McCollum Vote on H.R. 7700, Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act, and H.R. 7637, Refrigerator Freedom Act

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 7700, the Stop Unaffordable Dishwasher Standards Act, and H.R. 7637, the Refrigerator Freedom Act. These bills are the latest Republican attempt to manufacture a crisis and reject commonsense rulemaking from the Biden administration.

This bill would tie the hands of the Department of Energy (DOE) as they finalize and enforce efficiency standards for common household appliances. Contrary to the fearmongering of the Republican House majority, the Biden Administration did not create these rules to take away your home appliances. Congress mandates that DOE sets efficiency standards for appliances. The proposed rules would update twelve years old energy efficiency standard. The new standards were part of a consensus recommendation made by appliance manufacturers and efficiency advocates. H.R. 7700 and H.R. 7637 would prohibit DOE from finalizing these new standards.

Mr. Speaker, why would we want less efficient appliances? Americans want home appliances that are going to save them money on their energy bills. I learned this lesson well when I worked at Sears selling home appliances. The customers who I helped buy a new appliance would not have wanted to buy a dishwasher or refrigerator that was less energy efficient than the one they had at home. That is why I support the commonsense energy efficiency standards set by the Biden administration. The administration’s past and planned energy efficiency actions are estimated to save Americans $1 trillion and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 2.5 billion metric tons over the next thirty years. 

This week, rather than attempting to meet the needs of hardworking Americans, Republicans brought forward these two bills, which duplicate provisions from H.R. 6192, another unnecessary bill, which already passed the House. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 7700 and H.R. 7637 should be rejected. I urge my colleagues to oppose the bills, and I yield back.