturers and the American Petroleum Institute. The 

remaining funding comes from outside organizations on a project by project basis. 

CRC is the gold standard ofvehicle/fuels research organizations. In recent years, 

the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the US Department of Energy 

(DOE), the California Air Board, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory 

(NREL), the Renewable Fuels Association and Growth Energy have contributed 

significant funds to CRC research projects. I would like to stress at the outset of 

my testimony that CRC does not engage in advocacy. It conducts straight forward 

research and reports the facts that have been learned. CRC leaves it to other 

parties to apply political interpretations to these results. My written testimony 

includes additional background on the CRe. 

Shortly after enactment ofthe Energy Independence and Security Act in 2007, the 

oil and auto industries and other stakeholders, including EPA and DOE, recognized 

that substantial research was needed to assess the compatibility of higher ethanol 

blends with existing vehicles and small engines. The Coordinating Research 

Council developed and funded a comprehensive multi-year testing program. In 

the early stages of this program, DOE and NREL participated in the design of 

various projects and even helped write one of the preliminary reports. The CRC 

has spent close to $14 million towards mid-level ethanol blends research over the 

2 
35 

past several years. We are committed to completing the current set of research 

projects. 

Attachment 1 to my testimony lists the CRC research programs and our schedule 

for completion. This research examines the following areas: 

• The durability of the engine itself, particularly the engine valves and valve seats 

(completed); 

• The durability of the vehicle onboard fuel storage and handling equipment 

(completed); 

• The computerized On-Board Diagnostic system, or OBD, which the driver 

often sees as the "check engine" light (on-going); and 

• The vehicle evaporative emissions control system, which minimizes the release 

of fuel vapors to the atmosphere (completed). 

This comprehensive set of test programs will be completed by this spring. 

However, the test results in at least two programs - engine durability and fuel 

system durability - suggest that E 15 has the potential to damage millions of 

vehicles in the current US fleet. 

CRC, along with EPA and DOE, participated in all eight of the Midlevel Ethanol 

Stakeholder meetings held since May of 2008. On each occasion we shared the 

CRC research schedule and preliminary test results. However, EPA chose to ignore 

this research. Instead of waiting for the CRC studies to be completed and 

thoroughly evaluated, EPA improperly used the data from a DOE Catalyst 

Durability program and drew conclusions about E15 effects which this DOE 

program was not designed to evaluate. 

3 
36 

My testimony today will highlight the results of the eRe E15 research on engine 

durability and fuel system durability. 

• Engine Durability- This research demonstrated that E 15 and E20 could 

cause engine damage, specifically excessive valve and seat wear, under 

certain driving conditions in some existing vehicles that are expected to be 

sensitive to ethanol concentration. Two of eight models tested in the 

program failed on E15 and E20 but not on EO. Failures could result in loss 

of power, increased emissions, and high repair costs. 

• Fuel System Durability- This research identified an elevated incidence of 

fuel pump failures, fuel system component swelling, and impairment of fuel 

level measurement systems in some of the vehicles tested. E15 can cause 

erratic and misleading fuel gauge readings or cause check engine light 

illuminations. Fuel pump failures will stop fuel flow to the engine. This 

could result in breakdowns that leave consumers stranded on busy roads and 

highways.Fuel system component problems did not develop in the eRe tests 

when either E 1 0 or EO was used. 

• Discovering these problems was not surprising because valve and valve seat 

upgrades are typically required to make an engine E85 capable. Fuel pumps 

and levels sender problems are also not surprising because these components 

are also typically upgraded to tolerate higher ethanol levels in E85 flexible 

fuel vehicles. 

4 
37 

Impacts 

I would like to point out that CRC only tested a small sample of the vehicles, 

engines and components in the current US vehicle fleet and most of the sampled 

vehicles, engines and components demonstrated no problems with E15. However, 

the problems uncovered by the CRC research represent serious concerns over the 

useful life of millions of the vehicles in the current US vehicle fleet. Until2012, 

no vehicles in the US fleet, except for Flexible Fuel Vehicles, were designed to 

handle E15, so it is not surprising that these problems were found. 

Conclusion 

CRC believes that the research demonstrates that millions of the vehicles, engines 

and components in the current US vehicle fleet could be damaged by E15. 

5 
38 

Written Testimony for Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Technical and Consumer Research Needs 

Date: February 26, 2013 

Representative Andy Harris, Chairman 

Representative Suzanne Bonamici, Ranking Member 

House Science, Space and Technology Subcommittee on Environment 

Mike Leister, Board Member 

Coordinating Research Council 

3650 Mansell Road 

Suite 140 

Alpharetta, Georgia 30022 

Chairman Harris, Ranking Member Bonamici, and members of the Subcommittee: 

Thank you for inviting me to testify on mid-level ethanol research programs conducted by the 

Coordinating Research Council (CRC). I am a senior fuels policy advisor for Marathon 

Petroleum Corporation, but I am here today to testify for the CRC. I am currently a member of 

the CRC board and a past president of the board. 

The Coordinating Research Council (CRC) is a non-profit organization that directs, through 

committee action, engineering and environmental studies on the interaction between 

automotive/other mobility equipment and petroleum products. The Sustaining Members of CRC 

are the American Petroleum Institute (API) and a group of automobile manufacturer members 

(Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Toyota, and Volkswagen). CRC 

research programs are managed by five technical committees: 

AdvancedNehiclelFuel/Lubricants; Atmospheric Impacts; Emissions; Performance; and 

Aviation. 

Through CRC, personnel in the automotive equipment and other related mobility industries and 

in the energy industries can join together, and can join with government, to work on mutual 

problems. CRC has no facilities for conducting direct research. There are two basic approaches 

to accomplishing the research objectives. One approach involves a pooling of efforts carried out 

in the laboratories of cooperating companies. The result is a large-scale research program that no 

one company would be willing to undertake. 

The second approach involves supporting research under contract to universities, industrial 

laboratories, and private research organizations. In this case, a small committee of technical 

experts develops the program, selects the research organization, and monitors the research to its 

conclusion. Funding for the contract research is largely provided by the American Petroleum 

Institute, the automobile manufacturers, the Government, and others. 

CRC is not involved in any way in regulation, which remains a governmental responsibility; nor 

is CRC involved in the development of hardware or petroleum products, which remains the 

responsibility of private industry. The formal objective of CRC is to encourage and promote the 

arts and sciences by directing scientific cooperative research to develop the best possible 
39 

combinations of fuels, lubricants, and the equipment in which they are used, and to afford a 

means of cooperation with the Government on matters of national or international interest within 

this field. 

eRe has submitted the following documents as additional written testimony: 

Intermediate-Level Ethanol Blends Engine Durability Study 

Durability of Fuel Pumps and Fuel Level Senders in Neat and Aggressive E 15 Study 

eRe Research on Mid-Level Ethanol Blends (summary of the aforementioned studies) 

Thank you for the opportunity to speak with the subcommittee about this important topic. 
40 

Michael E. Leister 

Bio 

Mike Leister has a MS in Chemical Engineering and an MBA from 

Virginia Tech. He has worked for Marathon Oil, Marathon Ashland 

Petroleum, and now Marathon Petroleum Company for 33 years. Mike 

has been involved in Refinery modeling, computer automation and 

process control and supply and maintenance systems. Mike is currently 

MPC's Senior Fuels Policy Advisor. He has been an IT manager, an 

Operations Planning Manager, and most recently was the Manager of 

Fuels Technology for MPC. Mike just completed working on the latest 

National Petroleum Council study of Future Transportation Fuels. Mike 

is currently a member of the board of the Coordinating Research 

Council. He chairs the American Petroleum Institute Fuels 

Subcommittee, is a member of the API Economics work group, and 

belongs to the American Fuels & Petrochemical Manufacturers Fuels 

Advisory Subcommittee. 
41 

Chairman STEWART. I would like to thank the three of you for 

your sacrificing your service and making yourselves available to us 

today for your questions and your expertise. 

Reminding the Members that Committee rules limit questioning 

to five minutes. 

The Chair at this point would open the round of questioning, and 

the Chair recognizes himself for five minutes. 

A concern that I think many of us have, and this is bipartisan, 

it is something that I think is unanimous throughout, you know, 

leadership in government and that is the risk of unfunded mandates from the Federal Government, where rules and regulations 

may be imposed without authorizing any funds to offset the actual 

cost of those rules or regulations. 

And I think this may be a potentially good example of that, and, 

again, it would be bipartisan if that were the case. If we were to 

start receiving calls from our constituents who had significant damage to what would for many of them be one of the largest investments they are making short of a home or some others, the automobile that they drive, and if they did receive damage from that 

because of these rules, my question to you is, who is liable if the 

consumer were to experience engine damage because of the use of 

E15 in engines? 

And I think you have answered the question, but if you feel like 

you would elaborate, what is the likelihood of that happening, and 

you know, what would you do to recommend that we avoid that situation? 

Maybe, Mr. Darbelnet, we could begin with you. 

Mr. DARBELNET. Certainly. Thank you for that question. 

Clearly, the liability that would result from that occurring should 

not rest with the consumer. At the same time, none of the other 

parties that seem to have an interest in making E15 available are 

willing to step forward and assume liability. In fact, there have 

been efforts on their part to avoid liability, which I think is an indication of their recognition that there is an issue here that needs 

to be dealt with. 

I think we should also observe that the damage that we are concerned about is probably going to occur over a period of time, and 

so we will not immediately discover the full magnitude of the problem, and by the time it is apparent, I suspect it is going to be difficult to trace back the problems of the fuel that may have led to 

the damage, because if you have been driving for a year or two and 

using this fuel and you have damage, was it when you bought it 

at service station A or when you bought it at service station B or 

service station C? So really what we need to do is to adequately 

test it before we make it available for sale. That is the solution. 

Chairman STEWART. Well, I just have to interject. I am just 

shocked that no one is stepping forward to claim responsibility for 

this potential liability, but of course, they wouldn’t, and like you 

said, it is ambiguous and difficult to determine in some cases. 

Would either of the two of you like to address the same question? 

Mr. ALLARD. Mr. Chairman, I would just comment that we don’t 

recommend to our members that they purchase a motorcycle that 

is not covered by a manufacturer’s warranty, and when these are 
42 

covered by warranty, in all clear conscience we can recommend 

that they buy that fuel or buy that engine or whatever. 

So those warranties are put out there to protect the consumer 

any liability that they may assume. 

Chairman STEWART. And I would just hope that the legislation 

considers the impacts of that and that we don’t leave our constituents with a significant liability that they have no means of controlling. 

Mr. Leister, would you like to address that question as well? 

Mr. LEISTER. I think Mr. Darbelnet—— 

Chairman STEWART. Let me ask just very quickly if we have time 

for this. Why is the testing of the Coordinated Research Council 

conducted better or more appropriate than the EPA relied on? Are 

there differences in the underlying studies. 

Yes. 

Mr. DARBELNET. You appear to be looking at me, but I might 

want to defer the question to someone else. However, I would offer 

that we haven’t really challenged the EPA research on the basis of 

did they spend enough time looking at the effect of the fuel. Our 

concern with their research is the scope. It is my understanding 

that what they were looking at was the effect of E15 on emission 

control systems. They did not address the effect of E15 on the other 

components of the engine that were discussed by one of the previous testimonies. 

Mr. LEISTER. Basically, the EPA testing was an attempt to try 

to figure out whether E15 was a problem in vehicles. There was a 

vast lack of knowledge in this area. The fact that they chose to 

maybe not run as strenuous a test as necessary doesn’t degrade 

from the fact that they did a test, but it really wasn’t designed to 

test the whole vehicle, as Mr. Darbelnet just discussed. 

The CRC Program was actually designed by auto manufacturers, 

and the tests were what auto manufacturers would use to test their 

own equipment before they would sell it to the public, and as that, 

it had a higher standard than EPA developed for their tests. 

Chairman STEWART. All right. Thank you. 

I now recognize Ms. Bonamici for five minutes for her questioning. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and thank 

you to the witnesses. Before I begin my questioning I just wanted 

to say a word about the witnesses and the hearing record. Because 

the Department of Energy conducted the research on which the 

EPA based its decision to grant the E15 waivers, it is important 

to note for the record that the majority invited neither the Department of Energy nor the EPA to discuss the science and extensive 

testing on which the EPA based its decision. 

In addition, since the Department of Energy released a critique 

of the study performed by the Coordinating Research Council, the 

group that Mr. Leister is here representing, this conversation 

would have benefited from a Department of Energy presence on the 

panel. 

Unfortunately, the Democratic Subcommittee staff got word of 

Mr. Leister’s appearance at this hearing at such a late hour that 

inviting the Department wasn’t an option for us. 
43 

So, accordingly, I am planning to submit various materials for 

the record that help to represent an alternative viewpoint in this 

debate. Although they don’t necessarily represent the views of all 

of the Democrats on this Committee, it should help bring some balance to the record. 

I wanted to ask, just to establish for the record, and I think Mr. 

Darbelnet, perhaps you would have the answer to this, do you 

know how many gas stations there are in the United States? 

Mr. DARBELNET. I don’t know the exact number, but there 

are—— 

Ms. BONAMICI. Approximately. 

Mr. DARBELNET [continuing]. Thousands and thousands and 

thousands. Probably, let us say, 100,000 or more. 

Ms. BONAMICI. About 100,000. 

Mr. LEISTER. One hundred and sixty-nine thousand. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you, Mr. Leister. Do you know how many 

of them are selling E15? 

Mr. DARBELNET. My understanding is that there might be somewhere between 10 and 20, the number I heard most recently was 

18, that are currently selling it, which is precisely why we think 

this ought to be addressed now. It is going to be easy to stop when 

it is only 18. It will be difficult to stop when it is 100,000. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you. I just think it is important to establish for the record that we are talking about somewhere around a 

dozen and a half out of hundreds of thousands. So just for the 

record. 

And, Mr. Darbelnet, I know the AAA, of which I am a proud 

member, is an organization focused on benefits of membership, 

peace of mind on the road, money saver, and that is, I think, something that we all appreciate. I am sure that you hear frequently 

from your members, as I do from my constituents, about the high 

price of gasoline, and I know that studies have shown that drivers 

can save up to 83 cents per gallon because of increased ethanol production. 

So I just wonder about motorists who drive cars that even manufacturers say can use E15. Should they be allowed the option of 

buying E15 and setting aside the uniqueness of places like Oregon 

and New Jersey where we are not allowed to pump our own gas? 

It is very quaint, but that puts it in a different—— 

Mr. DARBELNET. Well, thank you for that question and for your 

support of AAA as a member. With regard to the potential savings 

per gallon, the numbers that I have seen are far less than 83 cents 

per gallon. There may be some unique circumstances that you are 

aware of that would cause the differential to be of that magnitude, 

but the indications we have are that if it is not price parity, the 

savings is quite modest, and if one factors in the lesser miles per 

gallon traveled with E15 than with E10 or pure gasoline, the savings is then reduced because you are not getting as many miles per 

gallon for the gallon that you bought. 

However, clearly we are in favor of options for consumers. Our 

concern currently is not that E15 should never be brought to market. Our concern is that the consumers do not know whether they 

should put E15 in their vehicle or not, and there is a huge difference of opinion between the EPA that says you can use it in any 
44 

vehicle manufactured after 2001, and the people who actually make 

the cars who say that it shouldn’t be used in virtually 95 percent 

of the vehicles that are on the roads today. 

And it seems to me that with your assistance, we owe it to the 

traveling public to reconcile viewpoints from the auto manufacturers and the EPA so the consumer is not caught in the middle not 

knowing who to believe. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you, and I truly believe also in consumer 

education. 

