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Biden, States kick off pivotal year for appliance efficiency standards

(ACEEE blog, 8 Mar 2021) With the Biden administration in its second month, we have already seen its interest in strengthening the energy-saving standards that cover dozens of household and commercial products, such as furnaces, refrigerators, and light bulbs. The new administration has staffed up with climate and clean energy leaders and initiated work to undo the previous administration’s slew of harmful rules.

Meanwhile, at the state level, momentum for new standards covering a range of energy- and water-using products is surging; a dozen states have legislation or rulemakings pending.

This one-two combination of federal and state action means that 2021 is shaping up as a big year for progress on new efficiency standards—progress that will contribute significantly to meeting climate and clean energy goals.

Biden administration off to a good start

On his first day in office, President Biden issued the “Executive Order on Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis.” He directed the Department of Energy (DOE) to propose major revisions to the “Process Rule” that governs how the agency develops new appliance standards. Initial proposed changes are due this month (DOE sent the White House a draft proposal for review last week) and any remaining cleanup is due by June. We expect the Biden team will eliminate a series of roadblocks and hurdles to future efficiency standards that the previous administration created in its rewrite of the rule.

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ACEEE blog, 8 Mar 2021: Biden, States kick off pivotal year for appliance efficiency standards