Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2016
Floor Speech
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, the Department of Energy has proposed new rulemaking that will eliminate the use of noncondensing natural gas home furnaces.
On average, condensing furnaces cost $350 more than noncondensing furnaces and require as much as $2,200 in additional installation costs. The DOE itself has estimated that it will cost the American consumer up to $12 billion to install condensing furnaces nationwide. The upfront costs of installing a natural gas condensing furnace may force families to switch to alternative furnaces which are cheaper to install but that cost more to operate. Home furnaces fail and need to be replaced when people are most likely to use them--in the middle of the winter when it is cold outside. Families shouldn't have to face increased costs to replace their natural gas furnaces to get the heat flowing back into their homes.
Furthermore, the proposed rule creates a nationwide standard that fails to take into account the different climate zones throughout the country. The Department of Energy has proposed a one-size-fits-all approach that unfairly punishes Americans living in warmer climate zones such as the Southeast. This means that the payback period for the installation of condensing furnaces in the warmer climate zones will be much longer than in the colder zones.
My amendment to this appropriations bill will prevent the Department of Energy from using funds to finalize, promulgate, or enforce the proposed rule.
My amendment has been supported by the American Gas Association, the American Public Gas Association, the Home Builders Association, the Indoor Environment and Energy Efficiency Coalition, the Air Condition, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, and the heating and air-condition and refrigerating distributors.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, I am so pleased that my friend and colleague mentioned cost because I want to point out, again, what it would cost. These furnaces cost $350 more and require as much as $2,200 additional in installation cost.
In addition to that, there are alterations that are needed to existing homes for venting purposes. Those cost estimates are $2,550 per home just for the venting that is necessary for these.
This is one of those regulations, Mr. Chairman, that is too expensive to afford. The cost on this is astronomical. Even DOE itself says the cost to the American consumer is $12 billion to install these furnaces.
Then you say that, maybe over the lifetime of this, you are going to save an amount. I think that this is one of those areas where you look at how much it is going to cost.
This is why this amendment is so widely supported. I encourage support for the Blackburn amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, this is an amendment that I bring every year. I told Chairman Simpson that I knew he was delighted to see me back on the floor again this year with the amendment for the 1 percent across-the-board spending cut.
I do want to thank the committee for its hard work in cutting, and it is important to note that the proposed funding levels for this appropriations bill this year is $35.4 billion, which is $633 million below the President's budget request.
I have got to say, with the situation in our Nation with our debt, I think my 1 percent spending reduction, which will save taxpayers an additional $356 million, is something that is necessary, and it is a step that we need to take.
I am really fully aware that some of the appropriators aren't standing in favor of the 1 percent across-the-board cuts. In fact, when I offered this amendment to last year's bill, I was told that cuts of this magnitude, quite honestly, go far too deep.
Well, I think that, when you look at the fact that we need to be cutting another penny out of a dollar, that is not too deep because our debt is something that is damaging our Nation's security.
Even Admiral Mullen has said that the greatest threat to our Nation's security is our growing national debt. Because of that, we need to do a little bit more every time we come to the floor for appropriations to get this $18.2 trillion debt under control.
As I have said before, across-the-board spending cuts effectively control the growth and cost of the Federal Government. They not only give agencies flexibility to determine which expenses are necessary, but more importantly, they don't pick winners and losers.
Not only do I support the across-the-board cuts, many of our Governors support them, Republican and Democrat. When I was in the State senate in Tennessee, we couldn't adjourn that until we balanced the budget. That is why our States are controlling their debts, reining in their expenses, and our Federal Government is not.
We kick the can down the road, go print more money, run up more debt. It is time to get it under control. Saving another penny on a dollar is a necessary step.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Chairman, I am just so delighted that my friend mentioned what we need is a robust economy because I agree.
The Obama economy has been abysmal and has been terrible for our country. And you are exactly right. The middle class has shrunk. Wages have been cut. All that has happened.
I know the American people are sick and tired of it, and they would like to get this country moving again. And the Obama economy has caused many of the problems that are in front of us.
I am so pleased, too, that she mentioned the $2.3 trillion that we have spent importing oil. If you look at who has been importing a lot of that oil, OPEC, exporting that to us. OPEC is one of the top five holders of our debt. That adds to both our energy security and our national security problems. Mr. Chairman, it is time to open up our lands and drill here and drill now.
Now, quite frankly, a penny on a dollar is another way to engage rank-and-file employees. I have seen it work at the State level. I know other States have used that, as I said. Both Democrat and Republican Governors have done it. My State of Tennessee did this as we reduced the size and growth of the budget in our State.
By the way, we had to do it because we were the test case for Hillary Clinton's healthcare plan, and that just threw our budget all out of whack.
So yes, we found ourselves cutting about 9 cents across the board per department.
Do across-the-board cuts work? Yes. Do they send the right message? Absolutely. Do they engage the rank and file? You better believe it. Are they a step toward getting out-of-control spending under control? Yes, they are, and we need to do that.
Every man, woman, and child in this country, right now, has over $56,000 worth of debt that they would be responsible for. That is a per person load for our $18.2 trillion worth of debt. We have got $18.2 trillion worth of debt, and we can't cut another penny out of a dollar?
The chairman has done a great job. They have the right focus. I think that what we do is give them another little push, engage the bureaucracy--which, by the way, they are not having to make the cuts that men and women and small businesses are having to make. It is the fair thing to do.
I yield back the balance of my time.
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