FTC to Require EnergyGuide Labels on Portable Air Conditioners
The Federal Trade Commission is finalizing new EnergyGuide labeling requirements for portable air conditioners. Beginning Oct. 1, 2022, manufacturers must attach yellow EnergyGuide labels to portable air conditioners, and sellers must post label information to their websites and catalogs. The label will be similar to the current room air conditioner label in content and format, the FTC said in a final rule published Feb. 12.
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The final rule adopts the same definition for portable air conditioners as that found in relevant Energy Department energy efficiency standards: “a portable encased assembly, other than a packaged terminal air conditioner, room air conditioner, or dehumidifier, that delivers cooled, conditioned air to an enclosed space, and is powered by single-phase electric current. It includes a source of refrigeration and may include additional means for air circulation and heating.”
The final rule also requires manufacturers to update efficiency descriptors for central air conditioners to conform to upcoming changes to Energy Department efficiency standards. That change will be effective Jan. 1, 2023, the FTC said.
The FTC had previously proposed the EnergyGuide labeling requirements in 2016 (see 1609120019), but the rulemaking was put on hold when DOE withdrew a final rule on energy efficiency standards for portable air conditioners following President Donald Trump’s regulatory freeze. DOE in January 2020 published the final energy efficiency standards pursuant to court order.