Trump administration cutting Energy Star and climate reporting program
The Trump administration is cutting the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Energy Star program, which highlights energy efficient home appliances, according to sources and images of slides viewed by The Hill.
According to one source, at a meeting Monday, staffers were told that Energy Star was being eliminated, as is the Climate Protection Partnerships division that houses it.
Staffers were also told that the EPA was cutting its Climate Change division, which includes the agency's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. This program requires major polluters to report their planet-warming emissions.
The Hill also viewed images of slides from a meeting with staffers that listed both the Climate Protection Partnership division and the Climate Change division as 'organization and programs eliminated.'
The slides noted that staff 'may be reassigned to other positions.'
'In the briefing we heard that climate work will come to a standstill at EPA,' said Nicole Cantello, president of the AFGE Local 704 , a union representing EPA employees in the Midwest, in an email to The Hill.
'EPA's action is short sighted and disastrous for our people and our planet. With everything the nation is facing in confronting climate change, from dangerous wildfires to uncontrolled flooding, this is the time to ramp up the climate resiliency of our communities,' Cantello added.
The plans were first reported by CNN.
In a statement to The Hill, the EPA noted that it had announced a broad reorganization on Friday.
'With this action, EPA is delivering organizational improvements to the personnel structure that will directly benefit the American people and better advance the agency's core mission, while Powering the Great American Comeback,' said an agency spokesperson in an email.
The news comes after the Trump administration indicated in its skinny budget that it wanted to cut funding from the Office of Atmospheric Protection, which includes Energy Star and the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program.
The White House has sought to cut staff across the board — but has taken particular aim at climate change, which President Trump has repeatedly downplayed.
The president has also lamented pushes toward more energy efficient appliances. Much of his criticism, however, has focused on regulations rather than programs such as Energy Star, which is a voluntary partnership.
Under the program, companies that meet energy efficiency specifications can display the Energy Star logo to inform consumers that the government considers their product to be efficient.
The move to cut the program is getting significant pushback.
'If you wanted to raise families' energy bills, getting rid of the ENERGY STAR label would be a pretty good way,' said Steven Nadel, executive director of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, in a written statement.
'This would take away basic information from consumers who want to choose cost-saving products easily.'
Industry players have also expressed support for Energy Star, with various appliance companies and trade groups writing to the administration in March that it 'reduces burden and aligns with the laudable goal of freedom to choose from a wide variety of appliances.'
Updated at 9:48 p.m. ET.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wall Street Journal
26 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
Trump's ‘Big, Beautiful' Bill Gets Slimmed Down in Senate
WASHINGTON—President Trump's 'big, beautiful' bill is getting smaller just as Republicans head into a crucial week, after the Senate's rules arbiter decided several controversial provisions don't qualify for the special procedure the GOP is using to bypass Democratic opposition. The tax-and-spending megabill centers on extending Trump's 2017 tax cuts, delivering on the spirit of his campaign promises to eliminate taxes on tips and overtime, and providing big lump sums of money for border security and defense. Those new costs are partially offset by spending cuts, in particular to Medicaid.
USA Today
27 minutes ago
- USA Today
Trump rips Massie over Iran strike comments, threatens to campaign for primary challenger
Massie said his "side of the MAGA base" is made up of "non-interventionists" who are "tired from all these wars." President Donald Trump lashed out at Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie, a fellow Republican, over his criticism of U.S. airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear sites and threatened to campaign for the person running against him in the Republican primary next year. Soon after the military operation amid the Israel-Iran war was announced on June 21, Massie said the move was 'not Constitutional' on X. The day after the strike, Massie said it was 'a good week for the neocons and the military-industrial complex, who want war all the time" on CBS's "Face the Nation." Massie said his 'side of the MAGA base' is made up of 'non-interventionists" who are "tired from all these wars." Trump ripped into the lawmaker shortly afterward saying he was 'not MAGA, even though he likes to say he is.' 'Actually, MAGA doesn't want him, doesn't know him, and doesn't respect him,' Trump wrote on Truth Social on June 22. 'He is a negative force who almost always Votes 'NO,' no matter how good something may be.' Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-California, had also introduced a resolution on June 17 to prohibit U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran war without Congressional approval. Describing the bombings of the three nuclear sites as a 'spectacular military success' Trump called Massie a 'lightweight' congressman who was 'weak and ineffective.' The lawmaker was one of two Republicans who voted against his tax bill in the House of Representatives last month. 'He'll undoubtedly vote against the Great, Big, Beautiful Bill, even though non-passage means a 68% Tax Increase for everybody, and many things far worse than that,' wrote Trump. 'MAGA should drop this pathetic LOSER, Tom Massie, like the plague!'
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Israel says it has destroyed Iran's internal security HQ
Israel's military destroyed the headquarters of Iran's domestic policing arm, expanding its blows beyond Tehran's military and nuclear facilities as it continues to bombard its Middle East rival, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Wednesday. 'Air Force planes have just destroyed the headquarters of the Iranian regime's internal security — the central suppression arm of the Iranian dictator,' Katz wrote Wednesday in a post on social platform X, according to translation. 'As we promised — we will continue to target symbols of power and strike the ayatollahs' regime everywhere,' he continued. 'The tornado storm continues to strike Tehran.' Iran's internal security operations include the country's massive Basij Resistance Force, which polices dissent in the country. The latest target comes days after Israel launched a surprise attack on Iranian nuclear facilities and military outposts, killing several officials and scientists and setting off retaliatory attacks from Tehran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has argued that his country's strikes are crucial to ending a nuclear threat from the Islamic republic, which has long maintained that its uranium enrichment program is meant for civilian purposes. President Trump has meanwhile edged closer toward U.S. intervention in the military conflict to back up Israel. 'I may do it, I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do,' he told reporters Wednesday. 'I can tell you this, that Iran's got a lot of trouble.' 'And they want to negotiate,' the president added, referring to talks with the U.S. to dismantle its nuclear program. 'And I say why didn't you negotiate with me before all this death and destruction.' Despite increasing pressure on Iran amid the conflict, Trump has thus far pushed back on plans to target Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei directly. The president said Tuesday Khamenei would be an 'easy target' but that there are no plans in the works to take him out — 'at least right now.' Iran on Wednesday cautioned the U.S. against intervening, with the supreme leader saying it could lead to an 'all-out war' and pledging to 'never surrender.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
