Appliance and Building Policies: Restoring the American Dream of Home Ownership and Consumer Choice
2025-09-16
Loading video...
Source: Congress.gov
Summary
No summary available.
Participants
Transcript
Well, good morning. I'd like to call the subcommittee on energy to order and the chair recognized himself for five minutes for an opening statement. Welcome to today's legislative hearing, Appliance and Buildings Policies Restoring the American Dream of Home Ownership and Consumer Choice. Today, we will hear from the Department of Energy and Industry Stakeholders as we consider eight bills seeking to address consumer choice, appliance and home affordability, reckless federal building policies and duplicative regulatory structures. Many policies pushed over the last several years have raised prices for all consumers, strained our nation's grid, and yield little to no benefit for Americans. That is why the subcommittee will discuss legislation that would have a massive impact on the day-to-day necessities on which American families and businesses rely. During last week's hearing, Jim Steffes of the Washington Gas said it well when discussing gas bans, the idea that we're going to push the gas back down the power line and use it in a less efficient manner than you would use it at your home is absolutely going to raise prices. Importantly, one of the bills we have on the docket, the Bipartisan Energy Choice Act, will prohibit state or local governments from adopting policies that ban access to an energy service that's based on the fuel that is sold. This includes building performance standards and codes that act as de facto gas bans. The Homeowner Energy Freedom Act will repeal the funding included in the IRA, which bribed states to adopt the 2021 IECC model code. Today, we'll hear firsthand testimony of the chilling effect that has had on home building in those states. Duplicative standards for manufactured housings have also decreased production of affordable new housing. As home ownership continues to be a top concern for millions of Americans, we must remove regulatory red tape that has restricted options for families. The anti-fossil fuel agenda does not stop with the state or local laws.
Federal policies like the required phase out of fossil fuel in federal buildings could jeopardize our national security. The Reliable Federal Infrastructure Act will repeal this inappropriate policy, and the Bipartisan Federal Mechanical Installation Act will refocus evaluations for federal buildings on the potential for implementing true energy efficiency measures like the installation of mechanical insulation. The legislation before us today is focused on restoring consumer choice, especially for America's working families. Misguided and redundant policies from the previous administration hit them the hardest because they, number one, price out first-time homeowners, two, destroy appliance affordability through steep upfront and installation costs, or three, discourage the production of affordable manufactured homes through regulatory morass. The Don't Mess With My Home Appliances Act will make much needed statutory reforms to energy efficiency and standards for appliances, which have increased costs while deteriorating in performance because of over-regulation. Lastly, the Shower Act will codify a common sense definition of a showerhead, improving water pressure for those who desire that choice. We've also included, at our Democratic colleagues' request, legislation by the gentleman from New York's 20th District on DOE's Weatherization Assistance Program. While I have concerns with the bill as introduced, we are willing to work with our friends on the Democratic side to reach a compromise. Altogether, the majority of the bills before us today represent an opportunity for this community to refocus energy efficiency policies on true energy savings, whether reflected in the cost of an appliance or the utility bills for hardworking American families. I want to thank our witness for appearing before us today. And the chair now recognizes the gentle lady from Florida's 14th district, the ranking member of the sub community for five minutes for an opening statement. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good morning, everyone. Here we are nine months into the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress have done nothing to lower energy costs. In fact, energy costs keep going up, up and up and the GOP policies are making it worse. You know, Americans deserve better. Household electricity prices are up 10% this year. One in three households is cutting back on basic necessities like groceries to afford their electric bills. Three in four Americans are concerned with their utility bills increasing. And they should be. Over 100 gas and electric utilities have either raised or proposed higher rates that will go into effect next year. And in Florida, Florida's largest utility earlier this year filed a petition for a rate increase across 43 counties to increase rates by nearly $10 billion over the next four years. And customers are already paying $400 more annually than they were five years ago. What do House Republicans do? They bring bills today that will heap higher costs on Americans, trap families with outdated and expensive technologies, undermine American manufacturers, and force us to use more energy at a time when AI data centers need all the electricity that they can get. So I want to dispel some misinformation we'll hear today. So let's be clear. Energy efficiency saves money. reduces consumer costs, and it increases household comfort, reliability, and resilience. Appliance standards have saved households more than $500 in energy bills each year. Homeowners will save $15,000 for homes built using the 2021 building code compared to the old ones.
Sign up for free to see the full transcript
Accounts help us prevent bots from abusing our site. Accounts are free and will allow you to access the full transcript.