Cooking Products
This page describes rulemaking activities and regulations regarding energy efficiency for residential kitchen ranges, cooktops, ovens, microwave ovens, and cooking products.
Statutory Authority
The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) (42 USC 6295 (h)), as amended, requires the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to determine whether amended, more stringent standards would be technologically feasible and economically justified. On April 8, 2009, DOE published a final rule amending the energy conservation standards for gas and electric kitchen ranges and ovens. DOE raised the standards for gas kitchen ranges and ovens and determined that standards for electric kitchen ranges and ovens did not warrant revision—a "no-standard" standard. Dehumidifiers and dishwashers were originally included in this rulemaking, but have been excluded because the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA 2007) prescribed standards for both of these products.
Microwave oven standby-mode and off-mode energy use were also originally considered in this rule, as well as in a separate rulemaking for microwave oven test procedures. Interested party comments on both of these rules generally supported incorporating into the test procedure language expected to be codified in an international standby power test procedure, which is scheduled to be published in July 2009. Therefore, the microwave oven standards and test procedure amendments addressing standby- and off-mode energy use are now scheduled for completion in a separate rulemaking.
DOE held an informal public meeting on April 27, 2006, to discuss and receive comments on issues to be addressed in the framework document for establishing energy conservation standards for residential electric and gas ranges and ovens and microwave ovens, dishwashers, dehumidifiers, and commercial clothes washers.
Some of the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.
Energy Conservation Standards
Final Rule
- Final Rule for Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, and Cooking Products, and Commercial Clothes Washers, Federal Register, April 8, 2009 (PDF 1.3 MB)
- Final Rule Technical Support Document
- Final Rule Technical Support Document Analysis Tools
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR)
- NOPR for Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, and Cooking Products, and Commercial Clothes Washers, Federal Register, October 17, 2008 (PDF 1.1 MB)
- NOPR Technical Support Document for Consumer Products and Commercial and Industrial Equipment, Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, and Cooking Products, and Commercial Clothes Washers
- NOPR Technical Support Document Analysis Tools
Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANOPR)
- ANOPR for Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, and Cooking Products, and Commercial Clothes Washers, Federal Register, November 15, 2007 (PDF 2.8 MB)
- ANOPR Technical Support Document Analysis Tools
Framework
- Notice of Public Workshop and Availability of Framework Document, Federal Register, March 27, 2006 (PDF 70 KB)
- Rulemaking Framework for Commercial Clothes Washers and Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, and Cooking Products, March 15, 2006 (PDF 402 KB)
Test Procedures
- NOPR Test Procedure for Microwave Ovens, Federal Register, October 17, 2008 (PDF 137 KB)
- Kitchen Ranges, Cooktops, Ovens, and Microwave Ovens Test Procedure Final Rule, October 3, 1997
Public Meetings and Meeting Materials
- NOPR Test Procedure Public Meeting for Microwave Ovens
- NOPR Public Meeting for Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, Cooking Products, and Commercial Clothes Washers
- ANOPR Public Meeting for Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, Cooking Products, and Commercial Clothes Washers
- Framework Document Public Meeting for Commercial Clothes Washers and Residential Dishwashers, Dehumidifiers, and Cooking Products
Additional Information
- Final Rule: Energy Conservation Standards for Electric Cooking Products (Electric Cooktops, Electric Self-Cleaning Ovens, and Microwave Ovens), Federal Register, September 8, 1998 (PDF 143 KB)
- Cooking Products NOPR Technical Support Document
Contact Information
Stephen Witkowski
Program Manager
(202) 586-7463