The Leader’s Floor Lookout: Week of March 3, 2025

Reversing Biden Rule Targeting Energy Production on the Outer Continental Shelf

In the past, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) required oil and gas leaseholders on the Outer Continental Shelf to issue an archaeological report before a project could begin if that project would potentially impact archaeological resources. 

In September 2024, however, the Biden Administration decided to further crush American energy production with bureaucracy by issuing a rule to require ALL oil and gas lessees and operators to submit archaeological reports for certain exploration or development activities on the Outer Continental Shelf to protect marine archeological resources like shipwrecks and so-called “cultural resources.”

This rule, the “Protection of Marine Archaeological Resources,” increases burdens on oil and gas lessees by forcing them to conduct expensive surveys, discouraging domestic energy production, weakening American energy independence, and once again, raising costs for consumers.

After four years of these kinds of disastrous energy policies under the Biden Administration that created the energy crisis we still suffer from today, it is vital that we stop targeting domestic oil and gas production and bring back common sense to U.S. energy policies. Unleashing American energy lowers costs for struggling families and workers, and strengthens our national and energy security by making us less dependent on foreign nations.

This week, House Republicans are bringing legislation to overturn the Biden BOEM’s burdensome rule and return to President Trump’s America First energy agenda.

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Protecting America’s Tire Manufacturing Industry, Economy, and Environment

First authorized by the Clean Air Act in 1970, the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) are air pollution standards issued and regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to protect human health. For years, tire manufacturers and facilities have complied with the NESHAP standards in order to minimize hazardous emissions and pollutants from rubber mixers.

In November 2024, however, the Biden Administration’s EPA finalized amendments to NESHAP through a rule that imposes significant financial burdens on tire manufacturing facilities, crushes American jobs, and actually hurts the environment, all while providing insignificant if not nonexistent benefits. 

A 2020 residual risk and technology review (RTR) found that existing NESHAP standards provided a large enough safety margin to adequately protect public health. Additionally, the EPA’s own more recent risk review could not quantify public health or environmental benefits from these new changes, but instead noted potential drawbacks due to increased CO2 emissions resulting from required equipment changes.

Rubber tire manufacturers already abide by strict standards for air emissions and work to reduce hazardous pollutants. Complying with the Biden EPA final rule would require millions of dollars in costs yearly in addition to the costs of public health disbenefits resulting from the increased CO2 emissions.

This rule would only increase emissions, put American jobs at risk, crush businesses and workers, raise prices for hardworking families and taxpayers, and hurt our economy. We cannot allow such an ill-informed and harmful rule to stand, especially when there is no real benefit. 

Rep. Morgan Griffith’s legislation, H.J. Res. 61, overturns the Biden EPA’s harmful “NESHAP for Rubber Tire Manufacturing” rule that establishes new emissions standards for rubber tire manufacturing, preventing it from increasing compliance costs for the industry and placing a heavier financial burden on smaller businesses, which would result in higher prices for consumers. 

House Republicans are taking action to protect our manufacturing industry, economy, and families and workers already struggling under lingering Bidenflation by undoing overbearing regulations from out-of-control agencies.

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Disapproving Biden Certification and Labeling Rule to Protect Consumer Choice

In 1975, Congress established the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) to increase American energy production, encourage efficient energy use, and bolster national energy security. Under the EPCA, the Department of Energy (DOE) sets and enforces efficiency standards for 60 product categories – but these standards must be cost-effective, significantly save energy, and be technologically feasible. 

Unfortunately, President Biden’s DOE consistently abused their authority to push a radical energy agenda on American consumers, attempting to implement conservation standards that are neither economically justifiable nor significantly more energy efficient for several household appliances like refrigerators and washing machines. These overreaching rules take away consumer choice, burden American families, and force Americans to use expensive appliances that do not perform as well. The DOE enforces these standards through certification and labeling requirements, which require manufacturers to certify their appliances meet these efficiency standards through testing at a certified laboratory.

In October 2024, the Biden DOE proposed a final rule, the “Energy Conservation-Appliance Standards, Certification and Labeling,” expanding certification and labeling for the Department of Energy's conservation standards program in alignment with their new onerous standards and mandating manufacturers of certain appliances adhere an “EnergyGuide” label to their products displaying energy consumption and efficiency compared to similar products. 

This expansion is just another piece of the former administration’s regulatory attack on American manufacturers, workers, and families, giving agency bureaucrats more power and control over what products we can have in our homes through burdensome rules. This rule would also slow the introduction of products to market through the time and red tape it takes to comply with certification procedures such as testing and labeling, and potentially affect supply chains and inventories.

This week, House Republicans are bringing legislation to fight back against this burdensome rule expanding certifications and labelling requirements that will only harm American manufacturers and reduce options for consumers.

H.J. Res. 42, introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde, disapproves the Biden DOE’s “Energy Conservation-Appliance Standards, Certification and Labeling” rule which expands certification and labeling for the Department of Energy's conservation standards program and could slow the introduction of products to market, reduce options for consumers, and affect supply chains and inventories.

House Republicans will always fight to protect consumer choice from government overreach and reduce burdensome regulations hurting manufacturers so families and hardworking Americans can keep their preferred appliances in their homes.