The U.S. Department of Energy on Thursday said it issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to “permanently end home appliance and equipment mandates,” continuing President Trump’s campaign against limits on how much energy is used by light bulbs, washing machines, furnaces and a host of other devices.
DOE’s Appliance and Equipment Standards Program is mandated by Congress to set and update certain standards, and the notice of proposed rulemaking, or NOPR, is framed as an “update” to the agency’s methodologies, so it is unclear if Trump’s aim is to permanently disband the program. But the proposed rule would “create hurdles” to updating standards, according to Andrew deLaski, executive director of the Appliance Standards Awareness Project.
The proposed rule would make changes that include altering DOE’s testing procedures and process for developing energy conservation standards, adding a definition of “significant energy savings” to requirements for setting standards and including certain economic thresholds for rules.
The changes will help “safeguard the American people’s freedom to choose from a variety of goods and appliances,” according to the proposal, and will “promote market competition and innovation within the manufacturing and appliance industries.”
DOE’s NOPR is the latest in a slate of actions that efficiency advocates say hurt consumers under the guise of choice. The Trump administration has also attempted to close down the popular Energy Star program and recently ended a rebate encouraging consumers to switch from gas to electric appliances.
“This obstacle course of restrictions would hinder the department from carrying out its congressional mandate to protect consumers,” deLaski said in a statement. “We have products that keep getting more efficient and we need to embrace these technology advances, not reject them, especially as data centers strain our electric grid.”
DOE will take comments on the proposed rule for 30 days after it is published in the Federal Register. The agency also issued a request for information seeking comment on the methodologies used in developing energy conservation standards, and will accept comments for 60 days after it is published.
“This proposal is about the future. It will ensure that new regulations promote affordability, preserve consumer choice, and meet the highest standards for transparency and due diligence,” Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson said in a statement.
The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers said it supports DOE’s proposed changes to the process rule, which governs how efficiency standards are set and updated.
“Because the Process Rule is administered by the Department of Energy, it has been subject to change from administration to administration — creating the kind of uncertainty and instability that makes it difficult for manufacturers to plan, invest, and innovate with confidence to the benefit of American consumers,” AHAM President and CEO Kelly Mariotti said in a statement.
“The natural next step is for Congress to act — to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act and lock these reforms into statute, so that the progress made here endures,” Mariotti said.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to include comments from the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers.
