Manchin Hits Biden Administration on Gas Stove Ban

Press Release

Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, led two bipartisan efforts to prevent the Biden Administration from banning gas stoves in households across West Virginia and America. In January, Senator Manchin released a statement in opposition to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC's) consideration of a gas stove ban.

Senators Manchin and Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced the bipartisan Gas Stove Protection and Freedom Act, which would block the CPSC from banning gas stoves. The legislation would also prevent CPSC from using federal funds to impose regulations that would substantially increase their costs and make them unaffordable for millions of American families.

"The federal government has no business telling American families how to cook their dinner, which is why Senator Cruz and I introduced bipartisan legislation to ensure Americans decide how to cook in their own homes. I can tell you the last thing that would ever leave our house is the gas stove we cook on, and I will continue to fight any overreach by the Consumer Product Safety Commission," said Senator Joe Manchin, Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

"Make no mistake, radical environmentalists want to stop Americans from using natural gas. The Consumer Product Safety Commission's proposed ban on gas stoves is the latest egregious scaremongering by the Far Left and their Biden administration allies. I am pleased to partner with Senator Manchin in this bipartisan effort to stop the federal government from issuing regulations that put the interests of the Green New Deal before the well-being of American families," said Senator Cruz.

Senators Manchin and James Lankford (R-OK) also urged CPSC Chairman Alexander Hoehn-Saric to refrain from advancing any partial or total ban on gas stoves. The Senators expressed their concerns over CPSC's recent rhetoric and steps towards advancing a ban, and also refuted claims that gas stoves pose significant negative risks to consumer health, physical safety and environmental protections.

"Simply put, it is not the responsibility of the federal government to decide what kind of stove Americans can have in their kitchens…We have heard from many of our constituents who are now suddenly, and rightfully, concerned about the future of gas stoves," the Senators said in part. "If the Commission is concerned about the physical safety of consumers, the National Fire Protetcion Association has already proven that gas stoves pose a lower risk of cooking fires, death and associated losses than other ranges."

Gas stoves are used in approximately 35% of American households and in nearly 70% of households in some states. Gas stoves have been used for more than a century and have been proven to be safe and efficient appliances.

"If the concern is about consumer health, neither the Commission nor the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has cited gas stoves as a significant contributor to adverse air quality or as a health hazard," the Senators continued. "If the concern is about environmental health, the American Gas Association notes that residential natural gas accounts for only 4% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore…increased natural gas use has contributed to significant carbon emission reductions in the United States over the past 15 years."

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