Washington tunes in to TV energy standards

by Noah Horowitz

When we sat to watch the Super Bowl on our big flat-screen televisions on Sunday, we hoped for a good game (we got it) and we knew the hi-def picture would be great.

What wasn’t so clear to most of us is how much energy  those new, bigger TVs consume: TVs now represent about 10 percent of U.S. household electricity use, when the DVR and other peripherals are considered. Some new models use more energy per year than the kitchen fridge.

Fortunately, the Washington Legislature is tuned in to the fact that rapid adoption of these new sets is unnecessarily driving up home electricity bills at a time when Washingtonians can least afford it. And they are trying to do something about it while preserving the choice and quality consumers expect.

Both the House and Senate are considering bills to require manufacturers to reduce the electricity used by new TVs by up to a third in 2011 and by half in 2013.

These new standards, according to independent analysis by the Appliance Standards Awareness Project, will save Washington consumers some $25 million a year by 2020. At the same time, they will make it less likely that utilities will have to build expensive new power plants that will ultimately be paid for through higher bills.

I live in California, where last year we adopted the very same standards, so I have some perspective on what’s going on in Olympia on this issue.

Like they did in my state, lobbyists from the D.C.-based Consumer Electronics Association are roaming the halls of the Capitol incorrectly claiming these standards will cost jobs, stifle innovation and result in empty shelves.  Their rhetoric is in complete contradiction with the manufacturers’ actions.  Earlier this month at the Consumer Electronics Show these same companies bragged about the energy efficiency of their new 2010 models, most of which already comply with the proposed 2013 standards and come with all the latest features, including the ability to play 3D content and connect to the internet.

When this gets pointed out, the lobbyists argue we don’t need mandatory standards since the industry is already moving toward greater efficiency. This neglects a critically important fact.

There will always be stragglers with inefficient models that will wind up costing consumers more than they bargain for in the long run. Enforceable standards will stop these rogue companies from dumping wasteful products on unsuspecting Washington consumers.

Legislators bombarded by industry lobbyist’s scare tactics need to remember trade associations have been spreading these bogeyman stories on behalf of manufacturers for more than 30 years. They do it every time California considers energy efficiency standards for any product. California has moved ahead anyway and the rest of the country has benefited. And you know what? Today’s air conditioners keep you just as cool, your refrigerator keeps the food just as fresh.  And after passage of the TV standards you’ll still get that great “high def” picture. You will pay for less energy.

It is telling that Vizio, the leading seller of flat panel TVs in North America, courageously broke from the CEA pack to support TV efficiency standards, calling on the California Energy Commission to make it happen sooner.

By passing TV efficiency standards, Washington can help accelerate the transformation toward more efficient TVs and prevent manufacturers from dumping their energy-guzzling TVs on the state’s consumers.  It is time for sound policy to prevail and for the industry to cease its irresponsible misinformation campaign.

Horowitz is a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, where he was the Council’s lead advocate for TV efficiency standards adopted in 2009 by the California Energy Commission.

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