I want to ask Mr. Leister, while we have time, when the Coordinating Research Council put out the study on the automobile impact of E15, the Department of Energy did point out some problems 

that they found with the research. I know that Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technology’s Program presented an analysis that 

concluded that the methodologies were significantly flawed in their 

words. 

It is my understanding, for example, that no engines were tested 

with E10, which represents more than 90 percent of the gas in the 

United States, and at least one of the tested automobiles is already 

the subject of a recall involving valve problems. 

So can you describe to us how this CRC study compared in terms 

of scope with the Department of Energy testing? For example, the 

number of vehicles, the number of miles driven, and did the Energy 

Department’s critique cause you to revisit your methodology? 

Mr. LEISTER. Certainly the Energy Department’s critique caused 

us to relook at our program, and API has issued a letter that you 

can reference. I believe it was sent to the Committee here, outlining various rebuttals there. CRC will just stick to the facts here. 

DOE decided to do basically a catalyst emissions test. They ran the 

vehicles to get the catalyst hot enough to get an equivalent life over 

the life of the vehicle. That is not a very strenuous test, and it is 

not even the way the average public drives their cars. 

CRC, because there is no standard test for engine durability, 

took the advice of the various auto manufacturers that are members of CRC and developed a composite test based on their experience, and those tests did show some compression leakage, but more 

important than that, the compression leakage that we determined 

wasn’t the final result. The compression leakage was a signal for 

us to send the vehicles back to the manufacturers. So each manufacturer got their own vehicle back, tore it apart, and looked at it, 

and it was only two out of the eight that actually had a problem 

with the valve seats. 

As far as the vehicles being under a recall, I am not aware that 

any of the vehicles we tested were under a recall for a valve problem. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you, and my time has expired. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman STEWART. I thank the Ranking Minority Member, Ms. 

Bonamici. 

The Chair would like to note for the record that the minority had 

the opportunity to invite any witnesses of their choosing but chose 

not to at this time, and that I think would help explain some of 

the choices or the appearances of the witnesses with us today. 

The Chair now recognizes Mr. Sensenbrenner for his questions. 
45 

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Yes. Thank you very much, and Mr. Chairman, I am glad that you pointed out that the Democrats did have 

a chance to invite a witness, and they failed to do so. So the complaint that we heard from the Ranking Member, I think, rings very 

hollow. 

The other thing that really irritates me is casting aspersions on 

research that is done because it is financed by somebody who may 

have a party, an interest. The thing is, is that I think that anybody 

who sells a product wants to make sure that their product is the 

absolute best that it can be, and maybe part of the motivation of 

that is to avoid liability problems, but I think part of the motivation is to keep America’s edge in terms of developing new products, 

whether it happens to be fuel, whether it happens to be motor vehicle. And who is supposed to do that if those that manufacture or 

sell the products don’t do it? I don’t think the government can come 

up with something that is objective, and here what we have heard 

from all three of these witnesses is that the only thing the EPA 

test did was the impact of E15 on emission systems, not on the engine itself, not on the components parts of the engine. 

As a result, the thing that the opponents of this waiver have 

been harping on is that the study was really not complete. You 

know, it was kind of, you know, trying to diagnose a skin cancer 

by doing a CAT scan or an MRI. 

Now, you know, having said that, the draft bill that I have, 

which I hope my minority party colleagues will cosponsor, will have 

a truly objective analysis being done by the National Association of 

Sciences, so that nobody can say that the study was done by somebody with a financial interest or was biased because they wanted 

to advance a regulatory agenda. 

Now, I have a couple of questions of Mr. Leister. 

Why did the CRC move forward with its studies if E15 was already approved for use? 

Mr. LEISTER. Well, actually, we started our studies long before 

the waiver request was even made. We started our studies in 2008. 

That is why we actually tested E20 and E15. At the time we started, we were not aware that E15 was going to be the fuel of choice 

of EPA. 

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Was the EPA’s response to your studies objective, and were their results fairly analyzed from an unbiased, 

scientific viewpoint, or was basically the EPA saying that everybody should ignore what you have done? 

Mr. LEISTER. You make it difficult because EPA actually pays for 

some of our projects, and we would hate to lose their funding. 

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Well, we won’t talk about conflicts of interest here. 

Mr. LEISTER. You know, EPA did their analysis, and it appeared 

that they were under a tremendous amount of pressure to come up 

with some answers, and as a result, the more we informed them 

that there was more research to be done and more timely, the less 

interested they were in hearing about that. I might point out that 

the research that was done, you correctly pointed out that our 

members do this to find out what is happening, you know, what 

our problems are. Two of the members of CRC, the auto members, 

have used that research to actually now make E15-compatible vehi-
46 

cles. One makes—has made vehicles in 2012 and 2013 that are E15 

compatible, and one has started in 2013 to make vehicles that are 

E15 compatible. 

I think that one says volumes for the fact they say the one is— 

any other vehicles they made prior to that they won’t warranty 

with E15, and yet they are making ones that will, and secondly, 

that they have seen what the problems were based on the research, 

and they have fixed those problems. 

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. I would like to squeeze in one more question of Senator Allard. There are safety concerns, as well as the 

other concerns, that have been expressed by the witnesses at the 

hearing. For example, the Coast Guard told the EPA that a waiver 

raised concerns relating to possible reduction in level of safety for 

recreational boaters. So we have got the recreational boaters. 

And at least in my part of the country and maybe yours, too, 

Senator Allard, we got snow blowers because everybody would be 

marooned if the snow blowers didn’t work, and then during the 

summer we have lawnmowers. All of these small engines have the 

same problems with E15, and many of them are two-cycle engines 

where the increased ethanol would end up reducing the lubricating 

capacity of the oil that has to be mixed in with the engines. 

What do you have to say about that, and you know, can you 

broaden the complaint with the other small engines that I have 

mentioned? 

Mr. ALLARD. Well, I am not an engineer and probably can’t answer that very directly, but I can say that there is concern among 

motorcyclists about the heat that is generated and the safety of the 

engine when they are riding their motorcycle. 

Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Okay. I will rest my case on the Coast 

Guard then. Thank you. 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, Mr. Sensenbrenner. 

Seeing not another individual to my right, we will now yield 

down to Mr. Weber. 

Mr. WEBER. I really don’t have a lot of questions, Chris. I appreciate that. I will note for the record that, unlike New Jersey, in 

Texas we can pump our own gas. I figured that in Texas we understand that consumers and businesses get it right a lot more often 

than the Congress. I applaud you all for testifying. 

Thank you. 

Chairman STEWART. All right. Well, thank you then. 

And Mr. Rohrabacher. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Thank you very much, and I appreciate your 

leadership and coming right out of the gate this way. 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, sir. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Straight at an important issue. This is an important issue, and I will tell you something. Out in California, nobody can tell me that I am getting, that I not getting less gas mileage because of that ethanol, and quite frankly, people think we 

Congressmen are rich. Well, I am not rich, and it affects me, and 

what about those people who don’t make as much as those of us 

in Congress? Increase the cost of filling up your tank, that just 

means you don’t have as much money to pay rent or feed your kids 

or take your family out for a dinner. 
47 

So ethanol was first in place, and you are the experts here, 

wasn’t it first put in place, this mandate for ethanol, to get rid of 

the lead in gasoline? Is that right? No. Why did we have the mandate to begin with? 

Mr. LEISTER. The original ethanol mandate, I believe, started 

from a program EPA had to reduce carbon monoxide in certain cities that were in non-attainment of the carbon monoxide standard. 

I believe it was back in ’91, ’92, timeframe. There were a handful 

of cities that had carbon monoxide problems. There had been some 

splash blending of ethanol for economic purposes prior to that, but 

the actual regulation of ethanol was first put into place—— 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. For carbon monoxide gas, and did that lower 

the level of carbon monoxide? 

Mr. LEISTER. Yes. At the time, the engine technology at the time 

with carburated vehicles and that getting extra oxygen from the 

ethanol actually did help reduce carbon monoxide. Since that time, 

the new engines now automatically adjust. They sense the oxygen 

coming out of the exhaust and adjust the intake air, so you would 

no longer get that benefit from vehicles today, but it was a benefit 

back in the early—— 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. So in other words, we put this requirement 

in to lower the carbon monoxide, but because technology, engine 

technology has advanced, that that would be no longer necessary 

today? Is that what you are saying? 

Mr. LEISTER. That is true, but even more important than that, 

I guess, is that all the areas that were in carbon monoxide non-attainment, except for maybe one, I believe, have all come into attainment. They all came into attainment real fast, even as engine 

technology was—— 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Is that true with motorcycles, too, Senator? 

Mr. ALLARD. Well, if you will recall, about the time I was in the 

House serving with you, the issue was oxygenated fuels. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. That is right. 

Mr. ALLARD. And we had the MTBE versus ethanol, and that 

was a big debate, and it was to reduce the air pollution. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. And was the air pollution level and would it 

be better today or worse today if we didn’t have ethanol in the gas? 

From what I just heard, there it sounded like you were saying even 

without ethanol the gas, the air pollution level would not be any 

worse today. 

Mr. LEISTER. Well, you got to understand there are a lot of 

things we try to control in the air, not just carbon monoxide. The 

other major one is ozone. Okay? 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Right. 

Mr. LEISTER. And ozone comes about because of knocks NO2

emissions and volatile organic compounds or VOC emissions. In 

1995, reformulated gasoline was legislated and regulated by EPA. 

That fuel is both lower in VOCs and lower in NO2, and so it is used 

in areas that have a problem with attaining the ozone standard, 

and it has helped, but in the interim all the other gasoline in the 

country because of various other EPA regulations has become a lot 

more, a lot cleaner. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Is there anything else, is there another impact, for example, particulates? 
48 

Mr. LEISTER. There is a particulate problem also. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Doesn’t the ethanol contribute to that rather 

than helping bring that down? 

Mr. LEISTER. It is difficult to say. I say there are some studies 

that show that particulates are reduced with oxygen, the extra oxygen that is present. Under newer vehicles, that effect isn’t quite as 

large, and so there are some studies that show that particulates 

have actually gone up as a result of that, I believe. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Right. Okay. Well, I think—— 

Mr. LEISTER. But—— 

Mr. ROHRABACHER [continuing]. There are some studies like—— 

Mr. LEISTER [continuing]. It is really slight. Okay. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. But let me just note this, that if you are 

bringing down the miles per gallon that you are getting in your car, 

which ethanol does, I mean, I will testify to that, so that means 

you have to use more gas. You have to use more gas, that means 

to get to the same place, that means you have to have more, you 

are putting more stuff into the air. 

Mr. LEISTER. You are, but—— 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. But if you have to use more of it, that means 

you got the same amount of stuff going up. 

Mr. LEISTER. But the tier two standards that EPA put in place 

in 2007 basically required engines and fuels to be 90 percent—have 

90 percent less emissions than they had before. That overwhelms 

most of these other effects that you are talking about. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Ninety percent based on miles per gallon, 

perhaps. 

Mr. LEISTER. No. It is actually—— 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. No? 

Mr. LEISTER. It is on a per-mile basis. So it builds in the miles 

per gallon factor. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. All right. Well, thank you very much. Just let 

me note that in California, we—at least those of us who are filling 

up our tanks with gas, and we drive a lot out there—we definitely 

believe that ethanol is costing us and costing American families a 

lot of money, and I am not so sure that it is worth exactly what 

we are paying for. Senator Allard, one last thing. Did you say this 

is going to hurt the engines for motorcycles? 

Mr. ALLARD. Congressman, that is a concern that we have because the manufacturer won’t issue a warranty when you use E15 

in the engine, so we think there is a reason for that, and we 

wouldn’t recommend it to our consumers. 

Mr. ROHRABACHER. Yes. We are afraid of that, too, and that also 

is a factor in determining what the pollution level is. If you are 

going to destroy an engine, that means, in the end, there is a lot 

more stuff going into the air when you add in all of that. 

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman STEWART. Yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Rohrabacher. We 

now recognize the full Committee Chairman, Mr. Smith. 

Chairman SMITH. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and Mr. Chairman, 

let me say I regret missing the witnesses’ testimony today but appreciate all of them being here, and Senator Allard, nice to see you 

again, and welcome back. 
49 

What I am trying to do is, in my own mind, and I think this will 

be helpful to all of us and helpful to others as well, is sort of compiling a list of advantages and disadvantages of E15. And what I 

would like to do is give you my list on both sides and ask you all 

to comment to see if you agree or disagree or if you can add anything to either side of the ledger. 

On the disadvantages, we have unknown impact of E15 on various types of engines. We have had a study about emissions. We 

haven’t had any real study on the impact of the engines themselves. Second, you get about 30 percent less gas mileage if you use 

E15. That might be a disadvantage. Environment, you can probably argue that either way, but the amount of energy, probably fossil fuel energy that goes into growing the corn necessary for ethanol is obviously not a positive impact on the environment. And 

then fourth, I would put, well, maybe those are my three. I was 

going to say, talk about more of the harm to engines, but I think 

my first point covers them. 

On the other side, as far as advantages go, price of gasoline is 

going to be less costly. I would put that as a positive, and then, 

again, on the environment you can probably argue either way. 

There is less CO2 going into the environment, but I have already 

mentioned the other side of that. 

What do you all think of that list of advantages and disadvantages and Mr. Darbelnet, I guess we will start with you. 

Mr. DARBELNET. Thank you. Well, with regard to impact on the 

engine, clearly that is one of our concerns, and I think you are correct to have that on your list of negatives. 

With regard to getting less miles per gallon, I would agree. It 

will yield less miles per gallon, but I think the differential is much 

smaller than 30 percent. Pure gas would be the benchmark. E10 

would probably get you slightly less than four percent worse gas 

mileage. 

Chairman SMITH. The figure I heard was actually 33 percent 

less. You think that is too much? Okay. 

Mr. DARBELNET. From everything I have seen, it is between four 

and six percent less, depending on whether you are using E10 or 

E15. 

Chairman SMITH. Okay. 

Mr. DARBELNET. And as to the impact on corn, I am well over 

the tip of my skis on that topic, but with regard to the positives, 

less costly, yes, slightly, but one has to bear in mind that you are 

getting less miles per gallon, and with regard to the environmental 

impact, from our conversations with our engineers, they think that 

overall it is pretty close to being a wash. 

So really, the only outstanding issue for us at this point is the 

matter of impact on engines, and I think we should note in the 

pluses the reduced dependency on fossil fuel that results from 

using ethanol as an additive. 

Chairman SMITH. Okay. Environment you would call a wash and 

less mileage, less cost, and unknown impact on engines on negative 

impact? 

Mr. DARBELNET. Negative impact. 

Chairman SMITH. Negative impact. So overall negative, I guess. 
50 

Senator Allard, and by the way, I am just curious, if the mileage 

is down six percent, is the cost going to be down six percent or not? 

Mr. DARBELNET. Well, that is part of the conversation. The cost 

is less. Is it six percent. Sometimes it is six percent, sometimes it 

is a little more, sometimes a little bit less. 

Chairman SMITH. We are coming up with another wash there. 

Mr. DARBELNET. We are coming very close to a wash. I think the 

big issue is the impact on the engine. 

Chairman SMITH. Great. Senator Allard. 

Mr. ALLARD. Congressman, I think the big concern that we would 

have is confusion at the gas tank, you know, with the rules and 

regulations that are at the gas tank that are being imposed upon 

the retailer. You know, I think that is a concern that we have, and 

then because of that confusion, you put the wrong kind of fuel in 

your engine, which the warranty will stand up with. 

