Residential Clothes Washers
This page describes rulemaking activities and regulations regarding energy efficiency for residential clothes washers.
Statutory Authority
The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6291, et seq.) established the Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products Other than Automobiles, covering major household appliances including residential clothes washers. Later, the National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987 amended EPCA by establishing energy conservation standards for residential clothes washers and requiring the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to consider amending standards in two subsequent rulemakings. In 2007, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA 2007) prescribed new standards for residential clothes washers and required that DOE consider amending these standards. DOE is currently developing a rulemaking to review and amend energy conservation standards for residential clothes washers pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 6295(g)(9)(B)(i).
Information on the developing rulemaking can be found below, under "Rulemakings Under Development." Documentation and materials associated with the prior rulemaking can also be found below.
Some of the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Acrobat Reader.
Rulemakings Under Development
Prescribed Energy Conservation Standards
- Standards prescribed in EISA 2007
Previous Federal Register Notices and Technical Support Documents
- Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Test Procedure for Clothes Washers Direct Final Rule and Proposed Rule, Federal Register, 68 FR 62198, October, 31, 2003 (PDF 138 KB)
- Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Test Procedure for Clothes Washers Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Federal Register, 68 FR 62205, October 31, 2003 (PDF 29 KB)
- Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Clothes Washer Energy Conservation Standards Final rule; Denial of reconsideration and completion of regulatory review, Federal Register, 66 FR 19714, April 17, 2001
- Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Clothes Washer Energy Conservation Standards Final Rule, Federal Register, 66 FR 3314, January 12, 2001 (PDF 315 KB)
- Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Clothes Washer Energy Conservation Standards Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Federal Register, 65 FR 59550, October 5, 2000 (PDF 429 KB)
- Energy Efficiency Standards for Clothes Washers Technical Support Document, December 2000
- Additional material used as the basis for the Clothes Washers 2001 Final Rule and the Technical Support Document
- Energy Conservation Program for Consumer Products: Test Procedure for Clothes Washers and Reporting Requirements for Clothes Washers, Clothes Dryers, and Dishwashers Final Rule, Federal Register, 62 FR 45484, August 27, 1997 (PDF 278 KB)
Contact Information
Stephen Witkowski
Project Manager
202-586-7463