Energy Efficiency Reform Act of 2026

This legislation, titled the Energy Efficiency Reform Act of 2026, aims to significantly reform the Department of Energy's (DOE) process for setting energy conservation standards. It mandates that the Secretary of Energy issue a final rule within 270 days, retaining specific procedural requirements from a 2026 proposed rulemaking. These requirements include the binding nature of the Process Rule on the DOE, mandatory comparative walk-up analysis for economic justification, and a 180-day lead time for test procedures before proposing standards. Failure to comply with this deadline would void certain previous final rules from 2021 and 2024, effectively reverting to prior regulations. The bill introduces new criteria for prescribing energy conservation standards, allowing the Secretary to set less stringent standards or those resulting in increased energy use if clear evidence demonstrates necessity. Such conditions include ensuring product availability, avoiding undue burdens on small manufacturers, or preventing the unavailability of product types. Crucially, the Secretary must define and protect "consumer-valued performance characteristics," such as reliability, product lifetime, features, and fuel types, ensuring these are not eliminated or negatively impacted by new or amended standards. Furthermore, the legislation prohibits the Secretary from prescribing standards that would result in the unavailability of certain performance characteristics in the U.S. market. It also mandates separate energy conservation standards for products based on their venting categories , reflecting unique performance features. The bill significantly expands federal preemption, making state regulations relating to energy efficiency, energy use, or water use ineffective if a federal standard is revoked, and preempting state laws that prohibit or require removal of products based on fuel source or air pollutant emissions. The bill defines "significant energy savings" as a reduction of at least 10 percent in full fuel cycle energy use over a 30-year period. It also extends the compliance date for amended standards to no earlier than 10 years after the previous standard's compliance date. Additionally, it prohibits the Secretary from prescribing new or amended energy conservation standards for distribution transformers and streamlines manufacturer reporting requirements by coordinating with other agencies to eliminate duplication.