Trump overhauls home appliance efficiency rules to protect gas stoves

Key Points:

• The Trump administration plans to overhaul federal appliance efficiency rules to end what it calls "Green New Scam" mandates, aiming to restore consumer choice and prevent future crackdowns on gas stoves, lightbulbs, HVAC systems, and other appliances.
• The Department of Energy's proposed rewrite would change how energy-efficiency standards are set, creating safeguards against stricter regulations and allowing consumers to choose appliances based on cost and functionality.
• Officials criticized previous administrations, including Obama and Biden, for enforcing increasingly stringent and costly efficiency standards under the Energy Policy and Conservation Act, which the Trump-era rules had previously relaxed.
• The proposal is open for a 30-day public comment period before becoming official, coinciding with a major heat wave affecting the U.S. and Europe, where air conditioning access varies significantly.
• Paris Deputy Mayor Audrey Pulvar attributed the deadly heat wave in France to climate change caused by high U.S. emissions and criticized American cities' widespread air conditioning use, contrasting it with limited AC availability in Europe.