The Biden Administration, on the day after Christmas and without so much as a press release, issued a final rule from the Department of Energy that will eliminate certain natural-gas water heaters. The ones targeted are the ones used by more than 55% of current American households, and the rule is expected to drastically increase the cost of water heaters in the future, and have the greatest impact on low-income Americans and seniors.
The regulations target non-condensing, natural gas-fired water heaters, mandating higher efficiency standards that can only be met by condensing models.
These newer models use technology designed to waste less heat, but have a significantly higher price tag. By the time the rule goes into effect, some 40% of available tankless gas water heaters will no longer meet the DOE’s efficiency requirements.
The rules also require new tankless gas water heaters to use about 13% less energy than the least efficient models available today. While proponents argue that the regulations will help curb carbon dioxide emissions—a key contributor to global warming—industry experts warn that consumers will face increased costs.
Some economists say that new water heaters complying with the rules will cost an average of $450 more than current models.
“A full 40% of customers directly impacted by the rule would see a net cost increase from this rule, rather than even minimal savings. DOE’s estimate of increased cost to customers is not reflective of real-world situations, with direct pricing information from a manufacturer suggesting that the difference in average product price alone is approximately $450 – 200% greater than the $231 difference claimed by DOE to justify the rule. Moreover, the customers most likely to opt for more affordable non-condensing water heaters tend to be low-income and senior households,” the American Gas Association said.
“DOE‘s decision to ban an entire segment of instantaneous water heaters is deeply concerning and irresponsible. The final rule is a violation of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) … To make matters worse, DOE‘s own analysis claims that the average life-cycle cost savings would amount to barely $112 over the entire 20-year average product life. DOE‘s final rule is unjustifiable on legal and practical grounds,” said Matthew Agen, American Gas Association chief counsel for energy.
It’s unclear how quickly the incoming Trump Administration will be able to undo the 11th-hour rule, but during the Trump Administration, there was a concerted effort to prevent this type of regulation from passing in the future.
In October, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell said he would work on ways to ensure the new higher minimum wage that would take effect Jan. 1, 2025 would not impact small businesses.
“Our office convened discussions to help address the concerns of all stakeholders. As the tip credit expires, we are committed to aggressively addressing many of the pressures facing small restaurants moving forward – from public safety to inflation, insurance, and a wide array of other cost pressures, including best practices in addressing the absence of a tip credit.
“I will be continuing our conversations with small businesses to identify tangible and actionable ways we can help make Seattle more affordable. We want successful, prosperous, and vibrant small businesses and entrepreneurs in our city, and we are committed to addressing these challenges, keeping existing small businesses here in Seattle, and ensuring this is a place where anyone has the opportunity to start a small business and succeed.”
But at the New Year, small businesses have started closing their doors to the public, or closing altogether, now that the minimum wage is $20.76.
Bebop Waffle Shop is one of those businesses. The owner told reporters that the new wage would cost the business more than $32,000 a year in added costs, and putting the owner in an impossible position. After 10 years, she closed her business.
The flower shop next door stopped taking walk-in customers, in order to balance out the additional costs, the owner told KIRO news. Now, it’s phone or online orders only.
“Seattle has one of the highest minimum wages in the country – this is a good thing for workers, a good thing for our overall economy, and something we should take pride in,” Harrell said in October. “As one of the leading members of the original team who developed Seattle’s groundbreaking minimum wage legislation, my mission is the same now as it was then – ensuring Seattle is both a great place for workers and a great place for small businesses.”
“It’s just not sustainable,” said Anthony Anton, president and CEO of the Washington Hospitality Association.
Also this week, one of the major Starbucks stores in the Pike Street Market area of downtown Seattle closed. In the past, the company has warned it was worried about safety of its workers in the increasingly dangerous downtown area.
The lame duck Biden administration’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a rule in December to curb overdraft penalties in what experts told the Daily Caller News Foundation is an example of government overreach that will ravage low-income Americans.
