Foxx Opening Remarks on H.R. 4626 and H.R. 4758
As prepared for delivery:
Good afternoon, the Committee will come to order. Without objection, the Chair is authorized to declare a recess at any time.
Today, the Rules Committee is convening to consider two measures: H.R. 4626 and H.R. 4758.
H.R. 4626, the Home Appliance Protection and Affordability Act, would enact a series of targeted reforms to the Energy Policy Conservation Act.
These reforms would dispense with unnecessary, duplicative rulemaking requirements related to the energy efficiency standards of household appliances that millions of American families rely on every day.
Americans deserve the freedom to choose the household appliances that suit their own individual needs and not bear the brunt of regulations that infringe upon their choices and lead them to fork out more of their hard-earned money.
It's quite peculiar how our colleagues across the aisle have this insatiable itch to regulate everything under the sun, and all the while they never think of the people who will be affected by their doing so. Quite peculiar indeed.
H.R. 4758, the Homeowner Energy Freedom Act, would strike three provisions within the so-called “Inflation Reduction Act” that amount to over $5.7 billion in costs that are shouldered by hardworking Americans and their families.
The IRA proved to be an outright scam – far from delivering on reductions in inflation, this byzantine conglomeration of unbridled spending fueled unprecedented surges in prices paid by working Americans.
These specific provisions from the IRA were concocted to electrify the entirety of our homes – ironic given the fact that electricity prices surged under President Biden by more than 25%.
It’s even more ironic when you consider the fact that the IRA helped spark this unprecedented inflation.
Americans deserve to exercise choice in the appliances that they purchase – the last thing they want is the federal government wagging a finger in their faces and telling them that their decision-making comes with an extra price tacked on.
It's not that hard to understand.
If our colleagues across the aisle want to join us in protecting consumer choice and undoing the damage that their wrongheaded policies have created, we will welcome them with open arms.
Instead, I’m sure they will try to describe these bills as just another waste of time.
I couldn’t disagree more.
I don’t disagree with my Democrat colleagues that regulation has its place, but it’s clear that the lives of everyday Americans are overregulated and overburdened by the Federal government.
Regulations have a cost – that’s clear. In the last year of the Biden-Harris administration, they finalized more than $1.6 trillion in net regulatory costs.
And who pays for the cost of these regulations? The American people.
Contrast that to the first year of the Trump administration, where regulators finalized a decrease of almost $130 billion in regulatory costs.
If we really want to talk about affordability, let’s talk about how we can reduce the crushing burden of government regulations on every aspect of the American people.
Let’s not force manufacturers to make new energy efficient appliances which cost more and last less. If people want energy efficient appliances, let them signal that to the marketplace.
But don’t go down the road the Democrats always want to – by imposing costly mandates and actually reducing consumer choice, all in their quest for quote energy efficiency.
With that, I now yield to the Ranking Member, Mr. McGovern, for any comments that he wishes to make.
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