Also, motorcyclists are concerned about the fact that if E15 is 

used in a rural gas station, for example, and you are out in a rural 

area, and you run out of gas, you don’t have much choice, and so 

it takes away consumer choice in some instances. 

Chairman SMITH. Okay. Thank you, and Mr. Leister. 

Mr. LEISTER. Again, I am talking for CRC, so I am going to just 

try to stick with scientific facts rather than opinions and political 

facts. Definitely we are concerned about the impacts on the vehicles, the engines, and the components with E15. We think millions 

of vehicles will be affected, so it is a bad choice for the public. 

As far as fuel economy, ethanol is 30 percent less energy than 

gasoline. When it is blended at a 10 percent rate, the E10 mixture 

has a three percent less fuel economy. E15 would have 4 1/2 percent using just straight multiplication there. 

And as far as energy and corn, there are a lot of studies. California found that, you know, corn wasn’t necessarily so good for the 

environment, but then they changed their mind. EPA found that 

corn was. A lot of this has to do with the way you account for the 

energy that goes into the distiller’s dried grain. 

However, if you are strictly looking at fossil energy going to 

something to give you energy to move a transportation vehicle, 

there is more energy of fossil fuel that goes into making ethanol 

than you get energy out of the ethanol. But when you add the distiller’s dried grain in, the net result overall is positive. So if you 

have a program where you are trying to produce feed for animals, 

you might want to think about it. 

Chairman SMITH. Okay. Did you comment on engines? Did you 

say it would be a negative? 

Mr. LEISTER. Yes. Yes. 

Chairman SMITH. Okay. So there is general agreement among all 

the witnesses on a negative impact or a potential negative impact 

on engines then. Okay. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, Chairman Smith. 

The Ranking Minority Member has requested a follow-up question. We now recognize Ms. Bonamici. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I am holding up the whole side of the dais today. 
51 

I wanted to talk a little bit about the misfueling that I know several of you have mentioned. Misfueling would be a real concern, 

but it is not an unprecedented issue. Similar problems were anticipated when unleaded fuel was introduced, and more recently there 

were concerns about the ultralow sulfur diesel that would result in 

widespread misfueling as well as infrastructure challenges. For a 

couple of years, there were two types of diesel in in the fuel supply: 

low sulfur diesel and the ultralow sulfur. 

Did the AMA or the AAA notice any significant refueling, 

misfueling issues, and was the fuel industry generally able to meet 

the challenge, and maybe you could talk a little bit about some of 

the consumer information that went into informing gasoline consumers about those issues. Senator Allard and Mr. Darbelnet, perhaps. I don’t know if, Mr. Leister, you want to opine on that as 

well. Thank you. 

Mr. ALLARD. Well, those—if I might respond, on the misfueling 

issues, I guess you would say the four gallon, when they required 

the four-gallon minimum, that was—that is a problem for us because many times the tanks only hold three to three and a half gallons. So the question came up then, what do you do with the remaining fuels, and are you going to be charged for the four full gallons if you don’t use it? So that is where confusion at the pump existed when we had that mandate. Now—— 

Ms. BONAMICI. But that only for the—— 

Mr. ALLARD [continuing]. The EPA has tried to correct that, and 

they have now, as we understand it, you know, you do have a 

choice on blender pumps as well as you have a dedicated pump just 

for 10 to 0 on your ethanol levels. And then if you—or you can just 

have single hoses, and you don’t have an issue, and you don’t have 

the minimum. 

And so it gets—it is very confusing, you know, by the time you 

consider all the rules and regulations, and it is confusing to our 

consumers, and it is hard to make wise choices as a consumer 

when it gets confusing. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you, Senator, and I am interested, too, in 

hearing about some of the efforts that have been made in the past 

about different fueling options and informing consumers. How has 

the industry gone about informing consumers when there were 

other concerns about misfueling? 

Mr. DARBELNET. Well, that is an excellent question, and it reminds me of the transition that we encountered when we went to 

unleaded fuel, which you referred to. As you may recall, at that 

time they changed the size of the hole through which the gas is put 

into the vehicle, and we changed the size of the filler spout on the 

pumps, such that you could not fit the nozzle from an unleaded 

pump into the tank of a vehicle that wasn’t designed to receive it. 

So unless you were going to use a funnel to fill your car, there was 

virtually no risk of putting unleaded fuel in a vehicle that should 

have leaded fuel. 

There is no discussion currently of anything of that nature being 

done to prevent misfueling as it relates to E15, and frankly, I think 

there is a limit to how many different sizes we can come up with 

to address the problem. 
52 

So I think the misfueling risk is more significant in this case 

than it has been in the past, simply because we don’t have some 

of the options available that we did previously. 

Ms. BONAMICI. And yet, Mr. Leister, and if you could just clarify, 

I recall that you testified that there are manufacturers now who 

are manufacturing cars that are made for E15. Is that correct? 

Mr. LEISTER. Yes. I will answer that first, and then I would like 

to get back to the previous question, but, yes, there are two manufacturers that I am aware of that have announced, one that it is 

2012, and 2013, cars are E15 compatible, and I believe their owner’s manuals now state that, and one that has done the same thing 

for their 2013, vehicles. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Okay. So there have been adaptations, and 

then—— 

Mr. LEISTER. There have been adaptations. 

Ms. BONAMICI [continuing]. Your response to the prior—— 

Mr. LEISTER. I guess I would like to point out that for unleaded 

gasoline there wasn’t—there was a nozzle change, but also from 

our point of view there was, we believe, significant cheating as people could buy, for five or 10 cents, a little plastic adapter called an 

emergency fuel system, where you would plug it on the end of the 

nozzle, and it would make it smaller to fit into the old hole. 

So if you give people sufficient incentive, they will try to go for 

the lower fuel, whether it is good for their car or not. 

Ms. BONAMICI. Interesting commentary. Well, thank you very 

much. I yield back my time. Thank you. 

Chairman STEWART. Okay. Thank you, Ms. Bonamici. 

Knowing that we are needed on the House Floor for a vote in just 

a few moments, the Chair would like to recognize Mr. Neugebauer. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. Yes. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and 

thank you for holding this hearing. This is a very important issue. 

This will be a quick question because we need to go vote, but, 

you know, some of the proponents of E15 and ethanol bring up the 

point that in other countries they burn 50, 60 percent, and some 

vehicles are burning almost complete 100 percent ethanol. So what 

is the distinction here of the U.S. moving to the ethanol blending 

versus what people will point to other countries using? What is the 

difference? 

Mr. LEISTER. Most of the time people reference Brazil when they 

are talking about that, and the fact is, I think, most of my auto 

manufacturer colleagues would tell you that the vehicles that they 

sell in Brazil toady are essentially FFEs. So they are designed to 

take higher levels. They are not U.S. vehicles that shipped down 

there. 

I would like to point out the early days of the program in Brazil, 

the ethanol ate the cars apart, and so they had to replace them 

with FFEs. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. Either one of you want to comment on that? 

Mr. DARBELNET. I would simply concur with what was offered in 

terms of a commentary. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. So I think the conclusion I am drawing from 

listening to the testimony today is that there is a movement to provide in the automobile industry an adaptation to that, but what 

you are saying, it is not mature enough at this particular point in 
53 

time, and that if we force that process, then we could be actually 

damaging the consumers that own vehicles. 

Mr. DARBELNET. That is correct, sir. If one thinks about how 

many new vehicles enter the fleet each year and the average age 

of the fleet, it is going to take probably a decade to get to a point 

where a substantial majority of vehicles would be suitable for E15, 

unless there is some other discovery or retrofit that becomes available or some further ingredient that can negate the effect, but at 

the present time, there are roughly just five percent of the vehicles 

on the road that could safely burn E15. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. So nobody has come up with an additive or 

something like that that helps. 

So, Senator Allard, good to see you again. So what should be the 

appropriate policy on this issue? You are an old policymaker. What 

would you recommend to this Committee? 

Mr. ALLARD. Well, I would withhold putting E15 on the market 

until the research has been conducted that would assure that motorcyclists, in this particular instance since I represent the AMA, 

can use it without damage to the engine. To me, that is the proper 

policies to have the right research, and it hasn’t been done at this 

point, at least for the type of vehicle that I am representing at this 

table. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. And we are really not, I mean, you bring up 

motorcycles, and we have been talking about automobiles, but really we are actually talking about a lot of other products that—— 

Mr. ALLARD. Yes. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER [continuing]. Use fuels that we need. 

Mr. ALLARD. Well, I think you can generalize and say small engines in general. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. Right. 

Mr. ALLARD. Uh-huh. 

Mr. NEUGEBAUER. I yield back, Mr. Chairman. 

Chairman STEWART. Thank you, Mr. Neugebauer. 

With that, we come to the conclusion of this hearing. I would like 

to thank the witnesses for your valuable testimony as well as the 

Members for their questions. 

The Members of the Committee may have additional questions. 

If that is the case, then we would ask you to respond to those in 

writing. The record will remain open for two weeks for additional 

comments and written questions from the Members. 

The witnesses are excused with, again, with our thanks, and this 

hearing is now adjourned. 

[Whereupon, at 3:14 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.] 

(55) 

Appendix 1 

ANSWERS TO POST-HEARING QUESTIONS
56 

ANSWERS TO POST-HEARING QUESTIONS
57 

AAA Responses: 

1. EPA only approved use of E15 for a fraction of the vehicles on the road, but your testimony 

indicated that there is a strong likelihood for consumer confusion and misfueling, ultimately 

leading to vehicle damage. Do you think the measures taken by EPA, in the form of labeling 

requirements and a misfueling rule, are adequate to address the magnitude ofthis problem? 

No. The EPA-mandated label is only 3 and 5/8 inches wide, by 3 and 1/8 inches high, which we 

believe is insufficient to warn motorists of potential problems. This small label may be easily 

overlooked by motorists among the other stickers and signage on the pump. The risk is even 

more alarming conSidering AAA's finding that the vast majority (95%) of consumers are 

unfamiliar with E15. The combination of insufficient education and inadequate protections at 

the pump means there is a strong likelihood of consumer confusion and education. 

2. A recent report developed for the NMMA found that of the 17 registered sellers of E15, only 11 

had correctly labeled their fuel pumps E15. In other words, 35 percent were not complying with 

the basic labeling standards. Do any of you have confidence that these basic implementation 

issues will be resolved as E15 becomes more widespread? 

We have not seen a copy of the report. If accurate, it would not inspire confidence that basic 

implementation issues are being resolved. 

3. The last time EPA allowed two types of gasoline to be sold side-by-side at retail stations - when 

leaded gasoline was phased out in the 1970s - EPA's own statistics reported that more than 20 

percent of motorists misfueled their vehicles. This high rate of misfueling occurred despite the 

fact that EPA mandated physical barriers, such as fill pipe restrictors and smaller nozzles, in 

addition to pump labels. 

a. Given motorists prior experience with misfueling, do you think that a pump label, as EPA 

has approved, is sufficient to protect consumers? 

No. As outlined previously, we believe the EPA-approved label is insufficient to protect 

consumers. The small label may be easily overlooked by motorists and the vast majority 

of consumers are not familiar with E15. Additional steps, including significant consumer 

education and the resolution of manufacturer warranty issues are necessary to 

responsibly protect consumers from the potential impacts of E15. 
58 

b. EPA points to the recent introduction of ULSD as a reason that the shift to E1S will go 

smoothly. Do you agree? 

We do not agree. When introduced, ULSD was a new fuel that was compatible with and 

approved by manufacturers for use in all vehicles. This is very different from E1S, which 

is a new fuel that is only compatible with and approved by manufactures for use in a 

limited number of vehicles and is explicitly not approved for use in a large number of 

older vehicles. The risk of motorists misfueling with E1S is significant, there was no 

similar risk of misfueling with ULSD, which was approved for use in all vehicles. 

4. In your testimony, you highlighted the importance of consumer awareness and education with 

regards to E1S. What efforts do you think might be helpful, and what do you think the EPA 

should have done or could do to better inform and protect the public? 

As we have seen with the introduction of other fuels, there are a variety of steps that can be 

taken to avoid consumer confusion. This ranges from different-sized nozzles (as with the 

introduction of unleaded gasoline in the 1970s) to clear labeling and branding (as with the 

introduction of ULSD and E8S "flex fuel"), but could also include audio messages at the pump, 

different colored handles or any number of other measures. However, the most important step 

is proper education by regulators and marketers before motorists get to the pump. 
59 

The Honorable Chris Stemm 

Ch,lirmlln 

Subcommittee on Environment 

23:!l Raybllrn House OlIice Building 

Washington. DC 205 ! 5 

Dear ChairnHlll Stewart: 

March 2~. 2013 

The American Motorcyclist Association appreciated the opporlunity to lestify hel()fe Ihe 

Suocommittee 011 EIlVimll111CIlt on Feb. 26 at 11 hemin!! emitled ,\/f(I·l.t'w{ c(iumollJlellds: 

Com'lIme/' (lml T,'dmicu/ Res£'(wdl Neetil, 

Per your request. please see the A~tA's resprlnses 10 the following questions: 

1. Your testimony raised some serious COliC ems with the Agem:y's handling of til esc 

hlemkr pumps and potelllially requiring motorists to bur 11 minimum of 4 gallous of fllel. 

Earlier lhis month, EP;\ apprtl\'ed a !lew blC'mler pump configuration. submitted by Ine 

Rcnewable FlIcI~ Association, Ihr general use by retuil Sl!I1iollS thm wish 10 dispense EI5 

and E I 0 from a common hose llnd noule, 

u. Docs Ihis change alleviate your CO!lcems ubom E15 and blender pumps? 

b. Do you think this will provide clarity l'Or fimng s\lIliol1s lind your memocrs? 

AMA response: 

On Feh. 7. the B'A posted !l new oplion for retailers on ils website's hE 15: Misiuelillg l\lilig!ltitm 

Plans" page 10 try 10 avoid misfw.:ling by eonSUll1crs. 

Under the lIew option, retailers who use a blender pump to sell E15 alld EIO fuellhrough the 

same hnse mustlllso bave n separate E I OlEO fuel pump. Those fCtllilers would be required to 

bay;: II label on the blender pump ihat reads: "PassengerVehicles Only. Use in Olher Vehides, 

Engines and Equipmcnlll.'lay Violate Fcderal Law." Reiailers wunhlaiso he required to have 

signs indicating the location (lflbe dcdieated EIO·or·lower file I pump. There would be no 

minimulll-tllcl-purdmse requirelllent al lhat PUlllIJ. 

;\$ mel1liollcd in my testimony. the AMA can (lilly imagine how many motorists lind 

n""If\r·"\'t·li~,,, will be up at lhal single pump t,) gC'! EH}-or·lClw'::f fllel. 

The AlI.fA does not beiieve this lIew misfllcling mitigation pllm will provide daril)" to our 

members and the gentlHllpuhlic. Another label on a blender pump Iha! already has man)' labels 

will not sulliee and couid bc (werlooked, The plall calls f(lf 11(1 physical barriers inlhe 

fueling nozzle/receptacle llS was pfIlvided Jor whell the nation wen11rom leaded to unleaded fuel. 

History tells us that. eyell with these physical barricrs in place. misfue1ing sli1l occum:d. 
60 

Chairman SleWllll 

March 22. 2013 

Page Two 

Retailers who wam to sell E 15 also have the option of having 1I dedicated EJ 5 pump or hose. or a 

pump 111m dispenses E! S ami higher ethanol blends through II hose. If n blender pump 

dispenses mUlliple fuels lha! illclude E!S and higher ethanol the EPA mny reqnire a 

minimum purchase Kq\lirement. 

