If you're an environmentally conscious consumer, you probably own more than a few devices bedazzled with an Energy Star logo. Every laptop or dryer or refrigerator that meets the logo's energy efficiency expectations---established by a program within the Environmental Protection Agency---gives you a tiny planet-saving dopamine spike.
But that program could soon lose its federal sponsorship. Yesterday, energy industry wire service E&E News revealed that a draft EPA budget (leaked by an unnamed source) calls for shuttering the program. Energy Star's responsibility could be transferred to an outside group---possibly run by an inter-industry consortium. Tech companies would definitely score by controlling the specs behind the stamp, which eco-conscious consumers flock to as a sign of quality. Wait, what's that you say about conflict of interest? Insiders say the industry has been policing its environmental impact for a few years already, and things are going just fine.
Energy Star debuted in 1992, and the first products to earn the label were computers and desktop monitors. But the program has has grown far beyond consumer tech. The EPA and Department of Energy have developed standards (all optional) for refrigerators, HVAC units, swimming pool pumps, entire homes, and just about anything else that taps sufficient amps. And as more products in an industry meet its standards, Energy Star responds by raising the bar---triggering more innovations in efficiency. "The program's managers typically want to improve the program so it covers about 25 percent of a market," says Jennifer Amann, a program director at the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. Computers are already on version 6.1 of their Energy Star specifications.
Overall, that system has worked pretty well. On an individual level, buying an Energy Star compliant piece of tech probably won't shave more than a few dollars a year from your energy bill. But at the scales that people use personal electronics---TVs, laptops, smart phones, routers, etc---the savings are huge.
And the Energy Star brand does wonders for the companies selling their devices: In 2015, a Consortium for Energy Efficiency survey showed that brand recognition was around 90 percent in 2015; over 45 percent of the survey's respondents said they'd knowingly purchased an Energy Star product. Plus, the tech sector doesn't really mind it. "By being voluntary, market-oriented, and ultimately consumer-driven, it has had the flexibility to keep pace with the tech industry," says Doug Johnson, vice president of tech policy at the Consumer Technology Association.
So the tech industry probably doesn't want to lose Energy Star any more than the EPA does.
The leaked EPA document leaves the option for transferring the program to the industry. "I think we're open to discussing all of these issues with other Energy Star stakeholders, and the EPA," says Johnson. "Energy Star might be changed or transformed." For hints of what the transformation might entail, he points to the industry-developed voluntary agreements for set-top boxes initiated in 2012. Set-tops are covered under Energy Star, but manufacturers and retailers were worried that federal or state agencies might institute mandatory minimum efficiency requirements on their industry. So they proposed their own regulations as a precautionary measure. They had lower efficiency standards than the Energy Star agreement, but required much wider adoption.
That seems like it could be a reasonable trade off. But of course, a voluntary program could be less reliable in its assessment of products' actual energy efficiency. Under Energy Star, each product has to get tested by a third-party to make sure it meets spec. An industry-led Energy Star would require more investment from the companies themselves, to check their own work and police their competitors' compliance. And they'd have to keep those standards up to keep federal regulators out of their hair for good.
Then there's the matter of keeping consumers invested in the Energy Star brand. Buyers could be dissuaded by the perception that the foxes are guarding the greenhouse. "I can’t really specifically speak to whether government has more or less credibility than a third-party owner," says Sarah Griffith, communications director for the Consortium for Energy Efficiency, which promotes Energy Star to consumers. "We work with quite a few third parties, and they have their agendas just like we do. But, if they are fact-based, respectful, and work hard then they could be able to uphold consumer credibility."
Energy Star spans nearly 60 different product classes---14 of which fall in consumer and office technology. To make an industry-led Energy Star valuable for the companies, they'll need to maintain that consumer buy-in---and organize themselves just as well as the EPA has over the last quarter century. Imagine the thousands of companies across all of Energy Star's sectors coming together and agreeing, not only on a suitable structure to absorb Energy Star, but also to fund it. Currently, that Energy Star brand is subsidized by $57 million in taxpayer dollars. That's a tough sell.