The CFPB — an agency that is considered the brainchild of Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren — finalized the rule just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump takes office, with the aim of forcing banks to either cap overdraft fees at $5, far less than the $35 average, or to provide the overdraft as a form of credit rather than a penalty.
While the policy’s stated aim is to increase transparency and protect American depositors, experts told the DCNF it will force banks to implement more stringent rules on bank accounts, limiting access to credit and financial services for low-income Americans, and pushing more borrowers to turn to payday lenders, who typically charge far higher interest rates.
“This is a classic case of government overreach with regulators having no idea how private business works,” E.J. Antoni, a research fellow at the Heritage Foundation’s Grover M. Hermann Center for the Federal Budget, told the DCNF. “These new regulations would eliminate certain services and impose stricter rules on bank accounts predominantly held by low-income folks. If those people need an extension of credit because they don’t have sufficient funds to meet an immediate expense, they’ll be driven to even more costly payday lenders.”
While typical credit card annual percentage rates range from 15% to 30%, and personal loans are even lower, payday lenders often charge annual interest rates of anywhere from 300% to 500%, according to Mayo Employees Federal Credit Union. In 2022, 17% of households with checking accounts reported that they or someone in their family paid an overdraft fee, with households with incomes under $30,000 twice as likely to report at least one overdraft as those with incomes of $100,000 or more.
American household debt stood at a record high of nearly $18 trillion at the end of the third quarter of 2024, increasing by nearly $4 trillion from when President Joe Biden took office in the first quarter of 2021, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Credit card balances have also surged since the COVID-19 pandemic, with American households holding $1.17 trillion in credit card debt in the third quarter of 2024, up from $770 billion in the first quarter of 2021.
CFPB claims it has the legal authority to implement the regulation on the grounds overdrafts are loans and not penalties — an argument ErikJaffe, partner at law firm Schaerr | Jaffe LLP, described to the DCNF as a “stretch.”
“The CFPB was given authority to regulate certain circumstances of consumer lending. As a result, the question is whether or not an overdraft on your checking account constitutes a short-term loan,” Jaffe told the DCNF. “It seems like quite the stretch. Banks charge customers a fee on overdrafts. The fee is not interest, as the length of time you take to pay back the fee does not change how much you owe. Interest must have a time component to it. It’s not like banks are giving customers with overdrafts money over time. They are just doing a courtesy of not bouncing a charge and embarrassing the customer.”
Jaffe also pointed out that the CFPB contradicts itself by attempting to re-classify overdrafts as a form of lending, while simultaneously permitting banks to charge overdraft penalties so long as they are under a certain dollar amount: “If the only way the CFPB has power to regulate overdrafts is by treating it as a loan, then why do they get to regulate the amount of penalty? If they concede its a penalty, then it is not within their purview. There’s an internal inconsistency here.”
The overdraft rule incurred immediate legal pushback following its finalization, with the American Bankers Association (ABA) filing a motion in the Southern District of Mississippi’s Fifth Circuit for a preliminary injunction on Dec. 12. Jaffe suggested legal challenges like the one from the ABA could be successful, particularly after the Supreme Court voted6-3 in June to overturn Chevron deference — a legal theory that providedunelected bureaucrats with significant leeway to interpret statutory ambiguities.
“We no longer defer to an agency when they say ‘if you squint really hard this statute means I can do whatever the heck I want,’” Jaffe told the DCNF. “This CFPB rule seems to smell a bit like that. The agency appears to be saying ‘if we squint just right, overdrafts look like loans, and so we have the authority to regulate them.’ The courts will take it upon themselves to determine if this is the most natural reading, and will likely conclude it is not.”
Outside of the courts, Republican lawmakers have taken aim at the rule, claiming it will limit access to credit and describing it as an example of “midnight rulemaking” by the outgoing Biden administration.
“As I’ve said repeatedly, lawful and contractually agreed upon payment incentives promote financial discipline and responsibility and protect access to important financial services,” incoming Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott of North Carolina wrote following the finalization of the rule on Dec. 12. “With just over a month until the next administration takes over, Director [Rohit] Chopra should never have finalized this rule in the first place, and I look forward to working with the next CFPB Director to advance policies that prioritize consumers over political talking points.”
