House Passes Miller-Meeks’ Refrigerator Freedom Act

WASHINGTON DC – Today, the U.S. House passed H.R. 7637, the “Refrigerator Freedom Act.” This legislation was introduced by U.S. Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, M.D. (IA-01) and prohibits the Department of Energy (DOE) from prescribing or enforcing energy efficiency standards for refrigerators that are not cost effective or technologically feasible, or that fail to save a significant amount of energy.

“The Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency under the Biden-Harris Administration have done nothing but implement overreaching extreme regulations that only serve to limit consumer choice, increase energy prices, and control everything Americans are able to do on a day-to-day basis while not meaningfully reducing emissions,” said Miller-Meeks. “I’m pleased that my bill passed the House, and I will continue to ensure American consumers have freedom to choose what type of appliances they want in their own home.”

Read the full text of the bill here.  

Background:

• On January 17th, the Biden Administration issued a direct final rule to regulate refrigerators and freezers.
• These regulations only serve to increase prices for these essential home appliances, reduce consumer choices, and impair their performance, while claiming to fix a problem that does not exist.
• DOE argues that new efficiency mandates will eventually save consumers money, but how many years do they have to wait? According to DOE’s technical support documents, the simple payback period for refrigerator freezers could be 10 years.