Equally important the AMA bas repeatedly expressed concem5 II) government allicials lllld 

fedemllnwmnkers about possible damage to motoreycle nnd ATV engines caused by the 

inadvertent liSt' ofE 15 whcnlbe new fuel beeomes wide!\' available. TIll:: AMA l1js() has asked 

thaI motorcycles and ATVs be part of any scientific stud; into the effects ofEI5 to cnsure tbat 

the new fuel blend won', damnge those engines. 

2. A reccnl report deveh)Ju::d ftlf lhe Nationallvlarine ~hlllllfac!llfef$ Association foulld that 

ofthc 17 registered sellers ofEl5, only II had correctly labcled lheir fucl pumps £15. In 

t1Iher words. 35percem were not complying with blll;ic labeling standards. Do allY (If you 

luwc c(lllfidencc Ihn! Ihese basicimplememaliol1 iS$ue~ will be resolved as E!:; become,; 

more widespread" 

Sec the nn"wer to question No. l. 

As noted with the survey by the Nalionnl Marine Mallufilclurers Ass'Gclaliol1lhm found 35 

percent of the retailers in nun-eompliallc.e with the current labeling requirements. the AMA 

beJilm!s thn! enrorcement will be more dil1kul! with sequestration, 

3. III i>.farch ofhl$l ycar, EPA issued a blanket approval of II model EIS mislueling 

mitigation plan liull was submitted by tbe Rcnew<1ble Fuels f\ssoeialion for use by 

slatiOlls across the country. Do you agrce thallne plan is "su!1icient?" 

AM;\. respOllSc; 

Last year, the AMA told Ihe EPA that with £ 15 nl'w coming into the markel, our members who 

make n concerted effort to fuel their motorcycles Of ATVs with ElO·or~less fuel, may 

un\;nowingly refuel wilh residual £15 left ill a blender-pump hose. A blender pump dispenses 

diiTerenl fuel blends through Ihe same hose. such liS EIO Hud £15, When a CIlSlOmer buys E15, as 

much as a third or a of residual E 15 is left in the hose, which clln ill1ldvertel1l1y get into the 

next customer's \'ehicle wllile fueling wilh EIO. 

The EPA said: "In all em)£[ to address Ihis potential misfuejing issllc. EPA approved an indaslrysubmitted I approach] Ihlll requires a minimum purchllsC of four gallons from blender pumps lhat 

dispeme bolh El 0 and E15 froml!!e same hose and !loute. Such an approach would prevenl 

misfueling by dilming any residual £15 left in the hose from the previoUS sale ofEt5:' 
61 

Chairman Stewart 

MardI 22, 2013 

Page Three 

However, the AMA objected to this misfucliug mitigation plan L"ecause our members' fuc:llan\;s' 

capacities are nonllally !\\o·w·lluce gallons on lIyentge. TIlcrefore, Ihe At.-jA did nol believc Ihis 

plan was sUmeieUL 

4. In your testimony. YOll highlighted the impotl!lllce of eOI1$umer awnreness and education 

with regards 10 E 15. What Cm.lrts <I,) you think might IY: helpful. and whlll do you think 

lhe EP/\ should have done or could do tt) helle! infiJml aud protect Ihe public'l 

AMA respullsc: 

With the EPA using only (lne test 10 determine ifEI5 is Slife lor vehicles before granting a 

waiver, the AMA urges the agellcy 1<1 llllnw /(If 1m indelv.!lidenl scicntific study by the National 

Academy of Science;; to occur. Wc also request li1all1lolOfcycies and A TVs be included in such 

study. 

Again, thank you rOf the opportunily to teslilY before till." Subcommittee on Environment amI to 

address y{lur follow up questions. If you have queslinns, plcase do no! hesitate to eonlact me 

by pbone. (202\742·4301. or by email, illlill!I!t!!Jl!!~~~~, 

Sincerely. ~ 

Vice 

\~:- President, Guvemmcll! Relations 
62 

arts and sciences by directing scientific cooperative research to develop the best possible 

combinations of fuels, lubricants, and the equipment in which they are used, and to afford a 

means of cooperation with the Government on matters of national or international interest within 

this field. 

Please find the questions for the record and respective answers below: 

U.S;HOUSEOF REPRESENTATIVES 

COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

Subcommittee on Environment 

Hearing Questions for the Record 

The Honorable Chris Stewart 

Mid-Level Ethanol Blends: Consumer and Technical Research Needs 

Mr. Mike Leister 

1. The Renewable Fuels Association has insisted that '.'E15 has been the most aggressively 

and comprehensively tested fuel in the history of the Agency" and that the "miles driven 

on E15 equate to 12 round trips to the moon and back without a single failure." Do you 

agree with these statements, and do you think the single test program relied upon by EPA 

to grant a waiver is sufficient to provide confidence for drivers? 

2. Were any federal agencies involved at the beginning, developmental stages ofmid~level 

ethanol blends research program at the Coordinating Research Council (CRC)? Does 

CRC continue to conduct research and testing oil behalf of Agencies like EPA, the 

National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and NASA? 

3. What are some areas that more research could be Conducted in order to better understand 

the potential impact ofE15 and other biofuels that may be introduced in the market? Are 

there better ways to structure our fuels R&D so that it can provide more confidence as 

new fuels are introduced into commerce? Whose responsibility is it to fund these tests? 

4. The ethanol lobby has been pushing EPA to make mid-level ethanol blends - maybe as 

high as E30 - the fuel that EPA uses when it certifies engines and vehicles. What impacts 

could that have for the various affected parties? 

1. We disagree with RF A's claim that "E 15 has been the most aggressively and 

comprehensively tested fuel in the history of the Agency". Reformulated gasoline was 

tested by EPA and Industry to a much greater extent than the few simple research tests 

conducted on E15. The testing on the additive MMT was at least an order of magnitude 

greater than E 15 and EPA still disapproved that waiver request. Every day RFG and 

conventional gasoline are tested at refineries and by the current fleet in a manner that 

commercially available E 15 has never been subjected to. 
63 

RFA's claim that "miles driven on E15 equate to 12 round trips to the moon and back 

without a single failure" is truly meaningless when RF A refuses to recognize any failure 

which is reported. The purpose of vehicle system and component testing is not to 

accumulate pointless miles traveled but to expose the vehicle and its components to tests 

that represent as close as possible the conditions that will be seen in the real world. 

While the EPAJDOE test programs should have been designed to be more representative 

of the real world, the main point is that additional research has uncovered engine and 

component problems with EI5 in post 2001 vehicles. These problems indicate that EPA 

did not conduct sufficient testing and that consumers should have very little confidence 

when using E 15 in vehicles that have not been designed for E 15 or higher levels of 

ethanol. 

2. Representatives of EPA, DOE, and NREL along with many other stakeholders have 

attended the Mid-level Ethanol Stakeholders meetings that began in May of2008, have 

regularly been held since, and have reported on mid-level ethanol research. Early in the 

process, EPA pushed for even more comprehensive testing than was conducted by CRC 

and DOE and NREL participated in the research design of some of the mid-level ethanol 

research projects. DOE and NREL funding for E 15 research was controlled by EPA and 

as EPA came closer to finalizing their E15 decision, DOE and NREL participation in the 

CRC projects diminished substantially. 

CRC continues to work on research projects with EPA, CARB, DOE, NREL, RF A, and 

Growth Energy. 

3. The main area for more research is to evaluate more vehicles especially if the proposed 

fuels are to be used in the existing fleet. It is difficult to definitively test all the vehicles 

and vehicle components in the US on-road fleet for any new fuel. There is a heavy 

reliance on statistics and therefore both the EPA and CRC research projects could have 

benefited from testing greater numbers of vehicles. However, testing even a single 

vehicle is expensive and time consuming, so every research project has to balance the 

number of tests versus the cost and time required. To be more confident that the 

appropriate research sampling and testing is being conducted, it is best to heavily involve 

the vehicle and vehicle component manufacturers in any research design into any new 

fuels, biofuels or otherwise, that are intended to be introduced for use by the existing US 

car fleet. The best way to improve confidence and effectively test all new fuel 

applications is for the OEMs to evaluate new fuels on their new vehicles as they are being 

designed and not after the fact. 

Automaker tests are done with components rather than complete vehicles. These tests are 

cheaper to do, they are faster to do, and multiples can be easily done to get statistical 

robustness. The only time a whole vehicle is tested is to capture the interaction effects, 
64 

and for the program at hand this is calibration, diagnostics and emissions. You can see 

this philosophy reflected in the CRC testing. 

For the E15 waiver decision, EPA decided to ignore the advice of the companies that 

actually designed the vehicles and vchicle components and elected to follow their own 

and DOE's "engineering judgment". Simply put government agencies assumed that they 

knew more than the people that actually design and build cars for a living. The 

government must rely on industry experts who understand what is required in commercial 

applications. 

It will always be risky to introduce a new fuel into the existing fleet because the vehicles 

and vehicle components will have not been designed with this new fuel in mind. The 

safest way to proceed with a new fuel is to have new vehicles designed to use the new 

fuel. This will ensure compatibility between the fuel and vehicles. 

In the past EPA has required the parties requesting a fuel waiver to conduct sufficient 

research to convince EPA to grant the waiver. We are not sure why the US government 

elected in this case to not just evaluate the research data but to voluntarily pay for and 

design the research. As a result it was difficult for the US government to be unbiased 

when reviewing the research data from projects that they designed and paid for. The U.S. 

government should not be paying for this type of research. 

4. The certification fuel used for US vehicles should be representative of the fuel properties 

those vehicles are likely to encounter in use. Since new vehicles are certified to meet 

specific emissions specifications, the use of a certification fuel that does not represent 

what the vehicle will see over its lifetime results in a distorted representation of the actual 

vehicle emissions. When setting certification fuel standards, EPA must resist the impulse 

to aspirationally push a political agenda and stick with real world fuel properties. If the 

proposed E30 results in a new kind of Flexfuel vehicle that can use EO to E30, it is 

unclear how this is an improvement on an E85 FFV. If the goal is "optimization", 

automakers caunot optimize for E30 fuel any more than they can optimize for E85 fuel, 

vehicles optimized for these fuels would be dedicated vehicles and, given the scarcity of 

either E30 or E85, there is very little market for such vehicles. 

Thank you for the opportunity to speak with the subcommittee about this important topic. 
(65) 

Appendix 2 

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL FOR THE RECORD
66 

CRC RESEARCH ON MID-LEVEL ETHANOL BLENDS

CRC Research on Mid-Level Ethanol 

Blends 

I 
67 

What is CRC? 

• The Coordinating Research Council (CRe) is a non-profit 

organization, established in 1942, that: 

- Directs, through committee action, engineering and 

environmental studies on the interactions of transportation 

fuels with vehicles and engines. 

• The objective of CRC is: 

- To encourage and promote the arts and sciences by directing 

scientific cooperative research to develop the best possible 

combinations of fuels, lubricants, and the equipment in which 

they are used, 

- To afford a means of cooperation with the government on 

matters of national or international interest. 

• Through CRC, professionals in the automotive and in the energy 

industries collaborate in research and often coordinate with 

government agencies such as DOE, EPA and others. 

I 
68 

Background -- CRe's Comprehensive EIO+ Program 

• Drivers for undertaking an E10+ research program 

- RFS mandates 

- Need to assess both vehicle emissions and performance 

(customer-related) impacts 

• Comprehensive program started in 2008 and is still underway 

- Auto and oil industries led development 

- Other stakeholders included through a coordination group 

- CRC program consistent with EPA's June 2008 presentation on 

waiver approval requirements 
69 

EPA's E15 Partial Waivers 

• E15 allowed in 2001 and newer model year 

vehicles 

- Not allowed in: pre-2001 vehicles, all heavy-duty, 

motorcycles and non-road equipment 

• E15 increases ethanol by 50% over earlier 

permissible levels 

- Auto warranty concerns 

- Auto companies responses to Rep. Sensenbrenner 

• Lawsuit filed in DC Circuit Court by several 

groups 

- Supreme Court likely to decide next steps 

I 
70 

Excerpts from Auto Responses 

Ford No Ford does not support the introduction of E15 into 

the marketplace for legacy fleet 

General Motors No We are not confident our vehicles will be 

undamaged by the use of E15. 

Mercedes-Benz No Any ethanol blend above EI0, including E15, will 

harm emission control systems M-8engines 

Honda No bullt to 

of ethanol 

Mazda No The record fails to demonstrate that motor 

vehicles would not be damaged 

Toyota No the use offuel with 

vehicles 
71 

Excerpts from Auto Responses 

Volkswagen No Volkswagen 

adequate 

Volvo No The risks 

BMW No The BMW Group engines and fuel supply systems 

can be damaged by misfueling with E15. 

Hyundai No The EPA tests 

or 

increased wear. 

Kia No EPA testing failed to determine that vehicles 

not be subject to damage or increased wear. 
72 

2012 - 2013 Vehicle Gas Cap Warning I 
73 

CRC Fuel Systems Durability Study I 

• Objective: 

- Determine if E20 or E1S blends could affect fuel system 

components which would potentially have a significant customer 

impact 

• Tests conducted in 2 phases 

- Employed established testing procedures widely used within the 

automotive industry to evaluate and predict new product life 

• Components from S post-2001 model year vehicles tested in second 

phase (in model year order): 

- 2001 Chevrolet Cavalier 

- 2003 Nissan Maxima 

- 2004 Ford Focus 

- 2004 Ford Ranger 

- 2007 Nissan Altima 
74 

How Were the Tests Conducted? 

• Tests were done on fuel pumps and fuel level 

systems on popular post-200l gasoline light-duty 

vehicles with actual fleet penetration likely greater 

than 29 million vehicles 

• Fuel Pump System testing protocols 

- Soak (i.e., immersion) 

- Endurance test (i.e., "continuous" operation) 

• Fuel Level System testing protocols 

- Measured changes in electrical signals going to 

fuel gauge and check engine light 

I 
75 

Fuel Pump Durability Results 

• Some pump systems passed with no 

problems on E15 

• Other pump systems failed or 

exhibited other adverse effects on 

E15, but not El0 or EO 

• E15 caused swelling in some pump 

impellers that moves fuel into the fuel 

line 

• Showed obvious loss of vanes as a 

result of jamming against its housing 

that caused flow to halt 

Example: Vanes 

actually broke off 

portions of the 

impeller 
76 

Fuel Level System Durability Testing Results 

• Some systems operated on E15 with no problems 

• Others resulted in Ildirty" signals with E15, but not E10 or EO 

• Fuel level system units must have a clean signal without 

spikes or open circuits. Dirty signals can cause erratic/false 

fuel gauge readings and/or malfunctioning on-board 

diagnostics (i.e., check engine lights). 

Examples: 'F ............... ,~~ ............... ..,.......... Acceptable signal 

Unacceptable 

"dirty" signal 
77 

CRC Engine Durability Study 

• Objective: 

- Determine if E20 or E15 blends could affect engine 

components (e.g., valves, valve seats and guides) which would 

potentially have a significant customer impact. 

• 8 Vehicles Tested (in duplicates): 

- 2001 Honda CR-V, 2.0l14 

- 2002 VW Jetta, 2.0l14 

- 2004 Toyota Scion xA, 1.Sl14 

- 2005 Chevrolet Colorado, 3.5l15 

- 2007 Ford Edge, 3.5l V6 

- 2007 Dodge Ram, 5.7l V8 

- 2009 Dodge Caliber, 2.4l14 

- 2009 Chevrolet Aveo, 1.6l14 

I 
78 

Engine Durability Test Results 

(Note: Vehicle No. Unrelated to Listing Order in Prior Slide) 

*Deemed Pass vehicles did not pass all specified criteria but were not 

tested on E15 or EO after a detailed review of the data with the 

respective OEM and CRC concluded that fuel was not a factor. 

