From the Des Moines Register on Dec. 1, 2009:
The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to rule this week whether more ethanol can go into the gasoline used for everything from automobiles to boats and snowblowers. But that doesn't mean higher-proof gasoline is headed for service stations any time soon. Even if the agency agrees to allow higher levels of ethanol in gas - and that is no given - it's not clear when the higher-proof fuel would reach the market. Refiners are saying they won't put more ethanol into their gasoline unless Congress gives them protection from potential lawsuits from motorists or consumers who claim the ethanol hurt their engines.
I love that last sentence. It's such a great fuel that producers need protection from us big-bad consumers who find their product ain't all that it's cracked up to be.
Don't forget that there are recent reports stating that the "U.S. is unlikely to need all the ethanol congress ordered."
Minnesota mandates a 10% ethanol blend, probably to appease the farm lobby and other ethanol interests. Whenever I have a choice (which almost always means when I'm in another state) I always choose a no-ethanol blend when I fill up.