Proponents of allowing E15 to be sold year-round argue that it’s the free-market thing to do. They’re partially right — in a true market-based system, government regulations preventing E15, or even E100, from being sold year-round should not exist. 

But the Texas-sized problem is that, since the Renewable Fuel Standard was established in 2005, federal regulation governing the fuel market looks more like a command economy flush with mandates than a free-market economy that lets demand drive supply. U.S. refineries are required to blend a set volume of biofuels each year, and if refiners cannot meet that mandate, they must make up the difference by purchasing punitive and costly Renewable Identification Numbers generated by producers of biofuels.