California To Set Energy Restrictions For LCD, Plasma TVs
California lawmakers are working on a plan that will require makers of flat-screen televisions to market only the most energy efficient models beginning in 2011.
But television makers say such regulations would hamper development and cause prices to increase for consumers. Also, some firms may be unable to develop energy saving televisions in time, which would drive consumers to purchase sets from outside of the state.
"It would kill dealerships because people would buy on Amazon and have them shipped in and maybe not pay sales tax," said Mike McMaster, president of Wilshire Entertainment Inc. "If a customer wants a 12-cylinder car or a 60-inch plasma that uses this much energy, they’re going to get it."
Energy regulators from the California Energy Commission argue that the annual amount of energy saved from using greener televisions could be enough to power over 86,000 homes. The average household could save up to $40 each year by using energy efficient set. Similar rules requiring refrigerators and other domestic appliances to be energy efficient have been in place for decades.
Televisions account for about 10 percent of the average Californian’s monthly household electricity bill. LCD — liquid crystal display — sets use 43 percent more electricity, on average, than conventional tube TVs. And plasma TVs use more than three times as much power as old sets.
The plan is expected to be approved in 2009 and will be phased in over two years with a first tier taking effect on Jan. 1, 2011, and a more stringent, second tier on Jan. 1, 2013.
"I think this is basically doable," said Energy Commission member Arthur Rosenfeld.
"Refrigerators and air conditioner manufacturers have grown up with standards, and, now, they are generally considered successes." he said. "But this is a new wrinkle for the TV industry."
California should apply the same efficiency standards to televisions that it has used for the last 32 years with refrigerators and other products, argued Duane Larson, director of customer energy efficiency at Pacific Gas & Electric Co.
Two years ago, PG&E began re-thinking the role consumer electronics play in modern households. Â
"We project that by 2010, one-quarter of the energy in a house will be used by consumer electronics," Larson told the Los Angeles Times.
But from an economic standpoint, the regulations may not be helpful, said Shawn DuBravac, an economist with the Consumer Electronics Assn.
DuBravac told an Energy Commission workshop that 30 percent of televisions unable to meet regulations would translate into a loss of $130 million in tax revenue and 15,800 jobs statewide.
But Rosenfeld told the LA Times that DuBravac’s calculations sound “like arguments we heard from General Motors and Ford that SUVs are more profitable to make and create more jobs," he said.
"There’s a catch to it, as we all know."
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