WASHINGTON—Heritage Action, a grassroots organization with more than two million conservative activists nationwide, today released the following statement from Executive Vice President Ryan Walker, slamming the Biden-Harris administration for finalizing a regulatory crackdown on gas stoves and other home appliances after discrediting warnings about the rule:
“After insisting they had no plans to ban gas stoves, the Biden-Harris administration just plowed ahead with its new rule that may price the hugely-popular appliances out of existence. In another draconian move to pacify climate extremists, the Department of Energy is villainizing natural gas—a clean and affordable source of energy for families across the country.
“Joe Biden and Kamala Harris do not care that this rule could impact 40% of Americans and cost users tens of millions of dollars a year. The Left only cares about virtue signaling and pandering to their extreme base, not the hardworking Americans trying to make ends meet and put food on the table. The next conservative administration can and should reverse the Biden-Harris appliance crackdown.”
The Department of Energy’s (DOE) rule, which was first announced in January of this year, has faced significant backlash for months. Almost 70% of Americans, from across the political spectrum, oppose the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to crack down on gas stove usage. The administration labeled news of its anti-gas activism as “misinformation.” But, in 2023, the Biden-Harris administration submitted an amicus brief urging a federal court to reinstate a California ban on new gas hookups in homes.
The DOE’s “direct final rule” could have been withdrawn in response to opposition from several state attorneys general and a cross-section of Americans, but the administration cemented the plans this week. Thousands of Americans joined Heritage Action’s efforts to stop the rule by submitting comments in opposition. The regulation forces manufacturers to meet new “efficiency standards” recommended to the Biden-Harris administration by outside interest groups. It will apply to electric cooktops, gas cooktops, stand-alone electric cooktops, stand-alone gas cooktops, and ovens.
Vice President Kamala Harris, now the Democratic nominee for president, is a vocal supporter and was an early cosponsor of the Green New Deal, a drastic proposal that calls for taxpayers to spend $5 trillion to eliminate coal, nuclear and natural gas in exchange for more expensive, less reliable forms of energy. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, the soon-to-be Democratic nominee for vice president, has joined Harris in support of the Green New Deal and other extreme proposals, like banning fracking.
BACKGROUND:
According to research from The Heritage Foundation, the administration’s original efficiency proposal—which was only abandoned due to broad public discontent—would cost Americans more than $32 million annually in increased costs.
Lower-income Americans already spend a greater portion of their after-tax incomes on basic necessities, and at a time when inflation remains consistently high across virtually all sectors of the economy, the last thing these families need are higher prices and more limited choices in terms of home appliances.
The Heritage Foundation: Energy Department’s Costly Bid to Regulate Gas Stoves Out of Existence Inflames Consumers