Janice Schakowsky: “I also thank Representative Guthrie, who cosponsored this legislation with me, and also Chairman Pallone and Chairman…”

“I also thank Representative Guthrie, who cosponsored this legislation with me, and also Chairman Pallone and Chairman Bobby Rush for their help in moving this bill forward. This is a bipartisan bill that provides an important fix to an energy conservation rule for ceiling fans that the Department of Energy finalized in January 2017. However, minor technical changes to the rule were needed in order to prevent a major unintended consequence. Without this bill, some of the most energy-efficient, large-diameter ceiling fans would have to be taken off the market in the United States. So we fixed that. The bill will also provide consistent labeling requirements for residential ceiling fans and simplify the ENERGY STAR program. Both of these changes will make it easier for Americans to choose the right products for their homes. Representative Guthrie and I worked together with ceiling fan manufacturers, the energy efficiency community, and other stakeholders to clarify the standard. The Department of Energy was consulted throughout the drafting process. What pleases me really the most about this legislation is that it highlights how we need legislation, big and small, to tackle the climate crisis. This bill also highlights how we can work together across the aisle to enact commonsense policies that directly impact energy usage in homes and save American families money on their energy bill at the same time. Mr.…”