Earthjustice Action Opposes Senate Bill Attacking Energy Efficiency Standards 

Media contact: Siham Zniber, szniber@earthjustice.org

WASHINGTON, DC – In response to Senator Mike Lee’s (R-UT) recently introduced Energy Efficiency Reform Act of 2026, which would undo existing energy efficiency standards and effectively destroy the Department of Energy’s (DOE) ability to update standards in the future, Earthjustice Action Senior Legislative Representative Anne Clement issued the following statement: 

“Instead of focusing on the needs of communities as they experience record-high temperatures and heat waves, this bill is nothing more than a handout to the fossil fuel industry. Efficiency standards are some of the most important tools we have to lower people’s utility bills – preventing the Department of Energy from ensuring that standards keep pace with changing technologies will put unneeded strain on our grid and make already high energy costs and air pollution worse.” 

The Energy Efficiency Reform Act could raise household costs by $160 a year. Among its harmful provisions, the bill would: 

• Revoke recent standards for residential gas furnaces and commercial water heaters 

• Change the criteria DOE must apply when prescribing a standard for a product 

• Lock in expensive and inefficient technologies for gas appliances by blocking future standards to prop up fossil fuel consumption 

• Limit states from setting their own safety requirements for the use of gas appliances 

• Revoke DOE’s legal obligation to regularly review and update the existing standards for covered products