On Thursday, 11 Democrats in the House of Representatives sided with all Republicans to vote in favor of a resolution that would repeal a regulation from the Biden Administration banning gas-powered water heaters.
As Fox News reports, the rule in question was announced by Biden’s Department of Energy (DOE) in the last days of his term, intending to ban the manufacture and sale of non-condensing, gas-powered water heaters by the year 2029. It was set to be enacted in March of 2025.
“The Democrats want control,” said Congressman Gary Palmer (R-Ala.), who introduced the resolution. “Their cold rhetoric leads to cold homes and cold water.”
In addition to eliminating a convenient source of heated water for all Americans, industry experts warned that the ban could destroy hundreds of jobs.
“The scary thing is most Americans don’t understand what’s going on with these, I would describe, radical energy decisions that people are making that are going to have far-reaching impacts on consumers,” said Frank Windsor, the owner of Rinnai America Corporation, a tankless water heating manufacturing facility.
Since President Donald Trump returned to office in January, Republicans have targeted many of Biden’s last-minute regulations, particularly those focusing on the environment and so-called “green energy.” On Wednesday, another resolution was passed overturning the Biden Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Methane Emissions and Waste Reduction Incentive Program.
By contrast, Democrats’ attempts to counter these efforts by Republicans have failed. On Wednesday, Senate Democrats attempted to pass a resolution that would condemn President Trump’s executive order declaring an “energy emergency,” only for the legislation to fail due to the Republican majority.
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