Not Just Gas Stoves: Biden Admin Rule Would Outlaw Nearly All Portable Gas Generators
Crackdown comes as country faces increased risk of power outages
A proposed Consumer Product Safety Commission rule limits the amount of carbon monoxide a product can emit, with the commission admitting that 95 percent of portable gas generators on the market cannot comply with its new standard. As a result, industry leaders say, the rule will prompt widespread generator shortages, as manufacturers only have six months to design generators that meet the proposed regulation. That process normally takes years, Portable Generator Manufacturersâ Association executive director Susan Orenga told the Washington Free Beacon.
The rule proposal comes just months after Biden-backed commissioner Richard Trumka Jr. teased a similar regulatory ban on gas stoves, which he called a âhidden hazard.â It also comes as many Americans face an increased risk of power outages as the country increasingly relies on green energy to produce its electricity. A whopping two-thirds of North America faces an âelevated riskâ of power blackouts this summer, a leading grid watchdog found in May, a vulnerability that stems from Americaâs increase in green power generation and decrease in fossil fuel power plants. California, for example, saw power outages in the summer of 2022 as electricity demand surged.
Portable gas generators can help those who experience a power outage keep the lights on, and nearly five million households use them. Should the Biden administration finalize its rule, however, the generators could become difficult to obtain. The commissionâs rule prohibits manufacturers from stockpiling non-compliant generators prior to the ruleâs enactment.
Beyond the Consumer Product Safety Commission, President Joe Bidenâs Energy Department has unveiled a slew of environmental regulations to fight climate change. The department says its proposed gas stove rule, for example, would effectively ban half of all models on the U.S. market from being sold. The department has also proposed or finalized energy efficiency rules targeting washing machines, refrigerators, and lightbulbs. âCollectively,â the department said in February, âthese energy actions ⊠support President Bidenâs ambitious clean energy agenda to combat the climate crisis.â
Many portable generator manufacturers already impose voluntary standards to keep consumers safe from carbon monoxide emissions. The Portable Generator Manufacturersâ Association standard requires a generator to automatically shut off when carbon monoxide concentrations hit certain levels. It also imposes product warning labels and durability requirements for the shutoff systems.
Still, the Biden administration is looking to adopt more stringent carbon monoxide emission caps from Underwriters Laboratories, an international product safety company. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says its rule is necessary due to low compliance with voluntary standards in the gas generator marketâit estimates that just 30 percent of models comply with the Portable Generator Manufacturersâ Association standard. The association, however, says roughly 75 percent of the market is compliant with its standards.
Only one manufacturer, Techtronic Industries, certifies its products to a level that would mostly satisfy the commissionâs proposed rule. But none of its models appear on best-seller and top-rated lists from Electric Generators Direct, Popular Mechanics, or Forbes. Only a few of the companyâs models, meanwhile, are strong enough to power a home during an outage. The companyâs models are also more expensive than their competitors.
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