(LibertySons.org) – In December 2023, the US Department of Energy (DOE) announced a pair of new energy-efficiency initiatives to cut energy waste and pollution and save Americans billions annually on utilities. The move involved incorporating standards for residential refrigerators and freezers along with commercial fans and blowers. In April, the DOE adopted new energy-efficiency standards for dishwashers and other appliances. Recently, members of Congress voted to repeal those advancements.
On July 9, the House of Representatives passed two bills — the Refrigerator Freedom Act (HR 7637) and the Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act (HR 7700). The first bill passed with a 212 to 192 vote, mostly comprised of Republican legislators. However, seven Democrats joined the GOP to pass the measure. Similarly, seven Democrats joined their Republican colleagues to pass the second act, which sailed through with a 214 to 192 vote.
HR 7637 was sponsored by Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA), who released a statement after the House passed the measure. She claimed that the DOE standards adopted weren’t “cost-effective or technologically feasible.” The lawmaker accused the Biden administration of implementing “overreaching extreme regulations” that would increase the price of energy for Americans and limit their consumer choices. Miller-Meeks was happy that the majority of her colleagues agreed to pass her bill.
The same day, HR 7700’s sponsor, Representative Nicholas Langworthy (R-NY), released a statement congratulating Congress on passing the legislation. He said the act was meant to stop the administration’s “excessive regulatory overreach on household dishwashers,” claiming the energy-saving initiatives only drove up the price for US consumers. He accused the DOE of enacting standards that “serve a radical environmental agenda” that places a “burden [on] hardworking families.”
When speaking about the dishwasher measure on the House floor, Representative Katie Porter (D-CA) called the bill “ridiculous,” and the initiative showed “Congress at its worst.” The bills will now head to the Senate.
~Here’s to Our Liberty!
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