** Failure was less severe than on E20 or E15. 
79 

CRC Engine Durability Study - Conclusions 

• The CRC engine durability study showed that some 

engines passed on E20 and E1S. 

• However, two popular gasoline engines used in lightduty automotive applications of vehicles from model 

years 2001 through 2009 failed with mechanical 

damage when operated on intermediate-level 

ethanol blends (E1S and E20). 

- Valve and valve seat damage 

- Consequence: loss of compression, excess emissions, poor 

performance, engine repair 

• Millions of vehicles on the road today have the same 

or characteristics similar to the two that failed. 
80 

Other CRC Mid-Level Ethanol Blends Projects 

• Evaporative Emissions Control Systems Durability 

on E20 

- 2 of 10 vehicles showed increased evaporative 

emissions, but did not exceed certification standards 

• On-Board Diagnostics (OBD) 

- Continued investigation of potential for false check 

engine light illuminations 

• Overview Report on the Entire CRC and Other 

Mid-Level Ethanol Blends Programs 
81 

CRC Research on Mid-level Ethanol 

Blends 

I 
82 

Conclusions I 

• We have great confidence in the automotive engineers 

who sit on CRC committees and who design engines, 

emissions control systems and fuel systems to come up 

with the right tests to evaluate the effects of E15 in our 

customers' vehicles. 

• CRC has been doing this kind of research for over 70 

years - often with the participation and support of the 

ethanol industry and government agencies. CARB, EPA, 

RFA, DOE, Growth Energy, ASTM, and several states 

have all chosen CRC to execute similar projects over the 

years, so clearly CRC work is highly valued. 

• CRC Final Reports available at http://www.crcao.org 
83 

CRC PROJECT CM-136-09-1B 

Full report available at www.crcao.com/reports/recentstudies2012/CM-136-09- 

1B%20Engine%20Durability/CRC%20CM-136-091B%20Final%20Report.pdf 
84 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

CRC CM·136·09·1 B - Final Report 

April 2012 

Page 10 

The goal of the Coordinating Research Council (CRC) Project CM-136·09-lB, 

"Intel1llediate-Level Ethanol Blends Engine Durability Study," was to investigate the 

effects of two intermediate-level ethanol blends on several models of ClUTCnt on·road, 

non-Flexible-Fuel Vehicles (non·FFVs). 

The motivation to conduct the study originated in response to the 2007 Energy 

Independence and Security Act which mandates 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels be 

used by 2022. Since the passage of this Act, ethanol production has risen dramatically. 

This mandate. in addition to marginal implementation of E85, has produced interest in 

increasing the percentage of ethanol that can be used in motor gasoline for conventionalfuel vehicles beyond the ClllTcnt limit of 10 volume percent (EIO). Decisions ill 2010 and 

2011 by the U.S. EPA to allow up to 15 volume percent ethanol in motor gasoline for 

2001 and later model passenger car and light-duty trucks has increased the importance of 

this study. 

The objective of this durability study was to identifY possible engine component wear 

caused by additional ethanol content in the fuel using an engine test cycle employed by 

an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) member of CRC to test for engine durability. 

The engines were tested with E20, and then, as appropriate, E 15 and EO, for 500 test 

cycles, corresponding to 500 hours. with monitoring at regular intervals. To tcst the effect 

of ethanol on in-use engine durability, vehicles with engines of various valvetrain types 

were chosen. FEV and the CRC project panel agreed to test eight vehicle types which 

represented a selection of various valvetrain type engines in popular light-duty 

automotive applications in non-FFVs liOln model year 2001 through 2009. 

nle different types of vehicles of various engine configurations, sizes, valvetrain types 

and mileage were tested with E20, then on E15 if they failed on E20, and then on EO if 

they failed on E15. Vehicles which passed the test on E20 were not retested 011 lower 

ethanol blends. "Pass" and "Fail" criteria for five different categories were detennined at 

the beginning of the program and were assessed 011 each engine after completion of the 

durability test. These five categories are: emissions dm'ing the FTP75 test, diagnostic 

trouble codes (DTCs), valve clearance, compression and leakage. An engine was deemed 

to have failed the test if it failed in at least one of these five categories. Details for the 

specifications ofthe pass/fail critelia can be found in Section D.3.8 of this rep0l1. 

Each chosen engine was tested in duplicate on each fhel. Eight different vehicle types 

(two samples of each type) were tested with E20. Results of the E20 testing are as 

follows: tlu'ee vehicle types (five vehicle samples) failed the durability testing 011 E20: 

tlU'ee other vehicle types (four vehicle samples) did not pass all specified criteria after the 

500 hour durability test, but were waived after a detailed review of the data with the 

respective OEM contact. These vehicles arc Sho\\11 as waived in the tahle in Figure I. 

Further details as to why the waiver was received can be found in Section E of this repOlt. 

IFIEIJf 
85 

CRC CM-136-o9-1B - Final Report 

April 2012 

Page 11 

When an engine failed the durability test on E20, another set of duplicate vehicles with 

the same engine type was procm-ed from the used car market and scheduled for durability 

testing with E15. When an engine failed on E15, then another set of duplicate vehicles 

with the same engine type was procured from the used car market and scheduled for 

durability testing with EO. In totaL 28 engines from eight different vehicle types were 

tested during this study (16 on E20, 6 on El5 and 6 on EO). 

The failed and waived engines in the ovelview table in Figure 1 have an associated letter 

or letters in parentheses. The key to explain the meaning of these letters are as follows: 

• E = Emissions during EOT FTP75 testing 

• D = Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) detected at EOT 

• V - Valve clearance measurcmcnt on at least one valve out of OEM specification 

atEOT 

• C = COlllpressionllleasurelllent on at least one cylinder out of OEM specification 

atEOT 

• L = Leakage measurement on at least one cylinder above 10% at EOT 

FIEV 
86 

CRC CM-136-09-1 B - Final Report 

April 2012 

Page 12 

The three vehicle types which failed on E20 were then tested with E15. All three vehicle 

types also failed this testing. The vehicles which failed the E 15 durability test were then 

tested with EO to ensure that these failures were not associated with any factors other than 

the concentration of ethanol in the fuel. In SUll1lUalY. 12 out of 28 tested engines were 

deemed to have failed the prescribed durability test. 

Different types of failures were obscrved throughout the testing. The failed engines were 

sent to the respective OEM for a detailed teal·down analysis. FEV was not involved in the 

teardown activities. Any statements with regard to the results of the engine teardO\\11 

analyses were provided to FEV in writing by the respective OEM technical contact to be 

included in this report. 

The test results and exhibited failures of the various vehicles can be summarized as 

follows: 

Vehicle I: (Both samples passed E20) 

No issues were detected with either of the Vehicle I cngines tested on E20. No furthcr 

testing on E 15 or EO was conducted. 

Vehicle 2: (Both samples failed E20, E15) 

Both Vehicle 2 engines tested on E20 failed the leakage cliterion. Both vehicle 2 engines 

tested also failed on E15, one of them because of increased emissions at EOT and the 

other one failed the leakage criterion. Both Vehicle 2 engines tested on EO passed all 

criteria. The cylinder head teardowll analysis conducted by the OEM on all failed engines 

of Vehicle 2 revealed uneven wear and pitting of the intake valve seats as the root cause 

for the increased leakage. 

Vehicle 3: (Samples showed mixed results on E20 and E15, both passed EO) 

Testing Vehicle 3 cngincs showed mixed results. One out of two engines tested on E20 

failed the test and one out of two engines testcd on E 15 failed the test. Both Vehicle 3 

engines tested on EO passed all cliteria. The teardown analysis conducted by the OEM on 

both failed Vehicle 3 engines revealed widened exhaust valve seats on all cylinders and 

wear all several intake valve seats. The engine which failed on E20 also showed valve 

lash degradation. 

The OEM examined intemal historical production records and these revealed that there 

had been changes in the intake valve seat material used for this engine following its 

initial production years. The failed engines were equipped with lower grade material 

valve seats which were not considercd robust enough to ethanol blends higher than E 10. 

The OEM technical contact commented that the test results of this study have validated 

this position. Further details about the OEM commentary can be found in Section EA.7 

of this report. It should also be noted that the OEM changed to the improved valve seat 

material in later model years of the investigated engine. 

FEV 
87 

r----------------------------------------------------------------, 

CRC CM-136-09-1B - Final Report 

April 2012 

Page 13 

Vehicle 4: (One sample passed, the other was waived on E20) 

Mechanically there were no issues detected with either of the Vehicle 4 engines tested on 

E20 with the exception of a leakage measurement slightly above 10% on only one 

cylinder of one engine (the second engine passed all criteria including leakage). An 

engine teat·down analysis conducted by the OEM revealed no issues with the engine with 

the slightly increased leakage. 

Both engines showed elevated emissions at EOT during the simulated engine 

dynatllOmeter FTP75 test. The catalyst of Satuple A engine was sent to the OEl""! who 

installed it on atlother vehicle and tested that vehicle on a vehicle chassis emission roll. A 

FTP75 test was conducted with the vehicle with the reinstalled catalyst, and it passed all 

emission constituents. 

Sample B showed a similar elevated emission behavior. For Sample B the OEM 

reinstalled the engine and catalyst into the vehicle and conducted a vehicle chassis roll 

FTP75 test. The vehicle passed the emission test for all exhaust emission constituents. 

Upon review of the resnlts and recommendation by the OEM technical contact, the CRC 

gronp waived this engine liOlu further testing. 

Vehicle 5: (One satnple passed. the other was waived on E20) 

One Vehicle 5 engine passed the testing on E20 for all criteria. The other engine passed 

all criteria in the engine dynamometer test cell. but failed the EOT vehicle emission test. 

III addition, a diagnostic fault code, P0420, was set when the engine was reinstalled in the 

vehicle. The fault code was not present dming engine dynamometer testing. The P0420 

code indicates low catalyst efficiency; the service manual instmcts replacement of the 

catalyst. The vehicle completed the EOT chassis roll FTP75 with this code active: the 

catalyst was not replaced and the vehicle failed thc EOT FTP75 vehicle emission test. 

The cmission results were discussed with the OEM. The OEM indicated knO\\~l issues 

with vehicle 5 catalysts: thus, they are offering extended wan-anty for catalyst 

replacement. It was decided not to retest this vehicle type on E 15 atId EO because this 

failme was deemed not to be caused by the increased etllallol content. Another factor in 

this decision was that the second vehicle satnple of tllis vehicle type passed all criteria. 

No teardown analysis was conducted by the OEM as the measmed valve clearance. 

compression and leakage on both tested engines were all within specifications. 

Vehicle 6: (Both samples waived on E20) 

Both Vehicle 6 engines tcsted on E20 failed the leakage criterion by a small margin, but 

passed all other criteria including EOT vehicle cmission tests. The OEM completed 

cylinder head teardowns Oil both engines. It was lloted that the valves showed Cat·bOll 

impregnation, but overall the valve seats did not show abnol1l1al deposits or wear and 

FEll' 
88 

CRC CM·136·09·1 B - Final Report 

April 2012 

Page 14 

were acceptable to the OEM. Upon recommendation by the OEM both engines were 

waived from filrther testing. 

Vehicle 7: (Both samples passed on E20) 

No issues were detected with either Vehicle 7 engine tested on E20. No fm1her testing on 

El5 or EO was conducted. 

Vehicle 8: (All engines Jailed on E20, El5 and EO) 

All sLx Vehicle 8 engines tested on E20, E 15 and EO failed the test. All failed the leakage 

criterion. Both engines tested on E20, one engine tested on El5 and one engine tested on 

EO failed the compression criterion. One engine tested on E20, one engine tested on E 15 

and both engines tested on EO £1iled the emission criterion. The second E20 engine 

completed the 500 hom test with failed leakage and failed compression critelia, but was 

not reinstalled into the vehicle as it experienced a catastrophic failure dm'ing an EOT 

WOT test which was conducted in the engine dynamometer test cell upon request by the 

respective OEM technical contact. 

Teardown analyses conducted by the OEM on the failed engines revealed heavier pitting 

on the exhaust valve scats of thc engines nm on E20 and E 15. Moderate wcar was noted 

on intake valve seats and n01111al wear was noted on intake and exhaust valves. No issues 

were noted on engine bearings, pistons and piston rings. The teardown analyses 

conducted by the OEM revealed that the engines which ran on E20 and El5 showed 

higher wear and heavier pitting of the exhaust valves compared to the engines which ran 

on EO. However, pitting on the EO engines was still severe enough that they also failed 

the leakage criterion. 

Upon examination of the test resnlts and engine design, the OEM determined that the 

valvetrain design inhibited valve rotation at lower engine speeds and that the limited 

amonnt of time spent over 3500 rpm in the test combined with the valve spring design led 

to abnotmally hif(h valve scat wear for all of the fuel combinations due to inhibited valve 

rotation. Unlike other enf(ines in the test, this particular engine's spring design is more 

sensitive to the IJlm tln'eshold and would be better suited for a test with intervals at higher 

speeds. In retrospect, it would be expected for the engine to experience abnonnal valve 

seat wear during this test cycle, regardless of filel composition. Due to this reason. 

Vehicle 8 is sho"ll in a different color in the overview results (see Figure I). 

It should be noted that the engine which experienced the catastrophic failure had severe 

damage in one cylinder, but the tem'down analysis results for that cylinder were not 

considered in the final analysis for this rep011 as the EOT WOT test was not part of this 

CRC Intermediate-Level Ethanol Blend Engine Durability Study and was only conducted 

upon a special request by the respective OEM. 

FEV 
89 

Conclusions 

CRC CM·136·09·1B - Final Report 

April 2012 

Page 15 

After completion of all testing and detailed review of the experienced failme modes, the 

following conclusions can be drawn: 

• Out of eight different tested engine types, one had a design that was (in retrospect) 

inappropriate for the test cycle, two failed on E20 and E15, and five passed on E20 

and by assumption E15 and EO (see Figure 1). 

• Out of the two failed tested engine types. both successfully completed the 

reference testing on EO. 

o There is an 11% chance that all tln'ee E15 failures (two with one vehicle type and 

one with another) would have occtllTed if failme were independent of ethanol. The 

results for E20 are the same. Combining the E 15 results with the E20 results, there 

is a 7% chance that all six failmes (two EI5 and two E20 with one vehicle type 

and one EIS and one E20 with another) would have occmred with ethanol 

containing fuels if failure were independent of ethanol. 

o For the failed engine which also failed Oll EO reference fuel, the failures can not be 

directly linked to the ethanol content. The design of the engine interacting with the 

test cycle is the p11mmy reason cited by the OEM maker for the observed failures. 

• The observed failures do not show that specific valvetrain types are more or less 

sensitive to ethanol content. 

• The majority of the failures can be linked to issues with valve scats, either related 

to material or wear/dcfonnation. 

The study has shown that two popular gasoline engines used in light·duty automotive 

applications of vehicles /i'om model years 200 I tlu'ough 2009 failed with mechanical 

dmllage when operated on intel111ediate·level ethanol blends (EIS and E20). 

