Get Ready Texas The Government is Coming After Your Appliances

First, it was the incandescent light bulb whose ban went into effect in August 2023, now Texans have to worry about their appliances like refrigerators and freezers.

The Government is now coming after your appliances.

On Friday, December 29th, the Biden Administration released new regulations on home and commercial appliances.  There will be stricter energy efficiency standards for certain home appliances including refrigerators, freezers, and combos including other items.

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In September 2023, The Appliance Standards Awareness Project and The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers recommended the following standards to the Department of Energy:

• The recommended standards would reduce new refrigerator and freezer energy use by approximately 10-15%, effective in January 2029 or January 2030, depending on product type.
• For beverage and wine chillers, the recommended standards, taking effect in 2029, would reduce energy use by 30% for the major product categories.
• For clothes washers, approximately 11% energy savings and 28% water savings for top-load models and 9% energy savings and 17% water savings for front-load models would kick in beginning in 2028.
• Clothes dryers meeting the recommended standards would use up to 40% less energy starting in 2028.
• The recommended standards for dishwashers would reduce energy use by 15% and water use by 34% relative to the current standards, likely beginning in late 2027.
• New efficiency standards for electric and gas cooking products, which would preserve the features and functionality that consumers expect from their cooking products and have access to today, would take effect in 2028.

The recommendations were accepted, which means the current appliances will be phased out over the next 5 and 6 years.

These new standards claim that this will save consumers over 36 million dollars and it will be safer for the environment.

However, as consumers, we will be faced with purchasing new appliances that will more than likely cost more than most of us can afford.   It's possible that in the next 5 or 6 years the economy will bounce back and consumers will have more disposable income, but as of right now, most Texans are struggling to keep food in the fridge and freezers they currently own.