On January 10, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the Final ENERGY STAR Version 5.0 Furnace Specification. The final specification is unchanged from the final draft, meaning that to be certified under ENERGY STAR residential gas-fired furnaces in northern U.S. states must meet an AFUE of ≥ 97% and residential gas-fired furnaces in southern states must meet an AFUE of ≥95% (both condensing only standards). These new specifications will go into effect on July 31, 2026.
APGA has been engaging in the revisions to this ENERGY STAR specification for some time. Recall, APGA submitted joint comments in May 2024 with the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA), American Gas Association (AGA), and Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors - National Association (PHCC) in response to EPA's initial draft specification. At that time, EPA proposed an alternative to sunsetting the product specification that the agency had originally been proposed: increasing the residential gas furnace requirement to 97% AFUE from the current requirement of 90/95% AFUE starting in 2026. While a marked improvement over a complete sunset of the specification, the joint comments still raised a number of concerns with the initial draft specification.
More recently, on December 19, APGA jointly submitted comments in response to ENERGY STAR’s Final Draft Version 5.0 Furnace Specifications. APGA filed jointly with the National Propane Gas Association (NPGA). To read submitted comments, click here.
In these more recent comments, APGA noted its appreciation for EPA providing a regional split within the specification, an issue that was raised in previous comments. However, APGA and NPGA flagged a number of other concerns, including how the proposal could prevent reliable and innovative gas-fired appliances from being a part of the ENERGY STAR program. Furthermore, APGA noted that EPA still failed to articulate credible grounds or a reason to change the current AFUE, especially with the uncertain future of the Department of Energy's (DOE) appliance efficiency standards for gas-fired residential furnaces that are currently the subject of a lawsuit in federal courts by APGA and others.
APGA will continue to engage in the development of specifications for the ENERGY STAR program, especially as they pertain to gas-fired appliances or energy choice in homes and businesses.
For questions on this article, please contact Sydney Novoa of APGA by phone at 202-464-0834 or email at snovoa@apga.org.