FIEIJI' 
90 

DURABILITY OF FUEL PUMPS AND FUEL LEVEL SENDERS IN NEAT AND AGGRESSIVE

E15, CRC REPORT NO. 664 

Full report available at www.crcao.org/reports/recentstudies2013/ 

CRC%2020664%20[AVFL-15a]/ 

AVFL%2015a%20[CRC%20664]%20Final%20Report%20only.pdf 
91 

CRC Report No. 664 

DURABILITY OF FUEL 

PUMPS AND FUEL LEVEL 

SENDERS IN NEAT AND 

AGGRESSIVE E15 

CRC Contract No_ AVFL-15a 

January 2013 

COORDINATING RESEARCH COUNCIL, INC. 

3650 MANSELL ROAD-SUITE 140-ALPHARETTA, GA 30022 
92 

Preface 

The Advanced Vehicle/Fuel/Lubricants Committee of the Coordinating Research Council, Inc. 

retained the services of The Testing Services Group, LLC (TSG, Lapeer, MI) to conduct a series of 

experiments that evaluated the compatibility and durability of fuel pumps and fuel level senders in 

mid-level ethanol blends under CRC Project No. A VFL-ISa. This project was an extension of contract 

work conducted under CRC Project No. A VFL-IS. The TSG contract for A VFL-ISa was active from 

April 2011 to October 2012. Gage Products Co. of Ferndale, MI provided test fuels for the study. 

This report presents analyses of the A VFL-ISa data collected by TSG. Documentation of testing 

protocols and results were provided by TSG staff, and the data analysis report presented here was 

prepared by the A VFL-15a Project Panel members listed in Appendix A I. 

iv 
93 

Executive Summary 

This report describes an extension of an earlier scoping study that investigated how gasoline 

containing 20 percent ethanol by volume (E2o) might affect wetted automotive fuel system components 

such as pumps, dampers, level senders, and injectors. The scoping project (CRC Project No. A VFL15) was used to identify areas where further testing should be performed. This study (CRC Project No. 

AVFL-15a) was designed to add depth to those initial fmdings, and explore potential impacts of 

gasoline containing 15 percent ethanol by volume (Els). Both projects were conducted under the 

direction of the Advanced VehicielFuellLubricants (A VFL) Committee of the Coordinating Research 

Council (CRe). 

The primary test fuels for this study were EI5 and an aggressive blend of Eis (EI5a). El5a was 

formulated referencing the SAE specification J1681 to represent the worst case blends of gasoline and 

IS volume percent ethanol that might be found in the field. ElOand Eo test fuels were also incorporated 

into this study in a second phase as reference points to assess the relative performance of the EI5 and 

ElSa test blends. Automobile manufacturers were contacted at the start of the scoping study in order to 

develop a candidate list of vehicles for testing. Based on manufacturer suggestions, 15 designs from 

different manufacturers spanning the 1996 to 2009 model years were selected. It is estimated that the 

design selections from the original scoping study represented at least 37 million vehicles with 

components and systems similar in construction and materials. Based on the scoping study, several 

fuel pumps and fuel level senders were selected for testing in the current work. The subset of parts used 

in the current work represents approximately 29 million 2001-2007 vehicles. 

Table E.I describes the test matrix and general content of the A VFL-15a Phase I study. 

Following completion of Phase I, additional testing was conducted to provide context for the initial 

fuel pump results and to broaden the fuel types and fuel pump designs evaluated. The test matrix for 

Phase 2 is shown in Table E.2. Teardown analysis was done on the fuel pumps from both phases of 

the program. 

The protocols for testing fuel pumps and senders - fuel pump endurance aging, soak durability, 

and tear down analyses; fuel level sender resistance and full sweep aging - followed the procedures 

used in the original scoping study. The testing procedures were based on existing SAE and USCAR 

protocols which are used in the automotive industry to predict new product life. 
94 

Table E.1. eRe Project No. AVFL-lSa Phase 1 Test Matrix 

Test Protocol I No. of Designs Tested I Test Articles per Design I Fuel Types 

Fuel Pump Testing 

Endurance Aging I 2 I 6 I EIs& EISa 

Soak Durability I 2 I 6 I E15&E15a 

Fuel Level Senders 

Fuel Resistance I 3 I 6 I EIs& EISa 

Full Sweep I 3 I 6 I EI5 &EISa 

Table E.2. eRe Project No. AVFL-lSa Phase 2 Test Matrix 

Test Protocol I No. of Designs Tested I Test Articles per Design I Fuel Types 

Fuel Pump Testing 

Endurance Aging I I I 6 I Eo 

Soak Durability I 3 I 6 I Eo EIO& EISa 

Two different test protocols were used to evaluate fuel pump performance. The soak durability 

testing evaluated the fuel pump's response to test fuels while in a static condition for 12 weeks 

interrupted only by eight, brief, flow tests. The endurance aging program investigated potential fuel 

pump failure mechanisms resulting from continuous operation. These pumps were aged for 3,000 

hours of continuous operation at temperatures varying between 40° e and 60° e, interrupted only by 

three, brief, flow tests. 3,000 hours represents -90,000 miles at a mean of 30 miles per engine hour; 30 

miles per engine hour is an approximate conversion that comprehends engine time at idle, driving at 

lower city speeds and at higher highway speeds (see also reference El). 

Fuel level senders were tested using two different protocols: a fuel resistance aging protocol 

and a full sweep aging protocol. The fuel resistance aging involved cycling the powered level senders 

in test fuel at one to two seconds per cycle for 250,000 cycles, followed by soaking unpowered for one 

week. This process was repeated until one million cycles and four weeks of soak had been 

accumulated. The full sweep aging protocol involved cycling the powered level senders in test fuel at 

a rate of one cycle per second for five million cycles. 

Results from this study showed that the pump soak test could discriminate the interaction of 

fuel pumps with test fuel. Some pump design - fuel combinations had no deviations in performance 

while other pump design-fuel combinations led to pump failures. One fuel pump model, currently in 

2 
95 

use in the field, seized in almost every replicate of the pump soak test when either neat or aggressive 

Ell was used as test fuel, but pumps of this model did not fail on any replicate of the same test when 

either Eo or EIO was used as test fuel. There are pump designs (currently in use in the field) that did not 

seize in the fuel pump soak test, but did exhibit statistically significant flow loss when tested with neat 

or aggressive E15. While statistically significant, none of those pumps had sufficient flow loss that 

vehicle performance would degrade in ways customers would be likely to observe, nor was the flow 

shift statistically significantly different from the flow shift observed on Eo fuel. 

The pump endurance test could sort fuel pumps by their interaction with test fuel; some pump 

design-fuel combinations had no deviations in performance while other pump design-fuel 

combinations led to pump failure. One fuel pump model, currently in use in the field, seized in almost 

every replicate of the pump endurance test when either neat or aggressive Elswas used as test fuel, but 

did not fail on any replicate of the same test when Eo was used as test fuel. Another design of pump, 

currently in use in the field, was not impacted by mid-blend ethanol in the endurance test. Exposure to 

Eis or aggressive Eis caused dimensional changes in all impellers. Depending on pump model, the 

standard deviation of thickness was approximately 2 to 27 times greater in EI5 than in Eo at the end of 

the soak test. 

The tests showed issues with the performance of the fuel level senders when tested with the Eis 

and EI5a blends. Both the EI5a and EI5 blends had three instances of significant signal defects. The 

significant signal defects experienced (consumer observable resistance spikes) could potentially cause 

interference with proper OBDn function. While not consistent and not found in all samples tested, the 

results indicate some effect of the EI5 and EI5a blends on sender operation. 

This study in conjunction with the prior scoping study has found that some fuel systems in 

modem vehicles survive testing in mid-blend ethanol fuels, while others will experience complete 

failures that would prevent operation. The fuel pumps and level senders that failed or exhibited other 

effects during testing on Eis and EISa are used on a substantial number of the 29 million 2001 - 2007 

model year vehicles represented by the components evaluated in this report. 

3 
96 

LETTER TO SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRMAN CHRIS STEWART FROM MATT GRUHN, MRAA 

PRESIDENT, MARINE RETAILERS ASSOCIATION OF THE AMERICAS
97 

It is clear the EPA has forced usage of corn-based ethanol before thoughtful research has been conducted and 

has failed to meet its civil obligation to provide for consumer safety. Most alarming to MRAA is that more 

than 90% of boating and fishing consumers fill their boat tanks with gas at on-road service stations at the 

same time as their cars, and they are inadvertently using the higher ethanol levels in boats. Again, this is 

extremely detrimental to the health of the boat and the safety of the boater. 

MRAA believes the first step in introducing a new product is complete research and testing on how it would 

impact consumers and their vehicles, boats, and other small engines. The new fuel or fuel additive should not 

be approved for usage that is not appropriate. The next step is to conduct a national consumer education 

campaign that fully explains how the new fuel can be used that includes proper fueling and mis-fueling 

guidelines. Consumer education to date and safeguards at the pump are woefully inadequate with use of a 

small label on a gas pump the extent of a public campaign. The label is clearly insufficient and is often 

overlooked by consumers. 

The EPA has failed in all of these steps. 

It is vital for the EPA to work with Congress, consumers, and industry stakeholders to ensure the safety of new 

products. 

MRAA asks Congress to intercede with the EPA to prevent the sale of E15 until proper research has been 

completed to ensure the protection of boating consumers. 

Thank you for your leadership. We look forward to working with you. 

Sincerely, 

Matt 

/~ Gruhn 

MRAA President 
98 

LETTER TO HON. LISA JACKSON, ADMINISTRATOR, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY, FROM HON. WAYNE ALLARD, VICE PRESIDENT, GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, 

AMERICAN MOTORCYCLIST ASSOCIATION
99 

Mr. Wayne Allard 

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECnON AGENCY 

1{-\TH~m .... l. 'JEI-;;ClEND FUEL Et.'ISSIONS LA60RATOR'{ 

2:055 PLYM:J.UHi ROAD ~.N~:;\Ra.IJR, M;CH:GAN 48t(}5.24''S3 

August 1. 2012 

Vice President. Government Relations 

101 Conslftutic/Il A'Jenue, NW. Suite 800W 

Washington, DC 20001 

Ollar Mr. Allard: 

O'ft:E OF A'~;1o~O~~!C;TI'~I.~ 

Thank you for YOllr June 20, 2012 letter expres.ing concerns with the possible mlsfueling of mDlor(v,'es 

and aU·terrain vehicles (AWs) with gasollne·ethanol blend!!cl fuetS(~mtaining more than 1O:voluml! 

percent (volS>} llP 10 15 volVo ethanol (£15). SII!!ciilcafly. vou were concerned aboullile possiblllt'j of 

motorcycle and ,\ W riders inadvertently mlsfueliog due to residual f151eft in a blender pump hose used 

to dispense both HS and 11 gasoline·ethanol blendQti fl[el conlairling no more than 10 vol~.~ ~Ihilnol· 

(£10). The Administraror has asked me to respand to YOilr Jetter. 

EP,\ appredateHOU((OnCem about residllalluei r~mail1il1g in a btenderpump has!! tha! (l'Spen.f> E.l.~ 

and HO frOllllhe same hose EPA retognized the p-otenltal impact of £15 on nonroaCi \'ehides. E!n~ines. 

and equipment when it denied tilt' El 5 Waiver Request for nonroad \lehide~, engines, andequiFil1ll!nI 

which inCludes motof('(c1es and ATVs,' and the Agene,,' ha$·spetilkall.,. addressed this residual fuel issue 

if I its recent approvafs of the firs! El5 Misfueling Mitigation Plans IMMPs).) In the appro'lalletter$ S!!ut 

to companies submitting MM ps,; EPA requires that retail sla tl011S that. own or opera!!! lJlender PUnl!), 

either (/,spense El5 from a d€dirated hose antlnonle if able or. in the case of E15 amI £10 being 

dispen.sed from the same hose. reljuire Illat at least four galto!!s of fuel he llUfchased 10 prevent ~ehiclr:s 

ami engines wilh smaller fue I tanks fforn being exposed to gasoline·ethanol ble nded fuels containing 

greater than lOvali:' ethanol. Addition.lty, EPA is requiring that retailslatiOrl. that offer no amI El5 

from the .silme hose and nozzle use additional labeling to inform· con,vmers about the minimum 

f)urchase reqldrement. EPA also noted Ihal some retailers ma,! need to take add1Holl~1 .teps to hl!lp 

ensure that (Q11sumers heed the minimum purchases (i!quirements. 

Since motorc'tclists and AW users,as 'fou suggest, hav~ relatlvely small fuel tanks. thav should pay 

careful attention to the labeling of ble,l(!er pumps to ensure thai an appropriate fuel is chosen. in this 

case no or EO. As 'lOll arc Ilfobahly aware, the E15 Compliante Survey. rsqulred both as a cOlldition 01 

: See 75 FR GS094jllo'lember 01. 2010). 

, For morl! it1formation, pr~ase see thi!" ElS Mislueling r.mi;:aUon Plan w<!b II Ie locatold at: 

hUn',' {www.eoa.gov/olaglr~ii!ff .. eIS/a(!dit.vefelS/p.ls-mmo.htm. 

; Asample li.'tI~r sent to approved MMP ,uhmiUersmav be found here:. 

htlo'l!ww~J.i;ea.£.o.YLqJaolfea;/fjjelshddltl\'.;I.)l~Ld.otu",ents{e 15·mmll·"~o!i)',·al·I€!t~r·;anJ!\!;,.tld;. Please note 

that this leiter i. only a sample and actual fettels ~en! to comp;U\ie;· mav WJry d~p~ndlng on a (Gmpan{s speclfit 

Clleum.tances. 

'~~~'l"~: 1':-::'~~; ;lJ::ti..'. r.~:2 ,.-• ..:",'f. e:') ';:j 

R\,:· .. ,;!~·j·R;;'J~rlt:!. P< '.~!-: It\·" \"=ji·";:,;l~; Sl1~; ·'1:;w 1::~; p~.!~::,:'~:,,-~' ft!':·:-':'-H· (I" .; ... .:: ;.~.; ;;,;:t~~;'; ;:'i}:-;:,' 
100 

the US Partial Wailler Decisions' and EPA regulations found at '10 CFR 80.1502, will ensure that blender 

pumps are propcrlv labeled. ;'\s we suggested ir) the E15 Misfueling Mitigation RuleI11Cl!:ing, we will 

dosety (011019 the results of the E15 Compliance Survey to determine whether addillonal misfueling 

mitigation meastJflO!S are necessary. 

Again. thank you fOf YOllr letter, and we look forward to working with )'ou and other affected 

stakeholders to enSIJrf that £15 is inlloduced iota the marketplace safe IV anti responsibly. If you have 

ao.,. (IUeslion, or comments regarding this matter, pleas€ contact Robert Anderson of mV staff at {202} 

343-9718 . 

• See 15 FP. GS15() (llovember .1, lOIO) and 16 fR 6815!).68151 (IanualY 26, 2(11). 
101 

LETTER TO SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRMAN CHRIS STEWART FROM HON. WAYNE ALLARD, 

VICE PRESIDENT, GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, AMERICAN MOTORCYCLIST ASSOCIATION
102 

ChaimJall Ste.\\m1 

March n. 2im 

PageT\\;o 

RetaileIS \:\'ho want to sell lEtS al::;o have me option ofha\'ing a dedicated E15 pump Of' hoset Mat 

pump-lb.:}] dispenses E15 and higher ethanol blends through a single hose. If a blender pump 

dispenses multiple fuels (hat include E15 and higllcr ethanol b]ends. the EPA may requite :a 

minimum. PU.rchilS~ ro;:quirement.. 

