Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was in the hot seat Thursday when she vowed to lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee that the Biden administration does not seek to ban natural gas stoves.
“I will say that the Department of Energy is not banning any gas stoves, that we are doing our duty to make sure that appliances are more energy efficient as we are required to do under the Energy Policy Conservation Act of 1975,” Ms. Granholm testified to the congressional panel. “Nobody’s taking my gas stove, nobody will take your gas stove. But in the future, gas stoves that are high-end, which is all that we looked at, can be more efficient.”
Her testimony came in the wake of New York becoming the first state to ban the use of natural gas for cooking and heating in most new residential buildings, to combat health and climate risks.
The Energy Department, meanwhile, is proposing new efficiency rules for gas stoves that only about half of current models on the market would likely comply with.
Ms. Granholm’s remarks sought to assuage concerns among Republicans, the energy industry and the roughly 40% of U.S. households that use the cooking appliance, that the federal government will not ban their use. The Biden administration has, however, encouraged Americans to switch to electric models amid health and climate concerns over the gas-emitting devices.
“I think it’s unfortunate that we have to introduce a bill to reverse an unnecessary anti-consumer choice rule by the Department of Energy,” said Arizona Republican Rep. Debbie Lesko, who has legislation to block new regulations against gas stoves.
The Energy Department says that if enacted, its proposed efficiency rules would not go into effect until 2027 and would save consumers up to $1.7 billion in energy costs. Ms. Granholm estimated it would cost roughly $12 for new stove models to come under compliance and would only impact those on the high end of the market.
“We regulate and add efficiency standards to 60 appliances. This is one,” Ms. Granholm said. “It was required by a consent decree.”
On its website, the Energy Department further says claims that the administration is eyeing a ban “are absurd.”
• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.
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