Incoming House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill of Arkansas echoed Scott’s sentiment in a Dec. 23 statement: “We told federal agencies — including the CFPB — to put their ‘pens down’ and stop all midnight rulemaking. Director Chopra blatantly disregarded our request by finalizing this rule. Capping overdraft services is another form of government price controls that hurts consumers who deserve financial protections and greater choice.”
Chopra is a longtime ally of Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, helping her establish the CFPB following the passage of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law. Warren was instrumental in creating the CFPB, with former President Barack Obama describing the agency as “Elizabeth’s idea.”
“I also want to thank Elizabeth Warren not only for her extraordinary work standing up the new agency over the past year, but also for her many years of impassioned leadership, and her fierce defense of a simple idea: ordinary people deserve to be treated fairly and honestly in their financial dealings,” Obama said in a July 2011 speech touting the then-fledgling agency. “This agency was Elizabeth’s idea, and through sheer force of will, intelligence, and a bottomless well of energy, she has made, and will continue to make, a profound and positive difference for our country.”
Peter Earle, senior economist at the American Institute for Economic Research, told the DCNF the rule was the latest in a long line of “regulatory overreach” from the Biden administration.
“Capping overdraft fees by regulatory fiat is yet another example of regulatory overreach from the Biden administration, as it interrupts the pricing mechanism that reflects the costs and risks of providing overdraft services,” Earle said. “It’s not the first time, by far, that the outgoing administration has assumed that government knows better than private enterprises, consumers, and the price system, undermining the voluntary, cooperative commerce that drives competition and innovation.”
The CFPB and Warren’s office did not respond to requests for comment.
The Anchorage School District is working with Anchorage State Sen. Loki Tobin to steal your Permanent Fund dividend and give it to the school districts.
Sen. Tobin is supporting legislation to increase the Base Student Allocation by an astounding $1,963. She says that’s to inflation proof the BSA since FY2011 and the schools need that increased funding to maintain their current excellence.
Actually, Alaska’s public schools are losing thousands of students to homeschool parents who seek better education options for their children. The districts must compensate for this loss of students by increasing the per student state funding for the remaining students.
Legislative Finance calculates that for every $100 increase in the BSA, there is a $25.7 million increase in state funding.
That would increase state funding to K12 schools by more than $504,491,000. And that increase would continue year after year through the state’s funding formula. This would not be a one-time cost.
In terms of last year’s dividend payout, that would be 359,000 PFDs.
But that’s not all. The Anchorage School District also wants the state to increase transportation funding due to its increased costs. Remember, the district increased its costs with a huge pay increase for bus drivers.
The district wants to increase the current $481 per pupil funding by $324, which would be $805 per student. That would be more than $34 million in state funding for the Anchorage School District.
Note that the ASD does not transport all its 42,431 students. It doesn’t provide transportation to any of its charter students, although it receives state funding for them.
Approximately 15,000 students are transported by ASD. With the new funding of $805 per student, the district would receive more than $2,000 per transported student.
If the state’s transportation funding is increased to $805 per student, the total cost would be $102,984,455, using student numbers for 2023-24.
That’s another 73,950 PFDs, based on the payout of $1,404.
So, the BSA increase and the transportation increase would take the PFDs of 432,950 Alaskans.
Congressman Nick Begich III introduced three crucial Alaska-focused bills in the U.S. House of Representatives on Friday, immediately after being sworn in.
“Alaska deserves quick, decisive action,” said Congressman Begich. “By introducing these bills on my first day, I want Alaskans to know that my team and I are hitting the ground running to advocate for our state’s future—starting right now.”
The bills are:
Alaska Native Settlement Trust Eligibility Act (H.R. 2687 in the 118th)
The bill excludes settlement trust benefits for certain Alaska Natives—those who are blind, disabled, or age 65 and older—from being considered income when determining eligibility for means-tested federal benefits such as SSI, SNAP, and housing assistance. This is a bill similar to one that was introduced but never passed by former Rep. Mary Peltola.