Equally important the A!I.·fA has repeatedly expr~5s~ concern:;; to govemnH"tlt ofl:1cials and 

federai la\\111akers- about possible damage to motorcycle and ATV engines caused by the 

inadvenem useofEl5 when the new fuel becomes wide~y" available. The ~AJi,'JA also has asked 

that motorcycles and A TV s he part of any sl.;ien(jfic. s{udy into the effects ofE!. 5 to ensure that 

tile new fuel blend \\'on't damage those engL.'1es. 

2. A recent report de\'elo~d Jor the Nutional1v1arinc MURl1faeturers Association found that 

,,[!he 11 registered seile .. <>fE!5. ""ly II h.d ""<f.etly labeled Iheirfuel pump. E15. In 

t)!na words~ 35 pe~-ent 'were noi. complying \"'illh basic labeling sumdard.s" Do any of you 

n..a:ve confidence that these lh'lSic impl.em.ent3!~ion issues '· ... ill be resolved as E1S becomes 

more , ... idespread1 

See the ans .. ver to question No. 1. 

As noted \,\1Ih the survey by the Natimltd Marine ~·tanufaclureJSAsso_ciation that foml:d 3S 

pe.~nl ot'the retailers in non~ompli'ance with the £UJT(nt labeling {"equir(:Jl]ents~ the AMA 

beiieves lhat enforcement wiH be more ditikul[ \\'ith seque:stral~OO. 

3, In March of 1""1 year. EPA issued. blan..~e! appro,'.1 of. mod.1 EI5 misl\Jeling 

mitigation plan that was submitted by the Renewable Fue1s Association for use by 

$!ations across the country ~ Do you Bgf"i!'::: lhat the p!an is: ~"sufficie-nt?" 

last year,. the AMA tQ!d the EPA that ,,\ilh E 15 n;)w coming into the marli:e~. our members who 

make a concerted eflbrt to fild their motoT'Cyc1es or ATVs \\.ith ElO-Of-less fud, may 

urd:'oo"\'ing,ty rt!fud \,·.;tl1 residual E151cft in a blender-pump hose. A bf.enderpl1mpdispenscs 

diflh~nt fuel blends thfOugh the sante hose. such as EIO W':l.d EJ5. When a £;.ustomer buys E15~ 3S 

much: .as a thirdofa gallon ofresWuai El5 is left' in lhe hose. which can inad;.'.erl:ently get into the 

next customers vehicle \\:hik tuding v.i[h EI0. 

The EPA said: "fIn an eOort to ad'dre'ss this potential misfuelin,g issue, EPA appmved an induslrysubmitted [approach] thill requires a minimum. purchase of four gallons from blender pumps. Lhal 

dispeilse belh EtO and EI.5 foom ihese:me hose and nozzle. Suchan approach would prevent 

mis.tileling by diL'L11illg any fe5idual EISleft ~n the hQlse from the" previous sale ofE15." 
103 

Cbaimum Stewart 

MftTcl122.10J3 

PageTllree 

However! the A • .i.\1A objtXtcd, to this nlisfireling mh'igation plan because our members) fUe) lank'$~ 

capacities -are nOi."01aUy H.m·to-three sa1h:1I1s (In a¥crag.e\ There-fere, the- AM.A did ~ot belie\-~e this 

plan was sutlktenl. 

4. 111 your testimony. you highlighted the importance of consumer awareness and education 

with regardS: (0 E15. What efforts do yO'lllhink might be helpful and what do you think 

the EPA sho .. ld Inwe done or could do lo better infoml and_protect the public: 

• .\.:.\-fA response: 

With the EPA uSing only one test to deremtine ifEI5 is sore for v.hicte. b.for. graruirng" 

waiYer. the AMA urges the agency to anow foran independent scientific study b}t the National 

Academy ofScie11ces: to occur. We a'lsO" request that mOlorcycles and ATVs be included in such 

study. 

Again, thank you for th.e opportunity to Ies1i1Y before Ihe $ubc61nm~lte¢ on En\i.ronrn.ent and (0 

address your foHmv Ul1 qf,;restionsw If you have any questions. 'please-do nUl hesitate to OOffiacl me 

by phone, (202) 742·43{)1. or by ~mail. waiiardra;mml-cvde.org. 

Sinterely, ~ 

Vic.e 

\~~ President, GQ\'etIlmCl'I:t Rela.tions 
104 

LETTER TO FORMER SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRMAN ANDY HARRIS FROM WILLIAM

WOEBKENBERG, MERCEDES-BENZ RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, NORTH AMERICA
105 

emission system damage~ which irreparably tarnishes the reputation of clean diesel technology. 

The inability for customers to fuel their vehicles with the correct diesel fuel due to mandates 

inhibiting the sale of B5 or lower blends, compromises an otherwise good experience with clean 

diesel technology. All light duty diesel manufacturers, for both passenger cars and light-duty 

truck/SUVs MY 2011 and older, restrict biodiesel usage to blends B5 or lower. For MYl012 and 

2013, only certain domestic light duty diesel pick~up trucks are approved for biodiesel blends up 

to 820. In fact, the only passenger car which is approved for biodiesel blends >85, a 2014 

model] was just introduced at the Chicago Auto show recently. Thus, there exists a large and 

growing legacy fleet of light duty diesel vehicles, which are limited to diesel fuel blends 

containing B5 or less. 

Unfortunately, several states have legislation either pending or enacted which encourage or 

mandate the use of biodiesel blends far greater than what is approved by Mercedes-Benz and 

other vehicle manufacturers for the large legacy and new car fleet. Illinois, for example, has 

recently renewed through 2018 a 6.25% retail fuel tax incentive for sales of blends Bl1 or 

greater. While not a mandate in the strict sense, limited diesel fuel retail infrastructure dictates 

that the most popular fuel (usually the fuel at the cheapest cost to the consumer) is what is 

sold. Thus it is increasingly more difficult for Mercedes-Benz customers to refuel their vehicles 

with the appropriate fuel in Illinois as the majority of retail stations are forced to offer 811 

blends over BS blends to remain financially competitive with other fuel retail outlets in the 

vicinity. 

Minnesota has a BI0 mandate poised to be potentially be enacted in 2013, which would 

remove even a limited choice of BS stations, as currently the case in Illinois, and simply require 

retail outlets to offer only Bl0 biodiesel blends. Furthermore, a 820 mandate is scheduled to 

be triggered in 2015 which only compounds the issue. 

Other states have biodiesel mandate legislation pending or enacted with in-state production 

volume or other triggers, all driven by the renewable volume obligations of RFS2. 

Mercedes-Benz encourages a thorough review of such mandates which provide an untenable 

patchwork of state-specific diesel fuel composition, and offers a solution that a national BS limit 

be considered as an alternative method to ensure biofuel obligations of RFS2 are satisfied. 

Again, thank you for the opportunity to present our views on this important subject. 

Sincerely, 

William Woebkenberg 

Fuels Technical and Regulatory Affairs 

Mercedes-Benz Research and Development North America 

Cc: The Honorable Suzanne Bonamici 
106 

MEMO FROM COORDINATING RESEARCH COUNCIL, INC.(CRC) 

COORDINATING RESEARCH COUNCIL, INC. 365D MANSELL ROAD, SUITE 1110 

ALPHA~ETTA. GA 30022 

TEL: 6781795-0506 

~ 

FAX: 6781795-0609 

Subject: An open letter from the Coordinating Research Council 

May 2012 

On May 16, 2012, the Coordinating Research Com1ciJ (CRC) issued a report, CRC Project No. CM136-09-lB Intermediate-Level Ethanol Blends Engine Durability Study. This report was only one 

of a series of reports undertaken by eRC to understand the comprehensive nature of ethanol blended 

fuel and the impact that such a fuel may have on legacy fleet vehicles. .m particular, the 

lntermediate Level Et.'1anol Blends Engine Durability Study presented the results of an engine 

durability program on late-model vehicle engi..'les tested on gasoline with ethanol blended at 20 31)d 

15 volume peroent as well as straight gasoline (i.e. no blended ethanol). The results of this repOrt 

have generated a substantial amount of interest in how CRC conducts its research and manages its 

research programs. This open letter provides additional back",oround on CRe's role. 

The Coordinating Research Councll (CRC) is a non-profit organization that directs, through 

committee actiop, engineering and environmental studies on the interaction botween 

automotive/other mobility equipment and petroleum products. The Sustaioiog Members of CRC are 

the Amerie<m Petroleum Institute (API) and a group of automobile manufacturer members 

(Clirysler, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mitsubishi, Nissa!" Toyota, and Volkswagen). CRC 

research programs are managed by five tecbIrical committees (AdvancedN ehiclefFuelfLubricants, 

Atmospheric Impacts, Emissions, Performance, and Aviation.) 

CRC has been conducting studies on the performance of engines, fuels, emissions and vehicles since 

circa 1919. We have, more so than any other organization, been the source of research that has been 

used to. help establish the specifications for gasoline and diesel fueis' performance in the United 

States. CRC has for many yean! worked with not just the automotive and energy industries but also 

government agencies (e.g. tbe Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Energy, and 

Califomia Air Resources Board) and others (e,g. the Renewable Fuels Industry, Universm·es, 

National Laboratories, and other research organizations). CRC values these relationShips and· 

cooperation and looks forward to future cooperation with DOE, EPA, the ethanol industry and 

others with an interest in scientific research. 

CRe works hard at maiotaioing its reputation for unbiased research. In fact, one Congressional staff 

member when calling recently stated, "[ understand that CRe is the Gold Standard for research 

projects like this." CRC'S legacy and current reputation for unbiased sound science research is a 

precious commodity for which we have diligently worked to maintain by continulng our long 

standing pattern of committee-managed, consensus-driven research. Part of that requirement is It 

strict policy for eRC to take no advocacy positions, regardless of the outcome of its research 

programs. Consistent with this, CRC does not advocate either the introdnction or prohibition ofEIS 

into the U.S. fuels =ket. CRC's role is to conduct relevant scientific programs for the benefit of 

the pUblic. The advocacy statements relating to E15 after tbe release of CRes study were authored 

by others and are not from CRC. 

SUSTAlNI NG MEMBERS - American Petroleum InstiMe . AuiomobUe Manufacturer Members' 
107 

Hovyever, eRe has the right and even the obligation to defend its research to all challengers. Our 

research program on engine durability, Project No. CM-136-09-lB Intermediate-Level Ethanol 

Blends Engine Durabilit; Study, 'WaS perfo::med correctly and properly, using the best scientific 

::nethods a.vailable, making the most efficient use of available resources. CRe is a transparent 

org:anization with aU results published and available to the public free of charge from our website 

upon project completion. 

The eRe Board of Directors recognif.ed how important and impactful this work may.be, so' 

prepublication results were made available for review on OLl! website. During the progress of the' 

reSearch program, multiple stakeholder meetings were held with presentations on the' .interim 

progre'ss and resu.l"i.S. These meetings were held in Washington, DC with many stakeholders 

participatin& including representatives of DO~ and EP~ and ethanol 'trade associations. 

Throughout all those meetings, there were no complaIDts or criticisms of our research_programs. 

" In conclusion, CRe wants to emphasize that our inten.tion is to continue to perform unbiased 

scientific studies and publish these results to the public for review: --We will take no "advocacy 

position, but will stand behind our work. eRe continues to value the close working relationships 

we have with our sponsors, government agencies such as EPA and DOE and other stakeholders such " 

as the ethanol industry. CRe looks forward to continued close cooperation together with all these 

stakeholders on future scientific studies. 

Brent Bailcy 

Executive Dic-ecior 

Coordinating Research Council 
108 

LETTER TO SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT FROM RENEWABLE FUELS ASSOCIATION

~ RE;'J\ RENEWABLE 

r'J fi I¥:~IATION 

The Honorable Andy Harris 

Chairman 

Subcommittee on Enviromnent 

February 25, 2013 

Committee on Science, Space and Technology 

U.S. House of Representatives 

The Honorable Suzanne Bonamici 

Ranking Member 

Subcommittee on Enviromnent 

Committee on Science, Space and Technology 

U.S. HouseofRepresentatives 

Dear Chairman Harris and Ranking Bonamici: 

The Renewable Fuels Association (RF A) is the national trade association representing the U.S. ethanol 

industry. The Subcommittee's hearing on the "science" ofEl5 seems inexplicably one-sided and 

devoid of an impartial discourse about science. As no representative from the ethanol industry was 

invited to testify, we wanted to be sure the Subcommittee was provided the perspective of American 

ethanol producers and marketers. 

Fundamentally, the debate about El5 should be one of consumer choice. There is no requirement that 

gasoline marketers offer El5 and no mandate for consumers to buy it. However, for those marketers 

that want to offer their customers a higher octane alternative to petroleum, El5 is a great option. As 

gasoline prices across the country continue to climb, threatening household budgets and economic 

recovery alike, ethanol continues to provide consumer savings at the pump. Today, ethanol is priced 

approximately $0.80 below the wholesale costs of gasoline. Beyond its gasoline displacement benefit, 

as ethanol now represents 10 percent of the nation's motor gasoline supply, it has greatly reduced the 

need for imports and provided a macroeconomic benefit to gasoline prices. Depending on the study 

you choose, the increased use of ethanol in 2011 saved consumers between $0.89 and $1.09. Those 

savings would only be enhanced by the use of ethanol in higher blends. I 

Unfortunately, due to the hyperbolic rhetoric and scare mongering by the major oil companies 

concerned about losing even more market share to domestically produced rcnewablcs, today there are 

L 'Hayes, Dermot J., DU: Xiaodong (May 2012) The lmpact of Ethanol Preduction on U.S. and Regional 

Gasoline Markets: An Update to 2012. Center for Agricultural and Rural Development (CARD). 

http://www.card.iastate.edulpublicationsldbslpdffilesI12wp528.pd(. 

Marzoughi, Hassan andKennedy, P. Lynn. February 20l2.The lmpact of Ethanol Production on the 

U.S. Gasoline Market. 

http://ageconsearch.umn.edulbitstream/119752/2IKennedY%20Marzoughj%20SAEA %20-% ?0201 ? .pdf 
109 

only about 12 stations across the entire country offering this fuel to consumers with 2001 and newer 

vehicles. While we want that market share to grow, the attention these 12 stations are attracting seems 

wildly disproportionate to the potential harm, particularly when viewed in the context of other fuel 

quality issues with demonstrable negative consequences for consumers and air quality. For example, 

in many mountain states today refiners are selling a sub-octane gasoline that is not covered under any 

car manufacturer's warranty. It is well understood that less than 87 octane gasoline will cause engine 

damage and undermine emissions control systems, yet refiners continue to supply cheaper gasolines 

'with 85 octane. Where is the outrage about that? When will there be a Committee hearing about 

inferior gasoline threatening our air and engines? The myopic foens of this Committee on E15, to the 

exclusion of other more significant gasoline quality issues, fuels cynicism and leads to the inescapable 

conclusion that this is about market share, not safety. 

Indeed, if one were to look only at the science, the efficacy of the U.S. Enviromnental Protection 

Agency's (EPA) decision to allow El5 to be sold would be clear. EPA's decision was based on sound 

technical data, following the most robust test program ever conducted by the Federal govermnent for a 

CAA Section 2 II (f) fuel waiver, and finalized only after a lengthy public rulemaking process in which 

the auto industry provided!lQ data demoustrating a single emissions, materials compatibility or 

driveabilityproblem associated with the use ofEl5. El5 has been the most aggressively and 

comprehensively tested fuel in the history of the EPA. The miles driven on El5 equate to 12 round 

trips to the moon and back without a single failure. 

