The Biden administration is furthering its green energy agenda of targeting emissions from household appliances by releasing the latest restrictions against gas-powered furnaces.
The Department of Energy said in a release on Friday that the new regulations will cut household utility costs by $1.5 billion and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from residences. This is one component of the Biden administration’s long-term goal to achieve a 50% to 52% reduction in emissions by 2030.
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The new standards, which will take effect in late 2028, will require nonweatherized gas furnaces in homes and mobile homes to achieve an “annual fuel utilization efficiency” of 95%. The standards were last updated in 2007, and the new ones will conserve energy and improve residential heating, according to the Energy Department.
“At the direction of Congress, DOE is continuing to review and finalize energy standards for household appliances, such as residential furnaces, to lower costs for working families by reducing energy use and slashing harmful pollutants in homes across the nation,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said in a statement. “Today’s measure, along with this Administration’s past and planned energy efficiency actions, underscores President Biden’s commitment to save Americans money and deliver healthier communities.”
Under this new rule, manufacturers will only be allowed to sell furnaces that convert at least 95% of fuel into heat within six years. The American Gas Association has estimated that the Energy Department’s regulations would remove up to 60% of current residential furnaces from the market, according to Fox News.
However, residential gas furnaces account for approximately 19% of annual residential energy use in the United States, according to the department. By updating the standards, it will cut carbon emissions by 332 million metric tons, the equivalent of 42 million homes or approximately 34% of homes in the U.S.
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President Joe Biden and his green energy policies have been criticized by Republicans as a costly burden on American households and control of consumers’ choices. GOP lawmakers recently have blasted Biden for his push toward electric vehicles and stoves, saying that Biden wants to “ban gas stoves.”
The Energy Department released its new “Energy Policy and Conservation Program” in February, setting new efficiency and conservation standards for consumer conventional cooking products, including gas stoves. The proposed rules would make at least half of U.S. stove models ineligible for repurchase in stores if they were to come into force today, the department determined in a memo.
