What In-House Lawyers, Regulatory Professionals and Compliance Officers Should Know About The Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA)

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act, 42 U.S.C. § 6291 et seq. (“EPCA”), sets, or delegates to the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) the authority to set, minimum efficiency or conservation standards for over 30 appliances and sub-categories of appliances, together with test procedures for determining compliance with those standards. Covered consumer products include a variety of products, such as dishwashers, clothes dryers, water heaters, televisions, battery chargers and external power suppliers, as well as certain lighting, plumbing and commercial and industrial products. DOE maintains a current list of covered products here.

DOE’s authority extends broadly to “covered products” that are “distributed in commerce,” a term that includes both importation and delivery for introduction into commerce. The statute’s key mandate is that it is illegal for a manufacturer to “distribute in commerce” any “covered product” that is subject to an EPCA standard and that does not meet the standard’s minimum efficiency or conservation requirements. DOE may both halt U.S. sales of non-compliant products, and impose a civil penalty of up to $449 (currently) on each individual non-compliant unit sold, for a time frame stretching back up to five years.

This webinar will provide an overview of the statute, EPCA compliance, manufacturers’ obligations, how DOE makes noncompliance determinations and processes enforcement actions, strategies for companies with products subject to EPCA conservation standards, and some initial insights into how the new Administration is approaching this 30-year old statute.

Speakers:

• Richard Lehfeldt, Partner
  
• Matthew Welling, Associate