Donald Trump, as both a citizen and president, has railed against modern dishwashers, washing machines, light bulbs, showerheads and toilets, claiming that onerous government regulations render them less effective and more expensive.
Since returning to the White House in January, he’s turned his ire into an edict.
On April 9, Trump issued an executive order directing certain federal agencies “to incorporate a sunset provision” into a laundry list of energy production regulations, including those covering appliances. A month later, he issued a memorandum, entitled “Rescission of Useless Water Pressure Standards.”
Following that, on May 12, the Department of Energy announced that it was preparing to eliminate or modify 47 federal regulations “that are driving up costs and lowering quality of life for the American people.”
Many of the rules are covered in the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), a decades-old law that mandates energy-efficiency and water-conservation standards for home appliances and plumbing fixtures.
Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency said it is planning to eliminate the Energy Star program, a popular voluntary initiative that manufacturers employ to rank their appliances based on energy conservation and cost savings, displayed on familiar blue labeling at retail as comparison-shopping guides.
Trump’s actions have been met with a mix of resistance from consumer protection groups and appliance manufacturers, as well as support from deregulation hawks and decriers of the nanny state. And while the administration continues to review the current standards and solicit comments before considering any official changes, legal challenges to the efforts are being weighed.
A new era of ‘buyer beware’ in electric bills
Originally passed in 1975, EPCA ensures that the entire array of products covered by the law all meet a basic level of energy- and water-efficiency performance, reflected in different price points. A prime example are the ubiquitous yellow Energy Guide stickers affixed to appliances that indicate their annual energy usage and cost.
“Consumers who are shopping primarily, if not exclusively, on price also get reasonable efficiency performance [information],” said Andrew deLaski, executive director of the Appliance Standards Awareness Project, a coalition of environmental and consumer groups, utilities and state governments, based at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, a nonprofit research organization.
Without that level of regulated consumer protection, deLaski said, “It’s buyer beware.”
Consumers would face the risk of less-efficient appliances entering an unregulated marketplace, he said, “and you’re not going to know it until you get the [higher] electric bill.”
Separate from EPCA, the Energy Star labeling program was established by the EPA in 1992 as a public-private partnership. Managed and jointly funded by the DOE, it sets energy-efficiency standards that manufacturers can choose to display on appliances, building products, electronics, lighting fixtures, HVAC equipment and other products as a way for consumers and businesses to make informed purchase decisions.
The EPA estimates that 90% of households recognize the Energy Star label and that over its 33 years, the program has saved five trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity, reduced greenhouse gas emissions by four billion metric tons and saved $500 billion in utility costs. The program’s 2024 operating budget was $35.7 million. To date, every dollar spent has resulted in nearly $350 in energy cost savings.
Americans support energy-efficient appliance efforts
Consumer Reports conducted a national survey in March which found that 87% of respondents support energy-efficient home appliance standards. Nearly a third said that saving money on energy bills would motivate them to buy a more efficient large home appliance.
Last month, in response to plans to shutter Energy Star, the organization issued a statement urging the EPA to preserve the program. “The loss would hit especially hard at a time when people are dealing with unpredictable energy bills and trying to cut expenses,” said Shanika Whitehurst, associate director for Consumer Reports’ product sustainability, research and testing team.
The nonprofit Alliance to Save Energy, a bipartisan coalition of consumer, environment, business and government groups, suggests that EPCA and Energy Star actually promote the White House’s goals of lowering families’ energy bills and making the nation energy dominant. “If you start to dismantle the energy-efficiency programs, American households are going to pay for that,” said Jason Reott, ASE’s senior manager of policy. “Energy dominance begins at home, by eliminating energy waste.”
The Association of Home Appliance…
Read More: What Trump’s battle with Energy Star could cost homeowners