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Energy efficiency will be a focus for the next White House, but Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., said Thursday that the tight balance of power in the House and Senate makes it impossible to know if comprehensive legislation can be passed in the 117th Congress.
Speaking at a virtual event hosted by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Tonko said a “top priority” of 2021 will be getting the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy “back on track” with regard to appliance efficiency standards. The Department of Energy has failed to review and update more than two dozen appliance standards under the Trump administration.
Energy advocates say inaction on appliance standards costs consumers billions of dollars annually. And the Trump DOE is working to hamper the Biden administration’s ability to strengthen standards in the future through a series of “midnight regulations,” according to Appliance Standards Awareness Project Executive Director Andrew deLaski.
