Is Minnesota's Ethanol Push Good Policy or Just Politics? : NPR

Day to Day, June 2, 2005 · Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty plans to boost ethanol use by mandating that all gasoline sold in the state must contain 20 percent of the corn-based ethanol by 2013. Corn farmers love the plan, as do most environmentalists -- but critics wonder if it's good policy or just good politics.

Sept '05: Pawlenty pumps ethanol

St. Paul, Minn. — Minnesota was the first state to require that all gasoline sold in the state contain 10-percent ethanol. Montana and Hawaii have passed similar laws, although they haven't gone into effect yet.
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Pawlenty says ethanol has the added benefit of creating jobs in rural America. He says only people on the far margins of the political spectrum oppose ethanol.

State drive to 20% ethanol may stall - TwinCities.com

Gov. Tim Pawlenty's dream of raising Minnesota's ethanol mandate to 20 percent from 10 percent has hit an unexpected pothole.

Turns out, most gas pumps in Minnesota aren't certified to handle more than a 10 percent ethanol blend. Without that certification, it's virtually impossible for the state to increase Minnesota's ethanol mandate, which became law in 2005.

The ethanol industry received the news last month, when Underwriter Laboratories — the standards setter for industry — said that most service-station pumps aren't certified to dispense fuel levels above E-10, or a 10 percent ethanol blend. That's lower than ethanol boosters expected, and they've lashed out at "anti-ethanol bias" in the process.