One year after denying they were trying to ban gas stoves, the Biden administration now appears to be coming after all appliances. This week, the Department of Energy announced its definition of "zero emissions" buildings, which are "free of on-site emissions from energy use," and must be "powered solely from clean energy." That would eliminate pretty much any fossil fuel-powered item or appliance in new buildings.
This effort is part of what the administration calls its "building electrification" agenda. Rather than directly ban gas-powered items, this agenda seeks to slowly squeeze them out with regulations and replace them with more expensive and often lower quality appliances. Far beyond stoves, the Biden administration has issued regulations targeting furnaces, water heaters, pool pumps, dishwashers, and portable generators.
But critics point out that replacing all of these items with "cleaner" versions will only lead to less efficiency. "Why did your grandmother's appliances last for 30, 40, 50 years? It's because they were quality-made, made in America, and they didn't have all of these government mandates," says Daniel Turner, executive director of Power the Future, in a recent interview with Fox News. "We've developed this habit in America now that we buy these $2,000 appliances, they break, and they're disposable."
Despite the White House's denials, Turner predicts these efforts will continue as long as radical climate activists are driving the agenda. "This is pushed by the White House, by (former EPA chief and climate advisor) Gina McCarthy, who has been on the record saying we have hundreds of these regulations coming out for all appliances," he says. "No offense to Gina McCarthy, but what do you know about making household appliances? Nothing!"
"That's the problem," he continues. "We give government this power, and they lord it over us."