The barrage of backlash comes two months after Trumka said a gas stove ban was “on the table.” “This is a hidden hazard,” the Biden appointee said of cooking with gas. “Products that can't be made safe can be banned.” The remarks prompted a political firestorm, and both the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the White House quickly moved to walk back the threat. “The president does not support banning gas stoves,” Biden press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre assured in January.
But in the following weeks, the Biden administration began moving to target gas stoves through two different government bodies. In addition to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Biden's Energy Department last month released an analysis of its proposed cooking appliance efficiency regulations, which it acknowledged would ban half of all gas stoves on the U.S. market from being sold. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers responded by arguing that the regulations would actually nullify a much larger proportion of the market, citing a December Energy Department test that saw 20 of 21 gas stove models fail to meet the proposed rule's efficiency standards.
The White House declined to comment.