Trump Administration Ends Federal War on Your Appliances

Clear Facts

• Trump’s Department of Energy is proposing a complete overhaul of federal appliance efficiency regulations to restore consumer choice
• The new rule would create permanent safeguards against future government mandates targeting gas stoves, lightbulbs, HVAC systems, and other household appliances
• Biden-era regulations made appliances more expensive and less functional by imposing increasingly stringent efficiency standards

The Trump administration is preparing to unveil a comprehensive overhaul of federal appliance efficiency rules that will end what officials call “Green New Scam” mandates and restore American families’ freedom to choose appliances that actually work. The proposal targets years of government overreach that drove up costs and limited choices for consumers.

“In America, you should be able to choose between a drying machine that takes multiple cycles to dry your clothes and one that does it on the first try — unfortunately, past administrations thought otherwise,” Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright told Fox News Digital.

The Department of Energy is expected to propose a sweeping rewrite of federal appliance regulations that would fundamentally change how energy-efficiency standards are written. The Trump administration says this creates a permanent safeguard against future efforts to regulate household appliances out of existence.

Secretary Wright emphasized the commonsense approach behind the reform.

“For too long, the American people paid the price for mandates that restricted consumer choice and drove up costs. President Trump promised to end this nonsense and that is exactly what we are doing. This proposed rule will preserve the American people’s ability to choose home appliances and equipment that actually work — at prices they can afford. It’s called commonsense.”

Administration officials explained that previous Obama and Biden administrations interpreted Energy Policy and Conservation Act standards as requiring increasingly stringent efficiency mandates. These regulations made appliances more expensive while often reducing their effectiveness.

Biden-era changes in 2021 and 2024 loosened Trump administration safeguards from 2020 by making procedures non-binding and removing critical provisions, including significant energy savings thresholds and other procedural requirements. The new proposal would reverse this regulatory creep.

The proposal is open for public comment for 30 days before becoming an official rule.

The timing of this deregulation effort highlights a stark contrast in approaches to energy policy. While American families will regain the freedom to purchase effective air conditioning and appliances, Europe continues to suffer under green energy restrictions.

Paris Deputy Mayor Audrey Pulvar recently blamed the United States for the deadly heat wave over France, claiming the issue is climate change rather than Europe’s own regulatory choices that have left most households without air conditioning.

“Dear American journalists and social media ‘influencers’: for days, some of you have been criticizing and making fun of Paris because the city does not have A/C in every room. OMG, this is so rich!” she wrote on Instagram.

The numbers tell a revealing story about regulatory consequences. Due to European energy regulations, only 20% of households have air conditioning compared to 88% in the United States, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Deputy Mayor Pulvar continued her criticism of American energy freedom.

“As the second-largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions in the world, you bear a significant amount of responsibility for global warming and the consequences we, in France, are experiencing. Your cities ‘90% air-conditioned’ are not unrelated to this. In Paris, we take responsibility.”

The contrast is clear: American families will soon have greater freedom to choose appliances that work, while European officials blame others for the consequences of their own restrictive policies.

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