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EXCLUSIVE: A new Congressional resolution introduced by Republicans could block President Biden’s recent ban on natural gas water heaters, Fox News Digital has learned.
In the waning days of the Biden administration, the Department of Energy announced new rules banning non-condensing natural gas-fired water heaters by 2029 in an effort to reduce carbon emissions. But Congressional Republicans are seeking intervention.
On Wednesday, Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Alabama) first announced that he had introduced the Congressional Review Act (CRA), which would allow Congress to override rules enacted by federal agencies to circumvent government consumer electronics crackdowns. FOX News Digital reported.
“This is a big ban on water heaters. It’s another example of government overreach under the Biden administration. The government doesn’t care about the consumer,” Palmer said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital. He spoke at
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Congressman Gary Palmer (R-Ala.) leaves a meeting of the House Republican Conference at the Capitol Hill Club on Tuesday, January 30, 2024. (Tom Williams)
Supporters of the Biden regulation, including the Home Appliance Standards Awareness Project, suggest it would eliminate 32 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions from water heaters sold over 30 years.
But Palmer said it would have a severe financial impact on working Americans, given the amount households would have to pay out of pocket to buy a new compliant water heater.
The Alabama lawmaker expressed confidence that the CRA will pass the House, as several other Republicans have signed on as sponsors.
Rep. Eric Burleson (R-Missouri), one of the CRA’s co-sponsors, told Fox News that “a last-ditch effort to ban gas water heaters in the final days of Joe Biden’s term… , is nothing but another green energy scam.”
President Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on January 10 (AP/Ben Curtis)
“This attack on American consumers isn’t about saving the planet. It’s about controlling, increasing costs, and putting unsustainable and radical policies into households,” Burleson said in a statement shared with Fox News Digital. It’s about imposing,” he said. “Now is the time to stand up to this tyrannical regulation and protect the freedoms and choices of the American people.”
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Other Republican co-sponsors include Reps. Julia Letlow of Louisiana, Mike Collins of Georgia, Randy Webber of Texas, Stephanie Bice of Oklahoma, Barry Moore of Alabama, and Tennessee. They include state Rep. Andy Ogles, Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York, Rep. Russ Fulcher of Idaho, and Rep. Jack. Bergman of Michigan, Dan Crenshaw of Texas, Michel Fischbach of Minnesota, Jeff Hurd of Colorado and Jim Baird of Indiana.
The National Propane Gas Association also supports repealing the ban, telling Fox News it “could eliminate the non-condensing gas instantaneous water heater market.”
Technicians Angel Gomez (left) and Frannes Mendez (Bastian Inzauralde) from heating, cooling and plumbing company John G. Webster remove a gas water heater from a home in Washington, DC, on August 28, 2024.
“This rule forces families to replace existing equipment with unnecessary and expensive modifications, resulting in marginal levels of energy savings,” said Steve Kaminsky, president and CEO of the National Propane Gas Association. “It imposes an unwarranted economic burden on questionable economic benefits,” he told Fox News Digital. .
During his term, Biden introduced regulations for several home appliances, including washing machines, gas stoves and ceiling fans.
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But the Republican-controlled Congress will be “very aggressive” in rolling back some of the regulations that evolved from Biden’s climate policies, Palmer said.
Aubrey Spady is a writer for Fox News Digital.
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