Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) applauded the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision ordering the Department of Energy (DOE) to publish four Obama-era energy efficiency rules, which the Trump DOE has refused to finalize:
“Once again, the Trump Administration’s efforts to ignore and subvert the law have been overturned. I am pleased that the Court saw through DOE’s transparent attempt to disregard federal statute in order to curry favor with special interests and greenhouse gas polluters. Before this Administration politicized the issue, energy efficiency standards enjoyed strong, bipartisan support, and I hope we can quickly return to that approach. Americans are exhausted watching this Administration accomplish nothing beyond wasting precious time, money and resources."
In February, the Committee held a hearing on DOE’s missed efficiency standards deadlines, demanding answers for its illegal failure to publish the Final Energy Conservation Standards at the heart of the Court’s ruling. Pallone, Energy Subcommittee Chairman Bobby L. Rush (D-IL) and Oversight and Investigations Chair Diana DeGette (D-CO) also sent multiple letters to Secretary Rick Perry on the matter.
