Trump executive order restores consumer choice for home appliances

In 2018, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) petitioned the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to adopt regulations allowing dishwashers that complete a full cycle in under an hour. DOE granted the petition, but President Biden, on his first day in office, sought to roll back the faster dishwashers rules. This reversal was challenged in Louisiana v. DOE before the Fifth Circuit which found that DOE lacked the legal authority to regulate the water use of dishwashers and clothes washers. Despite the court’s decision, the Biden administration moved forward and reissued the water restrictions anyway.

On Friday, President Trump acknowledged that federal energy and water restrictions have caused dishwashers “to take two hours or more to complete a normal load of dishes—about twice the time of pre-standards models.” This mirrors what CEI’s noted in its original rulemaking petition that the average cycle time has “doubled due to the current energy standards.”

Statement from Devin Watkins, attorney at the Competitive Enterprise Institute and author of the original petition for rulemaking on dishwashers:

“Federal limits on water and energy use have made appliances slower and less effective, frustrating consumers and limiting their choices. The water restrictions on dishwashers and clothes washers were found to violate the law by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, yet the Biden administration imposed them anyway. President Trump’s new executive order marks a return to consumer choice—allowing Americans to purchase appliances that are faster, more effective, and better suited to their needs.”

More from CEI:

• Appeals court rejects DOE’s attempt to eliminate fast dishwashers