It closes a longstanding gap in Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act provisions, so that elders and individuals with disabilities are not forced to choose between a settlement trust income and critical federal assistance.
Unrecognized Southeast Alaska Native Communities Recognition and Compensation Act (H.R. 4748 in the 118th).
Also known as the “Landless Bill, it amends ANCSA to allow Haines, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Tenakee, and Wrangell — historically excluded Native communities — to form urban corporations and select 23,040 acres each from the Tongass National Forest. The bill restores land entitlements for these unrecognized communities while preserving existing rights-of-way, ensuring meaningful economic and cultural opportunities for Alaskans.
Alaska Native Village Municipal Lands Restoration Act (H.R. 6489 in the 118th)
The bill eliminates the requirement under ANCSA Section 14(c)(3) that Alaska Native Village Corporations convey land to the State to be held in trust for future municipalities. Instead, it returns undeveloped land to the original village corporations and empowers Alaska Native communities to develop and use their lands for housing, community expansion, and other economic ventures, alleviating decades of land-title uncertainties and unlocking long-term development potential.
President Joe Biden will award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to 19 people on Saturday. It is the nation’s highest civilian honor, “presented to individuals who have made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.”
Among them are billionaire George Soros, whose vast wealth has been directed at creating a socialist system in America and electing Democrats, particularly Democrat prosecutors who allowed criminals to escape justice. He is the source of much of the dark money that flows through networks like the Arabella Advisors, which directs the money to causes and candidates that are unAmerican.
In 2024, for example, a nonprofit founded and funded by Soros donated $60 million to Democracy PAC, which then spread it between U.S. House and Senate campaigns and groups like Planned Parenthood.
In 2022, he gave $175 million to Democrat candidates, according to Federal Election Commission reports.
Soros also has contributed large amounts directly to campaigns of Alaska Democrats, as have his family members. The Alaska Center (for the Environment) and its political arm have been on the receiving end of Soros money multiple times, and the center’s political arm supports Democrats exclusively.
Soros made his billions by by massively shorting the British pound, leading to more than $1 billion in profits for him and weakening the United Kingdom’s central bank.
Also on the list is Hillary Clinton, one of the most notorious Democrats in modern times.
“Secretary Clinton made history many times over decades in public service, including as the first First Lady elected to the United States Senate. After serving as Secretary of State, she became the first woman nominated for president by a major United States political party.”
She also lied about what happened in 2012 in Benghazi, Libya, when she was Secretary of State for President Barack Obama, and was at the center of the coverup about that attack on the U.S. Special Mission that resulted in the death of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and U.S. citizens. During her congressional testimony, she famously blurted out, “What difference does it make???”
Clinton has been at the center of other unsolved mysteries such as Vince Foster’s death and the removal of boxes relating to the Whitewater and Travelgate scandals.
David Rubenstein will be honored. The co-founder and co-chairman of The Carlyle Group, he built one of the most successful global investment firms in history.
“He is renowned for his philanthropy and generous support for the restoration of historic landmarks and the country’s cultural institutions,” the White House said.
Rubenstein was in the Carter Administration, and then made his early fortune selling net operating losses for Alaska Native corporations. It was a tax loophole he exploited in Alaska that helped him create the basis for the wealth he now uses to support woke causes. His wife, Alice Rogoff, bought the Anchorage Daily News and ran it into bankruptcy, and his daughter was appointed by Gov. Mike Dunleavy to the board of trustees for the Alaska Permanent Fund, resigning in 2024, when she came under scrutiny for meddling in the day-to-day decision making of the fund.
The others on the Biden list of medal recipients include:
José Andrés, a Spanish-American chef who popularized tapas in the United States. His World Central Kitchen provides large-scale relief to communities affected by natural disasters and conflict around the world.
Bono, frontman for rock band U2 and a pioneering activist against AIDS and poverty. He brought together politicians from opposing parties to create the United States PEPFAR AIDS program.
