"The Trump administration tried to end the government's Energy Star program last year, but now Congress has passed — and President Trump has signed into law — bipartisan budget legislation that has the potential to strengthen the energy efficiency program by giving it dedicated funding.
Such policy reversals have so far been rare for the Trump administration. But pushback against killing Energy Star came from a broad swath of stakeholders, including industries like real estate and construction, to which President Trump has longstanding ties. More than 1,000 manufacturers, home builders, advocacy groups and local governments signed a letter last April asking the administration to keep the program.
"What it shows very clearly is that Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, strongly support Energy Star and want to see it continued," says Ben Evans, federal legislative director for the U.S. Green Building Council, which advocated for saving the program.
Lawmakers allocated just over $33 million to the Environmental Protection Agency for Energy Star, slightly more than the 2024 fiscal year. That also reverses a decade-long trend, since the first Trump administration, of reducing the program's budget, according to the Congressional Research Service. That leaves the program financially healthy, though it still faces staffing challenges."
Jeff Brady reports for NPR February 3, 2026.
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