The government’s EnergyStar seal of approval is meant to help consumers choose more efficient products. But a recent audit by the Government Accountability Office shows the program is vulnerable to fraud and abuse.
As part of the nine-month long audit, the GAO submitted 20 proposals for fake products to the program which is run by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. Fifteen of the fictitious products got EnergyStar approval — including a gasoline-powered alarm clock and an air purifier consisting of a space heater with a feather duster pasted on top.
From the GAO report:
We found that for most of the bogus products we submitted, the Energy Star program preventive controls were ineffective, rendering the program vulnerable to fraud and abuse. Our work was not designed to systematically test all controls within the Energy Star program, but approval of 15 fictitious products submitted with bogus energy-efficiency data shows weaknesses in the programs preventative controls. A lack of controls over the access to Energy Star product certification labels exposes the program to unauthorized use. Ineffective and nonexistent controls over validation of claimed energy efficiencies could also allow firms to fraudulently overstate product efficiencies.
The government requires many agencies to choose EnergyStar products when available and, as part of the stimulus bill, offered hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks for consumers buying EnergyStar products, The New York Times reports.
The GAO called for more third-party testing for EnergyStar certification. Last week, the Department of Energy vowed to strengthen the program.
