Grand Canyon Times

We’re just over two years into President Biden’s presidency, and it appears the push for the Green New Deal is in full swing. They’re coming for your money. They’re coming for your cars. And now, yes, they are indeed coming for your gas stoves.

Of course, these Green New Deal activists don’t want you to know that. That’s why the mere mention of a potential gas stove ban draws eye-rolling responses from the left—like this piece from The New York Times that wants to assure you that the Biden administration is not planning a ban on gas stoves. Or the White House putting out a statement that the president does not support such a ban.

But it’s all lies.

Under the guise of public health and safety concerns, the Department of Energy issued a new rule in January that could ban up to 96% of existing gas stoves. This would affect nearly 35% of homes in the U.S., or more than 40 million Americans, who use gas stoves. But it’s all about your safety, right? So, shouldn’t we bow down and thank our government for protecting us from this significant danger? Well, if they truly cared about your safety, they would actually take a closer look at electric stoves. After all, the National Fire Protection Association recently found that households using electric stoves have a greater risk of cooking fires than those using gas stoves. And despite the fact that 60 percent of homes use electric stoves, 80 percent of stoves involved in cooking fires were powered by electricity.

But you won’t hear about that from the left because it’s not about safety at all. It’s about control. That’s why it’s essential for Republicans in the Arizona legislature to take action to protect the people of our state from this Green New Deal agenda. And earlier this week, they took an important first step.

Representative Steve Montenegro, who serves as the chairman for the Arizona House Health and Human Services Committee, introduced a strike everything amendment to SB1278 to prohibit cities and counties in our state from banning the gas stove along with other appliances. The amended bill was approved by the committee on a party line vote, but it was the testimony of one lobbyist that was particularly interesting.

While expressing opposition to the proposed amendment, Marshall Pimentel from the Arizona League of Cities and Towns admitted that some cities in Arizona are actively looking to ban gas appliances right now. Could one of them be yours? After all, they already have a good example to follow from our neighbors to the west. Just like Arizona may look to mimic San Diego’s vehicle mileage tax, some of our cities and towns may now be trying to follow California’s plan to ban all natural gas appliances by 2035.

But this trend needs to be stopped. The government should not be using health and safety concerns as a smokescreen for implementing Green New Deal mandates. And no city, town, or state should ever tell an American citizen how they’re allowed to cook food for their families.