For the HVAC industry, it’s the latest front in a familiar fight over who decides how America heats and cools its buildings. Industry groups are lining up in support, arguing that the Energy Choice Act would help avoid a patchwork of local rules that complicate business planning, drive up costs, and make it harder for contractors to know what equipment they can sell or install from one jurisdiction to the next. 

Federal Lawmakers Push Back on Local Bans 

The Energy Choice Act updates federal energy policy to clarify that regulation of energy use rests with the federal government. It would prohibit cities and states from banning certain fuel sources — including natural gas — for residential or commercial use. 

Supporters call it a clarification of existing law under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), which already gives the federal government authority to set nationwide standards for energy efficiency and use. The Energy Choice Act would make explicit that this authority also covers decisions about which fuels can be used, preventing local jurisdictions from effectively outlawing gas furnaces, water heaters, or stoves. 

Much of the debate stems from ongoing court battles. In 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the City of Berkeley’s gas ban, ruling that it violated EPCA by regulating energy use, which falls under federal jurisdiction. In New York, however, lower courts have issued conflicting rulings, arguing that such bans regulate energy infrastructure rather than energy use — an issue that could ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Langworthy framed the bill as protecting consumers from restrictive state policies. 

“People deserve the freedom to choose energy that is affordable, reliable, and proven — not be forced into rolling blackouts to please eco-activists who don’t live in the real world,” he wrote when introducing the bill earlier this year. 

For contractors, the case for Congressional action is less about politics and more about preserving flexibility. Supporters say it would maintain current business practices, protect markets where bans have taken effect, and provide long-term certainty in an industry that depends on planning ahead. 

“This is a case where federalism was already set,” explained Alex Ayers, director of government affairs at Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI). “Nationwide standards are what’s necessary to avoid a patchwork [of conflicting rules]. So to me, this is a reinforcement of what has already been accepted as a sort of standard practice: that when you're regulating an entire industry, that should be done at the federal level, not at the local level.” 

Protecting Competition and Contractor Certainty 

For the Air Conditioning Contractors of America (ACCA), the Energy Choice Act represents more than just a policy debate — it’s a defense of how contractors do business. Sean Robertson, ACCA’s vice president of membership, advocacy, and events, said the association strongly supports the legislation as a way to preserve flexibility and predictability for HVAC professionals and their customers. 

“The Energy Choice Act ensures that consumers and contractors alike retain the freedom to choose the fuel source that best meets their needs — without being hamstrung by one-size-fits-all mandates,” Robertson said. “By safeguarding access to all energy service options, this legislation protects competition, supports reliability and affordability, and helps HVACR professionals and their customers plan with certainty.” 

ACCA argues that when policymakers restrict certain fuel types, they not only limit consumer choice but also disrupt contractors’ ability to offer complete solutions — affecting everything from equipment sales to long-term service contracts. The association has launched an “action alert” urging contractors to contact their representatives in support of the bill. 

Clarifying Federal Oversight 

HARDI has also lined up behind the Energy Choice Act, calling it a necessary clarification of federal law that hasn’t been meaningfully updated since the 1970s — before the era of energy bans and electrification. 

“This really aligns with our belief that consumer choice is a critical issue that we need to protect — that consumers are the ones that understand best what types of products they want to use to heat or cool their home,” Ayers said. “Whether that is traditional a/c and furnace or heat pumps, we want to leave it to the consumer to choose, rather than setting either local or state standards that prevent that.” 

Ayers noted that the bill’s intent is to reaffirm federal consistency, not alter business operations. 

“Ideally, it will have very little impact because it’s just continuing what contractors already do,” he said. “It protects what they are used to being able to do.” 

The biggest difference would come in states that have already moved to restrict new fossil-fuel hookups. In New York, for instance, new buildings under seven stories will soon be prohibited from connecting to natural-gas service; if the Energy Choice Act becomes law, those restrictions could be reversed. 

As of now, the bill has more than 100 House co-sponsors — a milestone Ayers called “a tremendous success for any bill.” He expects it to pass the House, but said the Senate will be the real test, where bipartisan support will be needed to reach 60 votes. 

Policy Whiplash and the Case for Choice 

For David Holt, president of the Electric & Gas Industries Association (EGIA), the Energy Choice Act isn’t just about policy — it’s about principle. 

“I personally don’t think bans are the right thing,” Holt said. “Consumer choice should drive consumer decisions. If someone wants to use a certain fuel, they should have the right to use that certain fuel.” 

While EGIA hasn’t taken an official stance on the legislation, Holt said its membership of independent contractors and distributors generally supports the idea that customers — not governments — should decide what type of energy to use. 

“We are fiercely independent, and we work with independent contractors and independent wholesalers — choice matters,” he said. 

Holt framed the issue in terms of market dynamics rather than politics. In many areas, there’s already limited competition among utilities — often just one electric and one gas provider. 

“If you don’t have a choice, you don’t have competition,” Holt said. “And lack of competition drives up prices, typically not because they have to, but just because they can.” 

He also warned against the “pendulum effect” in energy policy, where priorities swing wildly from one administration to the next. 

“Every election, that political wind gets all screwed up, and we live in this tornado of build it up, tear it down,” Holt said. 

Still, Holt added, contractors ultimately follow their customers more than any mandate. 

“Ultimately, they don’t listen to the government,” he said. “They listen to the person who’s writing a check.”