In summary
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra today joined a dozen states in suing the federal Energy Department for failing to publish energy efficiency standards for some products, a step that would have made the greenhouse-gas reducing rules legally enforceable.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra today joined a dozen states in suing the federal Energy Department for failing to publish energy efficiency standards for some products, a step that would have made the greenhouse-gas reducing rules legally enforceable.
Becerra called on the Trump administration to stop “stalling” in enacting the energy-saving regulations, which California considers a critical aspect of its strategy to reduce climate-warming emissions.
“Every family and every business can be part of the climate change solution by using more energy-efficient appliances,” Becerra said in a statement. “However, the Department of Energy is blocking common-sense energy efficiency standards. This is absurd.”
The standards for five products—portable air conditioners, uninterruptible power supplies, air compressors, walk-in coolers and freezers, and commercial boilers—were approved late last year. But the regulations were never published in the Federal Register, necessary for them to become law.
The lawsuit argued that the agency’s failure to codify the energy standards harmed the states’ efforts to “reduce global warming related impacts” and enforce state laws regarding energy efficiency. California has some of the most stringent standards for energy efficiency of commercial and consumer appliances.
California had previously joined other states in a similar suit regarding delaying standards for ceiling fans. The Trump administration eventually published the efficiency standards.