Rep Hinson promises GOP will block Biden admin from banning gas stoves

The Biden administration is set to finalize regulations on gas stove ownership as means of combatting climate change, which they claim will reportedly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

According to the Department of Energy (DOE) proposal, the regulations would restrict consumer choice, target manufacturing companies, and raise prices on both consumers and producers.



The DOE will require manufacturers to sell furnaces that convert 95 percent of fuel into heat by 2029, in order to achieve an annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE) of 95 percent. The current AFUE standard is 80 percent, Fox News reports.

The regulations will take non-condensing gas furnaces off the market, which is the cheaper option for residential households. American homeowners will only be allowed to have condensing furnaces once the regulations go into effect, which comes at a hefty installation cost, according to the network.

Richard Meyer, vice president of the American Gas Association (AGA), weighed in on the proposal, explaining that it is a significant "cause of concern."
 

"There are some really technical reasons why this is such a concerning rule," Richard Meyer told Fox News. "It has to do with the ability for consumers to be in compliance with this new efficiency standard." 

"They're going to have to, in many cases, install new equipment to exhaust gas out of their home. These higher efficiency units, or so-called condensing units — a lot of consumers have them in their home, but a lot of consumers don't. So, this rule would require additional retrofits for a lot of consumers. And those retrofits can be extremely cost prohibitive," Meyer explained.

The Biden Department of Energy's proposal would target 40 to 60 percent of gas stoves that are currently on the market. Meyer slammed the regulations and claimed that consumers are better of with a free market economy.

"What we're seeing across the U.S. federal government and reflected, of course, in many states right now is an active policy push intended to address climate change," said Meyer. "But the outcome is to restrict the options and availability of the direct use of natural gas for consumers."

"AGA's primary concern is, one, removing that option, that choice, from consumers," he continued. "Two, in many cases, natural gas remains the lowest cost and even lowest-emissions resource for many consumers. A lot of the policies we're seeing that are designed to restrict natural gas may end up having a counterproductive result and could increase costs to consumers and could increase the emissions associated with the energy use by those consumers."

The DOE claims the proposed efficiency standards will save the average American family $100 per year. The department said the regulations will reduce carbon emissions by 373 million metric tons and methane emissions by 5.1 million tons, Fox News reports.

Congressional Republicans called out the Biden administration's attack on free-market enterprise, which they say is a burden to American families in a crippled Biden economy.

"Nearly 40% of American households rely on natural gas for safe and affordable cooking appliances. We need to be making life easier for hardworking families, not burdening them with an out-of-touch regulatory agenda," Rep. Juan Ciscomani said.

Republican representative Ashley Hinson announced that the House GOP will move to block the "absurd effort" from the DOE.

"The Biden Administration wants to ban your gas stove – they’re obsessed with controlling every aspect of your life. This week, @HouseGOP will vote to block this absurd effort," Hinson said.

Cities that have already put in place some kind of restriction on gas stoves, ovens or furnaces, include New York, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego, collectively affecting more than 10 million Americans.