NEMA, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, commended the Department of Energy (DOE) for its schedule on setting new home appliance efficiency standards. The five-year plan outlines how DOE will address the appliance standards rulemaking backlog and meet all statutory requirements established in the Energy Policy and Conservation Act and the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT 2005).
The DOE must set standards that achieve maximum energy efficiency improvement while being technologically feasible and economically justified.
DOE says that standards already in place for residential products should save consumers nearly $93 billion by 2020 and save enough energy to operate all U.S. homes for about two years. It is also making improvements to speed up development and issuance of appliance standards rulemakings.