Repeal of mandatory labeling for ethanol-blended gasoline advances

Fueling stations would no longer be required to label pumps that provide gasoline blended with ethanol under a bill advanced from general file March 22.

LB698, introduced by Imperial Sen. Mark Christensen, would eliminate state law requiring dispensers of alcohol-blended fuel to affix labels to gas pumps containing ethanol or methanol equaling or exceeding 1 percent of the fuel’s volume.

Christensen said 14 other states that removed labeling requirements for fuels blended with ethanol saw their ethanol sales increase — some by 20 percent. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ruled that gasoline with a 10 percent ethanol blend is approved for use in any vehicle burning gasoline, he said, which is evidence that the labeling requirement is no longer necessary.

Ethanol labeling also is inconsistent, Christensen said, citing the 300 chemicals that are used in modern gasoline. Of those chemicals, ethanol is the only one that requires labeling, he said.

Christensen added that consumers could refer to octane ratings and price differentials to identify gasoline with ethanol.

Omaha Sen. Gwen Howard spoke in opposition to the bill, saying the average person does not study octane ratings in order to determine if gasoline includes ethanol. Gasoline with ethanol can cost more or less than regular gasoline, depending on state incentives, she said, so pricing also is an unreliable indicator.

“Without this labeling, I think we are going to be guessing,” Howard said.

An Agriculture Committee amendment, adopted 32-11, retained the labeling requirement but increased the threshold from 1 percent to 11 percent.

Committee chairman Sen. Tom Carlson of Holdrege said the amendment would harmonize the bill with the EPA’s recent waiver to allow fuel and fuel additive manufacturers to sell gasoline containing an ethanol blend of 10 to 15 percent.

Approximately 75 percent of gasoline sold in Nebraska is blended with ethanol, Carlson said, adding that the ethanol industry believes LB698 could help increase its market share.

Wilber Sen. Russ Karpisek, who cast one of the two dissenting votes against LB698 in committee, said labeling helps both those who seek gasoline with ethanol and those who avoid it. The practical effect of the bill as amended is that only E85 will be labeled as containing ethanol, he said. While a majority of drivers already opt for gasoline blended with ethanol, he said, the remaining motorists should not be “duped” into buying it.

“When you go to buy something, you want to know what is in it,” Karpisek said. “This feels like tricking someone into buying [ethanol].”

Schuyler Sen. Chris Langemeier offered an amendment to reverse the labeling requirement so a pump with less than one percent alcohol would be required to display a label indicating that no ethanol or methanol is included. He withdrew the amendment and refiled it for select file debate.

Lawmakers voted 25-12 to advance LB698 from general file.