The EPA approved El5 blends to for use in cars, pickups and SUVs built in 2001 and later, or about 

two-thirds of the vehicles on the road today. El5 is a safe fuel, as evidenced by the fact auto 

manufacturers are now providing warranty coverage for it. Today, more than 40 model year 2012 and 

2013 vehicles include El5 in the fuel recommendations section of the owner's manual. 

In their quest to derail E15, the oil industry has ignored the U.S. Department of Energy test program 

and funded a study of its own using highly questionable protocols and vehicles. I have attached a 

critique of the oil company study for the record, but the most danraing fact for this Committee to 

consider is that the study utilized an unrealistic "aggressive" fuel blend spiked with contaminants not 

found in the mruketplace and some of the vehicles selected were under recall for fuel pump failures. It 

was not a scientific test; it was a well-planned defamation of a perfectly safe fuel. How can the El5 

detractors explain, for example, that E25 has been used in Brazil for over 30 years with none of the 

catastrophic consequences they suggest? 

EPA's rulemaking approving E 15 for only certain engines did raise issues regarding the potential for 

misfueling. The RF A has been sensitive to those concerns and worked diligently with EPA and 

stakeholders to assure that El5 is only used by consumers with 2001 and newer vehicles. The RF A 

has developed the only Misfueling Mitigation Plan approved by EPA. That plan must be adopted by 

gasoline marketers before they can legally offer E15 for sale. The RF A has published and distributed 

an EIS Retailer Handbook taking marketers through all of the steps necessary to properly handle El5 

- from which underground storage tanks are approved for ElS to proper labeling language and 

placement to registration and reporting to EPA. The RFA has also helped organize a public outreach 

campaigu to inform consumers about the use ofEl5. We want El5 to be used, but we want it to be 

used safely and within the bounds of EPA's approval. 

Toward that end, the RF A has responded to concerns raised by various stakeholders, inclnding 

motorcyclists and small engines, and sought and received approval from the EPA for additional 

flexibility for retailers offering ElS, ensuring that gasoline with up to 10 percent ethanol is available at 

each station when also offering the higher octane fuel E15. The new configuration will eliminate the 

need fOT a four-gallon minimum fueling transaction when El5 is sold from the same hose as El 0, EO 
110 

or both. Advocates for motorcyclists and small engines had expressed concern that EPA's fom-gallon 

minimum requirement would make it difficult for those low volume customers to find fuel appropriate 

for their vehicles. Those concerns have now been eliminated. The configmation approved by EPA 

will recommend that retailers either sell EIS from a dedicated hose, or have at least one fueling 

position that does not have E15 available. This fueling position will be clearly identified, and other 

fueling positions will direct those seeking that option to the right place. EPA may ultimately approve 

more configmation options in the future. The U.S. ethanol industry clearly heard stakeholders' 

concerns and we moved quickly to address them. 

Overcoming the "blend wall" issue is paramount to the success of the RFS. Cellulosic and advanced 

ethanol will largely represent the renewable fuel supply beyond the EIO blend market. To leave the 

market artificially constrained further limits market opportunities for next generation biofuels very 

close to commercialization, missing an opportunity to meaningfully increase America's use of, 

renewable fuels and reduce our dependence on imported oil. The RF A is working diligently with the 

petroleum industry, gas retailers, automakers, and consumers to ensure EIS is used properly. The 

RF A looks forward to working with you to further develop and implement sound policies around the 

science ofEIS. 

Sincerely, 

Bob Dinneen 

President & CEO 
111 

‘‘GETTING IT RIGHT: ACCURATE TESTING AND ASSESSMENTS CRITICAL TO DEPLOYING

THE NEXT GENERATION OF AUTO FUELS,’’ BY PATRICK B. DAVIS
112 

Getting It Right: Accurate Testing and Assessments Critical to Deploying the Next Generation of Auto Fuels I Department of Energy 

than using an aggressive lest cycle intended to severely~stress valves, the F'1ergy Department 

program was run using a cycle more closely rese'1lbJing normal driving, The Energy Department 

testing program was run on standard gasoline, E10, E15, and E20. The Energy Department test 

gasoline. The Energy Department test program aOO showed that 10% engine leak-down is not a 

reliable indicator of vehicle performance. In the Energy Department program, there were vehicles 

found to exceed 10% !eakdown for all fuels, including vehicles running on EO and E10. There was 

no correlation between fuel type and leakdown, and high leakdown measurements did not 

correlate to degradation In engine or emissions performance. 

We believe the choice of tesl engines, test cycle, limited fUel selection, and failure criteria of the 

eRe program resulted in unreliable and incomplete data, which severely limlts the utility of the 

study 

TweetShare on email Share on print 

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Nuclear Security & 

Safety 

file:/llusers/roberrreynoids/Desktop/ getting-'lt-right-accura-:e-testjng-and-asses'SmentS-critical-deploying-next-generatlon-auro,html 

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Page 2of2 
113 

LETTER TO SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT FROM ALGAE BIOMASS ORGANIZATION

February 22, 2013 

The Honorable Andy Harris 

Chairman, Environment Subcommittee 

House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

2321 Rayburn House Office Building 

Washington, D.C. 20515 

Dear Chairman Harris and Ranking Member Bonamici: 

Mary Rosenthal 

Executive Director 

(763)458-0068 

mrosenthal@algaebiomass.org 

The Honorable Suzanne Bonamici 

Ranking Member, Environment Subcommittee 

House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 

394 Ford House Office Building 

Washington, D.C. 20515 

On behatf of the more than 250 members of the Algae Biomass Organization (ABO), thank you for your interest 

in alternative fuels. As you contemplate policies which would promote the use of domestically produced fuel, I 

appreciate the opportunity to provide you information about the work the algae industry is doing. 

For more than 30 years, research has been conducted on the potential to produce fuel from algae. It is a 

common-sense alternative to fossil fuel when one considers the source of fossil fuel: prehistoric algae. 

Technology today allows us to replicate in a matter of days the million year process of creating fuel from algae. 

Researchers and industry leaders are working every day to produce algae-based fuel at a price competitive with 

fossil fuel. In fact, in a recent industry survey 47% of industry respondents said they thought it was "extremely 

likely" or "very likely" that algae-based fuels would be cost-competitive with fossil fuels by 2020. We believe 

this fuel will be attractive to consumers and encourage you to develop federal policies which will allow 

consumers to access algae-based fuel as part of an "all ofthe above" fuel solution. 

Algae bring enormous advantages to biofuel production. Algae can be grown on lands unsuitable for other types 

of agriculture and have fuel yields between 2,000-5000 gallons per acre-many times greater than other crops. 

They can dramatically diminish the "food vs. fuel" debate that often comes with other biofuel crops. 

Algae can also be grown without impacting freshwater supplies, instead thriving in saltwater or even waste 

water from which they can remove contaminants as they grow. Algae are unique in that they can be used to 

produce a variety of fuels from ethanol to gasoline to jet fuel. Below is a brief description of the many fuels 

which can be produced from algae: 
114 

Green Gasoline. Algae can be a feedstock for a gasoline alternative, commonly referred to as 'green 

gasoline'. Like renewable aviation fuels, green gasoline is a 'drop-in' replacement, meaning it chemically 

mimics the properties of petroleum-based gasoline. As a result, green gasoline could be used at any blend 

level, in any gasoline engine. 

Ethanol. Ethanol can be produced within the cell of enhanced algae designed to excrete this valuable 

fuel. Algenol Biofuels employs more than 120 scientists and engineers in Ft. Myers, FL where they recently 

finished construction of a 36-acre integrated biorefinery that wiH begin operations this quarter and will 

ultimately produce 100,000 gallons of algae-based ethanol each year demonstrating commercial viability of the 

technology. The ability of Algenol's algae to produce ethanol directly could potentially drive the cost of this 

algae-based ethanol down significantly. It will be important to continue to support the high-blend infrastructure 

of FlexFuel/E-85 pumps to accommodate increasing volumes of ethanol derived from algae and other 

feedstocks. 

Butanol. Another alcohol fuel from biomass is butanol, and the related iso-butanol, which are attracting 

considerable attention. Butanol production from seaweeds is being pursued by several research groups, 

including one created as a joint venture of DuPont and Bio Architecture Lab, Inc., in Berkeley, California, under 

an $8.8 million Department of Energy grant. 

BiodieseL Researchers and innovators have long recognized the potential of algae to help provide commercial 

quantities of biodiesel. In fact, the primary focus of researchers in the Department of Energy's Aquatic Species 

Program in the 1980s and early 1990s was on producing biodiesel from algae. 

Renewable Aviation Fuel. Algae-based fuels are not limited to just powering cars and trucks across the country. 

A number of companies and researchers are also focusing on algae as a source for renewable aviation fuelsalso known as biojet fuel. A number of companies are working on developing biojet fuel from algae, including: 

Sapphire Energy; Heliae, Phycal, and Solazyme. Renewable aviation biofuels made from algae have already been 

successfully tested in both commercial and military aircraft, and they have been approved by the world's 

standard body for use in commercial flights. In January 2009, Continental Airlines made history with the firstever test flight of a commercial jet in the US with algae-based fuel as part of its biofuel blend. In June 2011, the 

US Navy successfully demonstrated a 50-50 blend of traditional and algae-based jet fuel in a MH-60S Sea hawk 

helicopter. In November, 2011, United Flight 1403 flew from Houston to Chicago, on a 40 percent blend of 

Solazyme's algal jet fuel, becoming the first U.S. commercial flight powered in part by algae-based biofuel. 

Other Biofuels. The above does not exhaust the potential list of biofuels that can be derived from algae. 

Hydrogen production from algae has been studied for many years and could be successful with continued 

research and development. Many other biofuels are currently being developed from bacterial and yeast 

fermentations of sugars. Microalgae could also be used to produce these in the future, avoiding the need for the 

production of sugars by traditional crops. Indeed, the production of sugars themselves by microalgae is being 

proposed, sugars that would then be used in fermentations to produce biofuels. 

All in all, the potential of algae to produce a variety of fuels is yet to be fully explored. 

The Algae Biomass Organization supports policies which promote continued progress in developing domestic 

fuel at a price which is cost-competitive with fossil fuel. ABO members support a U.S. fuel portfolio and delivery 
115 

system which fosters competition in the marketplace, driving down the cost of fuel and giving consumers the 

choices they desire. 

Sincerely, 

Mary Rosenthal 

Executive Director 

Algae Biomass Organization 

mrosenthal@algaebiomass.org 

www.algaebiomass.org 
116 

LETTER TO SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT FROM GROWTH ENERGY

~ growth energy~ Amertca's Ethanof Suppon:ers 

m North Capitol Street, NE, Suite 805. Washington, D.c' 20002 

PHONE 202.545.4000 FAX 202.545.4001 

February 25,2013 

Representative Andy Harris 

Chainnan, Subcommittee on the Environment 

House Committee on Science 

2321 Rayburn House Office Building 

Wasbington, DC 20515 

Growth£nergy.org 

Representative Suzanne Bonarnici 

Ranking Member, Subcommittee on the Environment 

House Committee on Science 

2321 Rayburn House Office Building 

Wasbington, DC 20515 

Dear Chairman Harris and Ranking Member Bonarnici: 

Growth Energy is the nation's leading association of ethanol producers and supporters. We represent 80 

American biorefineries that produce over 4 billion gallons of ethanol amiually. Overall, America's ethanol 

industry sustains $50 billion in economic activity, supporting more th.an 400,000 U.S. jobs by producing 

nearly 14 billion gallons of American-made, renewable fuel in 200 plants nationwide. 

r am writing you with concern regarding the hearing scheduled for February 26ili entitled, "Mid-Level 

Ethanol Blends: Consumer and Technical Research Needs". This hearing appears to be in line with several 

other hearings you have held over the past two years regarding mid-level ethanol blends and specifically 

E15. We are concerned that these hearings have only presented one side of the story only highlighting 

witnesses who have been some of our most vocal critics and have failed to include any representatives of the 

ethanol production industry and the 200 biorefineries across the. country. As such, we are writing to you 

today to present the facts about E15 to be included into the hearing record. 

Despite the claims of our critics, E15 is a voluntary fuel choice that provides a less expensive motor fuel to 

the consumers. It is also one of the most tested fuels in history. Before approval, the Department of Energy 

tested 86 vehicles on E15 for six million miles, without any concerns. Furthermore, NASCARjust ran over 

three million miles on E15 the past two seasons without any problems, noting only an increase in horsepower 

and performance. 

After 36 consecutive days of steady increases in gas prices, which have set records for the highest prices ever 

in the month of February, r believe that access to a safe, reliable and price competitive fuel should be a top 

priority. Now, more than ever, it is essential to ensure consumers have the ability to save a few more of their 

hard earned dollars at tlle pump, by providing a choice during these difficult economic times. 

History has shown that high gas prices forestall economic growth and your legislation prevents a cheaper, 

voluntary alternative during stagnant economic conditions, which only puts further hardship on the 

consumer and prevents much needed economic growth. 

E15 is not mandatory, rather it is a voluntary choice for both the retailer to sell and the consumer to buythere is no logical reason that the most tested fuel in history should be blocked from the commercial 

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marketplace. E15 provides the consumcr with a choice and savings, a choice that consumers should have, 

especially in this time of exorbitant gas prices. 

Increased blends ofbiofuels, such as E15 really do make a difference when it comes to consumer savings. A 

recent Louisiana State University study found that since the U.S. produced 13.8 billion gallons of ethanol in 

2011, this study indicates that U.S. drivers saved roughly 83 cents a gallon in 2011, totaling $11122 billion 

in annual savings. 

No credible evidence has been provided that shows E15 would damage 2001 and newer vehicles. In fact, the 

majority opinion coming out of the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals this past summer clearly 

pointed out that there was no data available to support any claims of engine damage, noting the data provided 

was, "hardly evidence of a substantial probability that E 15 will cause engine harm." 

Furthermore, the Environmental Protection Agency has been clear that E15 is only approved for 2001 and 

newer passenger vehicles. In fact, it wonld be ilk!:!!l for consumers to use or retailers to sell E15 to nonapproved engines such as boats, snowmobiles, chainsaws or motorcycles. 

American motorists should have the ability to choose their fuel based on price and performance, and should 

not be denied the choice of a less expensive, voluntary, higher performing fuel. 

E15 is cleaner and better for our environment, not to mention no beaches have ever been closed because of 

an ethanol spill. It helps revitalize rural economies, creating jobs and spurring investment, all while saving 

consumers at the pump and reducing our dependence on foreign oil. There will come a time when finite 

resources, like oil will be depleted. We must begin the work now to prepare for a smooth transition in future 

generations, and the adoption of greater blends of homegrown, renewable biofuels, such as E15, is a critical 

first step. Not only will this help rural America, our economy and our environment, but it also will help the 

United States develop a strategic military advantage if we are no longer beholden to energy imports from 

other nations to meet our military's energy needs. 

The bottom line is that E15 is a homegrown, American renewable fuel that creates jobs that cannot be 

outsourced, it is better for our environment and the air we breathe and E 15 will reduce our dependence on 

foreign oil and providing consumers a choice and savings at the pump. This fuel really is a win-win for 

America and no consumer should be denied the voluntary choice of a less expensive fuel when they fill up -

especially under the current climate of endless increases in the cost of gas. 

I would appreciate the opportunity to meet with you and your staff to discuss your any technical research 

needs you may have with regard to E15 and mid-level ethanol blends. Our members are some of the 

foremost experts in the world on ethanol blends and would be happy to discuss some of the years of research 

we have done in this area. Thank you for your time and consideration and I look forward to speaking with 

you further on this matter. 

Sincerely, 

Tom Buis, CEO 

Growth Energy