House Republicans passed the 2024 Water & Energy Spending Bill by a 210-199 vote, the first government funding bill to make it through under the new Speaker.
Before the bill’s final passage, U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer added an amendment that would stop a new regulation for air conditioners put forward by the Biden administration.
Once again, Biden bureaucrats are wanting to control every aspect of your life.
Their latest rule aims to limit what air conditioning units Americans can purchase. Luckily, my amendment to the 2024 Energy & Water Spending Bill would stop this regulation. pic.twitter.com/GK5InloZPM
— Gary Palmer (@USRepGaryPalmer) October 26, 2023
The Room AC amendment was passed by voice vote Thursday.
Palmer (R-Hoover) spoke on the House Floor about Biden’s attempt to overregulate the American economy.
“Federal bureaucrats at the Department of Energy are once again attacking Americans’ freedoms to choose their appliances that they want in their homes,” Palmer said. “They tried to take 50% of the gas stoves off the market, now they’re coming for your room air conditioners.”
This year, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced energy efficiency regulations for home air-conditioning units and window-air conditioning units.
“This rule fits a pattern of Democrat energy policies making life more difficult and more expensive, especially for low income and middle income Americans who will struggle to afford the upfront costs of more expensive air conditioning units,” Palmer said. “This amendment shows the clear difference in the vision between House Republicans, the Biden administration, and House Democrats.”
The congressman said this will negatively impact a lot of people in his state.
“Summers in Alabama … are hot,” he said. “My constituents, like millions of Americans, use air conditioners to fight this heat. For people who are so concerned about global warming, you’d think they’d want to make air conditioners less expensive not more.”
Palmer said this isn’t just about the economy, but his constituents’ freedom to choose what’s best for their homes.
“House Republicans believe in American energy abundance and the administration believes in energy restrictions,” he said. “We believe in consumer choice and the administration believes in heavy-handed government mandates. We believe consumers back home can make their own decisions, while the administration believes that federal bureaucrats, Biden bureaucrats, can decide what American can and can’t do on a daily basis.
“If a consumer wants a more energy efficient run air conditioning unit, they have the freedom to choose one based on what they think is best, not what the Biden bureaucrats think is best.”
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
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