During debate on the House floor, Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-KY) tore into a Biden Department of Energy efficiency standard for commercial refrigerators and freezers.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I issue unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks on the legislation and to insert extraneous material on H.J. Res. 75.
00:14Without objection.
00:15Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
00:18The gentleman is recognized.
00:20Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As President Trump took office in January, the Biden-Harris Department of Energy finalized amended energy efficiency standards for commercial refrigeration equipment.
00:32H.J. Res. 75, introduced by Representative Goldman of Texas, a new member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, repeals this final rule.
00:40New standards for this equipment, which includes a variety of products, became effective just three years ago.
00:46Yet the Biden administration moved ahead with implementing burdensome new standards.
00:51In fact, these standards will require energy reductions up to 60 percent, on top of the previous standards, pushing the price of this equipment higher than ever before.
01:01The Department of Energy itself estimates the final rule will cost $8 billion.
01:07However, a substantially underestimated compliance cost throughout the rulemaking process.
01:12The Department of Energy, despite feedback from stakeholders, did not account for the significant ongoing capital investment manufacturers must make to shift to new refrigerants.
01:23When amending energy efficiency standards, the Department of Energy must prove that new or amended standards are economically justified, as well as technologically feasible, and they result in significant energy savings.
01:36Not only is it unclear if compliance with the DOE's final rule is technically feasible, but it's certainly clear that the rule is not cost-effective.
01:45For example, one popular refrigerator design covered by this rule, vertically closed transparent commercial refrigerators,
01:53is estimated by the Department of Energy to have a payback period of almost 94 years under the amended standards.
02:03For retailers, many of which are small or family-owned businesses, it makes no sense to purchase equipment that will take nearly 100 years to recoup the costs on investment, especially on the average lifetime of this product is 14 years.
02:18This will result in less efficient equipment being used beyond its recommended lifetime, or a significant capital expenditure which will have to be passed down to American families in the form of higher prices.
02:30This is a lose-lose situation for small business owners and clearly violates the letter of the law.
02:37We must pass H.J. Res. 75 to repeal this midnight rule and provide certainty to American manufacturers and small retailers.
02:44I thank the gentleman from Texas for his leadership on this issue.
02:48I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.J. Res. 75.
02:53I reserve the balance of my time.