Ash Carter, who served as the 25th Secretary of Defense and devoted his career to making the nation safer for all. Throughout his career, he served under 11 Secretaries of Defense in both Democratic and Republican administrations.
Michael J. Fox, an actor who has won five Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Grammy Award. He is an advocate for Parkinson’s disease research and development.
Tim Gill, who works on LGBTQI rights and equality.
Dr. Jane Goodall, an ethologist and conservationist whose research focused on primates and human evolution.
Mrs. Fannie Lou Hamer, who founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.
Earvin “Magic” Johnson, a retired basketball player who led the Los Angeles Lakers to five championships. Off the court, he is a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist who supports underserved communities through his Magic Johnson Foundation.
Robert Francis Kennedy will receive a posthumous award. He was “an Attorney General who fiercely combatted racial segregation, and as a United States Senator who sought to address poverty and inequality in the country.”
Ralph Lauren, a fashion designer.
Lionel Messi, is the most decorated player in the history of professional soccer.
Bill Nye, known as “Bill Nye the Science Guy.”
George Romney, the 43rd Governor of Michigan and the 3rd Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
George Stevens, Jr., an award-winning writer, director, author, and playwright.
Today, Congressman Nick Begich announced the launch of his official Congressional Office in the Capitol.
Congressman Begich Appointments for the 119th Congress include:
Michael G. Horanburg, Chief of Staff
Kevin Swanson, Deputy Chief of Staff/Legislative Director
Bre Klayum, Director of Operations
Silver J. Prout, Director of Communications/Alaska Fish Liaison
JC Garrett, Senior Advisor
Joshua Walton, Legislative Assistant
Ashley Smith, Legislative Correspondent
Jackson Williams, Staff Assistant
Additionally, Congressman Begich’s team in Alaska includes:
Rick Whitbeck, State Director
Portia Babcock Samuels, Anchorage Regional Director
Leslie Hajdukovich, Fairbanks Regional Director
“As we begin the 119th Congress, I could not be more proud to work alongside a team of dedicated individuals who are committed to serving the great state of Alaska. We are a team that is focused and ready to tackle issues that matter most to Alaskans – unleashing Alaska’s vast natural resources, building infrastructure that fosters growth, and championing policies that put Alaskans and Americans First”, said Begich.
Begich’s congressional office is located in Cannon House Office Building, Room 153.
House Democrats trying to force the House to allow non-voting members from the various U.S. territories to cast ballots on the election of the House Speaker, became unruly on Friday, interrupting the proceedings by standing and yelling, when they were told no by the acting House clerk.
If they had been allowed to vote, against the rules of the body, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries would have been elected House Speaker. The yelling went on for a half-minute and the clerk of the House banged his gavel to attempt to restore order.
After they finally settled down, the voting continued, with Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican from Louisiana, not getting the votes needed on the first round to remain as the Speaker of the House. Johnson was able to get the required 218 votes on the second round of voting, however.
Congressman Nick Begich III voted for Johnson for speaker, and Johnson has the support of President Donald Trump. It is likely that if Rep. Mary Peltola had been elected to represent Alaska, the vote for Johnson would have fallen one vote short, at 217; Peltola had voted 18 times in 2022 for Rep. Jeffries to be speaker. She would have voted for Jeffries again this time, at a time when Republicans have a very narrow majority.
The U.S. Surgeon General on Friday issued an advisory and recommended new advisory warnings on alcohol.
Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy’s warning said there’s a direct link between alcohol consumption and increased cancer risk, and that alcohol use is the third leading preventable cause of cancer in the U.S., after tobacco and obesity. It’s a preventable cause for seven types of cancer.
“Alcohol is a well-established, preventable cause of cancer responsible for about 100,000 cases of cancer and 20,000 cancer deaths annually in the United States – greater than the 13,500 alcohol-associated traffic crash fatalities per year in the U.S. – yet the majority of Americans are unaware of this risk,” Murthy said. “This Advisory lays out steps we can all take to increase awareness of alcohol’s cancer risk and minimize harm.”
