Providing for Congressional Disapproval of the Rule Submitted By the Department of Energy Relating to ``Energy Conservation Program for Appliance Standards: Certification Requirements, Labeling Requirements, and Enforcement Provisions for Certain Consumer Products and Commercial Equipment''

Floor Speech

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Mr. GUTHRIE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, in the subcommittee this morning, it was brought to my attention that our colleague Sylvester Turner had passed away. He was new here, so I didn't really know him that well. Actually, the first time was either Monday or--the days run together. It would have been yesterday during votes, right before we adjourned to get ready for the special session, he was sitting right there on the aisle on the corner, and I shook his hand and talked to him for the first time.

Today, in Energy and Commerce, there were two Members, our colleagues from Texas, Mr. Weber and Mr. Goldman, who served with him in the Texas Legislature. If you listened to what they said about Sylvester Turner, only knowing him for a day or so, I missed a lot. He seemed to be a wonderful man, a wonderful person, and my thoughts and prayers and the thoughts of the Energy and Commerce Committee, and I know the whole House, are with his family. He is going to be missed.

I will get down to the business in front of us. I know that has moved all of us--that is why I wanted to bring it up--to lose such a great colleague.

I rise today in support of H.J. Res. 42 to repeal the Biden administration's burdensome and unnecessary certification, labeling, and enforcement provisions for 20 different products that American families and businesses rely on day in and day out.

Over the last 4 years, the Biden Department of Energy proposed and finalized new and amended standards for 30 appliance classes, regulating virtually every appliance in our houses and much of the equipment in businesses. All of these regulations led to over $60 billion in added costs.

Implementing these certification, labeling, and enforcement provisions will further solidify the disastrous standards promulgated under the last administration.

This rule alone will increase costs annually by $213,000 while doing nothing to improve appliance efficiency, extend product lifetimes, or lower costs.

While consumers struggle to keep up with the ever-increasing cost of appliances and dwindling product optionality, the Biden administration consistently hampered innovation by imposing unnecessary and duplicative regulation on manufacturers.

Fortunately, H.J. Res. 42 will roll back this red tape and enable Congress and the Trump administration to safeguard consumer choice and lower costs for American households.

I thank the gentleman from the Ninth District of Georgia (Mr. Clyde), my good friend, for leading this legislation. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.J. Res. 42.

We will miss our good friend from Texas, as I said, who I really got to know in the last 24 hours. I missed a lot by not knowing him longer.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this resolution.

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