From: Design World
Energy efficient doesn’t mean cost efficient
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I recalled this incident when reviewing a recent report on whether energy efficiency regulations put in place by the Dept. of Energy are worth what they cost. DOE efficiency regulations now apply to everything from refrigerators and water heaters to lamp ballasts and electric motors. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) says these mandates have posed the third-highest cost burden on U.S. citizens from 2002 to 2012 of any regulatory agency, behind only those from the DoT and EPA.
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More worrisome, says AAF, there is no such thing as a “peer review” outside the DOE for the assumptions that go into economic models justifying rules. That leads to energy regulations that are on shaky ground economically.