Grassley Continues Push to Lower Consumer Costs: Renews Calls for Permanent E15, Temporary Diesel Export Ban

Floor Remarks by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa Senate President Pro Tempore “Corn Farmers are in Every State” Tuesday, September 22, 2026 VIDEO My colleagues know that I come to the floor quite often to talk about the issue of ethanol and how the benefits of E15 [are] for the state of Iowa, but also for the whole country. So, I would remind my colleagues that year-round E15 does, in fact, benefit people across the country, even though Iowans probably talk about it more than any other state in the nation. It benefits not only the consumers who can see, at least sometimes, 40 cents per gallon in savings at the gas pump, but I want to also remind you that farmers in every state benefit. Because you see, the only grain in the United States that grows in all 50 states is corn. Corn produces ethanol and is the key to America’s [home]grown fuel with E15. America is the largest producer of corn in the world. While my home state of Iowa grows the most corn, farmers across the Midwest and this country benefit from permanent, year-round E15. Economists have estimated that it would put $14 billion more in the economy through [the] increased price of corn. In addition, then, passing year-round E15 helps every state by adding $25.8 billion to the [national] Gross Domestic Product. It’s good for consumers’ pocketbooks, for our environment, for our rural communities and for national security. Now, I’m going to turn to something that I’m asking President Trump to do because he has done similar things for chips from China, or President Nixon, 55 years ago, did it for the consumers of America, when he put embargoes on soybeans. So, another key way to help farmers is lowering diesel prices. So, along the lines of embargoes I just talked about, I encourage President Trump to put a temporary embargo on diesel exports through executive action. It will help family farmers who feed and fuel the world. Now, I’ve recently been reading some commentary, probably from “big oil,” where it’s very difficult, because there’s different kinds of diesel, that it might be difficult to separate it from exports and things of that nature. So, another way “big oil” could handle this would be just sell[ing] diesel in the United States at a cheaper price then [they] sell it overseas. Now, I’m going to continue pushing to give farmers and consumers across this country the stability they deserve by making year-round E15 permanent and finding ways to lower diesel prices. -30-