Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Senate on Tuesday approved a resolution in a 50-45 bipartisan vote, to roll back a gas furnace energy efficiency rule finalized by the Department of Energy in September.
- The resolution was authored by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who said the new efficiency requirements would effectively ban non-condensing gas furnace models and increase consumer energy costs.
- DOE expects the new rule to cut household utility costs by $1.5 billion annually. "By rejecting common-sense energy efficiency standards for furnaces, senators voted to raise many of their constituents' utility bills. That makes no sense,” said Abe Scarr, energy and utilities program director for U.S. Public Interest Research Group.
Dive Insight:
The new efficiency standards for gas furnaces are “part of a broader, radical campaign against fossil fuels, clean natural gas, and other sources of energy critical to the American economy and American families,” Cruz said in a statement. He urged the House to “take up this resolution expeditiously and pass it.”
The new standards are slated to go into effect in late 2028 and require non-weatherized gas furnaces and those used in mobile homes to achieve an annual fuel utilization efficiency of 95%.
The Biden administration indicated in a statement it will veto the measure should it also pass the House, and defended the standards.
“DOE determined that these standards will result in significant conservation of energy, are technologically feasible, and economically justified,” the administration said. “Passage of S.J. Res. 58 would eliminate these commonsense energy efficiency standards that promote choices for consumers to help them save money, prevent waste of electricity and gas, and strengthen energy security.”
“Even though this new standard has widespread support from consumer advocates and furnace manufacturers, it remains under attack. Those attacks could be renewed under a future administration and Congress,” Andrew deLaski, executive director of the Appliance Standards Awareness Project, said in an email.
The American Public Gas Association, which opposed the efficiency standard, said it appreciated Cruz’s efforts to roll back a “greatly flawed” rulemaking.
Gas industry associations in December asked a federal appeals court to review the efficiency rule.
“The rule wrongfully drives costly fuel switching, as it bans a popular appliance technology — non-condensing furnaces — from the market,” said APGA Vice President of Government Relations Stuart Saulters. “This policy is especially concerning for vulnerable, underserved communities, potentially forcing them to shift to electric furnaces, which are less affordable and efficient than the direct use of natural gas.”
On the other hand, Berneta Haynes, senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center, said the group was “disappointed that senators voted to raise costs for low-income consumers.”
The Biden administration estimated an average household upgrading from an older furnace model will save $500 over the new furnace’s lifetime.
“At a time when many low-income families struggle to afford their heating bills, failing to implement higher efficiency standards for furnaces will further burden already cash-strapped families,” Haynes said.
Three Democrats voted in favor of the resolution to disapprove DOE’s furnace rule: Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who chairs the Energy and Natural Resources Committee; Sen. Sherrod Brown from Ohio; and Sen. Bob Casey from Pennsylvania. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., also voted for the measure.
