Ethanol limits in motorcycle fuel

The motorcycle accident lawyers at Kass & Moses recently spoke to a group of 12 riders at a Kenosha ABATE of Wisconsin Chapter meeting. The topic of the meeting was one that we’ve mentioned in prior newsletters and blog posts – motorcycle insurance.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with ABATE, it is an organization with chapters in every state whose sole purpose is to push forward the motorcyclist legislative agenda. Wisconsin ABATE is particularly legislatively active. On the ABATE of Wisconsin website there’s a photograph of the hundreds of people who attended Lobby Day 2013 at the state capital.

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So when the head of the Kenosha chapter, Angie M. spoke to the group about the motorcycle agenda ABATE was pressing we paid attention. One issue which caught our eye that we rarely deal with, but thought was important enough to share with our clientele, involved the Environmental Protection Agency’s efforts to push for fuel with up to 15% Ethanol.

What does this mean? In short, until recently, EPA standards authorized gasoline with up to 10% Ethanol in it. The EPA modified its regulations to increase the allowed Ethanol levels to 15%, E15. Why is this relevant to bikers? Because motorcycle engines are not built to handle E15 and introduction of this higher level of Ethanol could be harmful to most bikes on the road and may void a motorcycle’s engine warranty.

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There has been movement on this issue in just the past 3 weeks in Washington, D.C. Earlier this year Representative Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin’s 5^th District along with several co-sponsors introduced a bill to halt the introduction of 15% ethanol until the subject is studied in greater detail. The bill named H.R. 875 was submitted to a subcommittee in March, 2013. On April 11, 2013, the bill was “Ordered to be Reported” to the house – meaning, the chairman of the committee was ordered to report the full bill to the House of Representatives for consideration. If you are interested, you can track progress of the bill here.

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In short, this is a major issue for motorcyclists – one that you might want to stay apprised of. If you have any questions about this issue or any other issues facing motorcyclists, contact the motorcycle accident lawyers at Kass & Moses for a free consultation.