The Functional Government Initiative (FGI) announced its decision to sue three federal agencies over records relating to the alleged plans of the Biden administration to ban new gas stoves. The FGI is seeking clarity on the administration's position, which has been a source of confusion and contention.
Peter McGinnis, spokesman for FGI, highlighted the need for transparency. "The Biden Administration has been anything but clear with the public about its intentions relating to gas stoves," he said, "The various efforts to 'study' their use has been seen as a predicate for a future ban while other federal agencies have taken actions that fly in the face of what they’ve told the public. FGI intends to find out who is driving the push to regulate or ban gas stoves. The American people deserve to know why their home appliance options may be curtailed even further.”
The FGI has filed lawsuits against the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of Housing and Urban Development among others. The organization submitted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the involved agencies to decipher the administration's reasoning and reconcile contradictory statements. With no responses within the required timeframe, the FGI has now taken legal steps to compel the release of the information.
These developments follow a December 2022 research study that indicated 12.7 percent of childhood asthma in the United States could be linked to gas stove use. In a subsequent interview in January 2023, CPSC Commissioner Richard Trumka, Jr., labeled gas stoves as a "hidden hazard," indicating that unsafe products could face bans.
Trumka later clarified on Twitter that the proposed regulations would only impact new gas stoves, offering rebates to those transitioning to electric under the Inflation Reduction Act.
The CPSC's Chair Commissioner, Alexander Hoehn-Saric, has also stated, "CPSC is looking for ways to reduce related indoor air quality hazards. But to be clear, I am not looking to ban gas stoves and the CPSC has no proceeding to do so." This statement, however, contrasts with a previously leaked internal memo which predates the research study where Trumka supported a full gas stove ban.
Adding another layer of complexity, the DOE has proposed its first-ever efficiency regulation on cooking appliances, potentially making 50 percent of current gas stove models non-compliant. There are also calls for the Department of Housing and Urban Development to ban gas stoves in public housing, which could further deepen the controversy.
