The EPA proposes rolling back Biden-era limits on greenhouse gas from air conditioners, raising industry debate and concerns from environmental groups.
Trump revisits climate rules on air conditioning gases
The Trump administration is preparing to roll back rules on greenhouse gas from air conditioners. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed loosening a Biden-era regulation designed to phase down hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, potent climate-warming gases used in cooling equipment. The plan would undermine one of the few bipartisan agreements on climate policy, once hailed by environmental groups as a rare victory for the planet.
The Trump plan on greenhouse gas from air conditioners
HFCs are synthetic gases made of fluorine, carbon and hydrogen, widely used in refrigerators, air conditioners and cooling systems. They are considered dangerous climate pollutants, with a warming effect thousands of times stronger than carbon dioxide. The Biden administration’s program aimed to cut their production and consumption by 85% by 2036.
However, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin argued that the deadlines were too strict, leaving companies without enough time to transition. He claimed that moving to alternative refrigerant blends could trigger shortages, potentially leaving households without air conditioning during peak summer heat.
The air-conditioning industry disputed that claim, calling it exaggerated. While supply challenges did emerge in 2025, industry leaders said they were quickly resolved. Extending deadlines now, they argue, could hurt U.S. manufacturers that have already restructured production under the current schedule.
The Trump administration’s proposal would delay the shift to cleaner refrigerants across sectors, from residential cooling to supermarket refrigeration and even semiconductor manufacturing. It would also allow greater use of high-polluting refrigerants in certain equipment, including warehouse freezers.
The Biden-era Technology Transitions Rule
In October 2023, the EPA issued the Technology Transitions Rule, restricting the use of high-GWP (global warming potential) HFCs in refrigeration systems, air conditioners, heat pumps and fire suppression equipment. The rule banned production, distribution, sales, installation, import and export starting January 1, 2025.
To ease industry concerns, later amendments extended compliance deadlines: a December 2023 rule allowed the installation of high-GWP HFC equipment manufactured before 2025 through January 2026. Another revision in December 2024 gave variable refrigerant flow systems more time, permitting installations until January 2027, and in some cases until January 2028.
Shutdown adds uncertainty to Trump’s plan
The EPA’s proposal was unveiled just hours before a federal government shutdown began, triggered by a budget standoff between President Trump and Democrats. With federal employees, including EPA staff, on furlough, all pending regulatory activity is paused. The shutdown could slow efforts to dismantle dozens of Biden-era climate measures.
Trump contradicts his own earlier stance
The Trump of the second term is far tougher than the Trump of the first. In 2020, at least one initiative benefited public health: the significant federal funding allocated to develop Covid-19 vaccines. It was the Republican president himself who signed a law directing the EPA to curb climate pollution. The measure was part of a broader Covid-19 relief package approved by Congress near the end of Trump’s first term.
Biden merely completed the framework set in motion by his predecessor, but now the U.S. government is seeking to dismantle a regulation born out of one of the few bipartisan agreements between Democrats and Republicans.
Environmentalists raise concerns
Environmental groups warn that the proposed changes would deliver negligible benefits to industry but cause significant harm to the climate. “This won’t make frozen French fries or computer chips cheaper,” said David Doniger, senior strategic director for climate and clean energy at the Natural Resources Defense Council, in an interview with the New York Times. “We’re talking about extremely powerful greenhouse gases that linger in the atmosphere for decades.”
Once published in the Federal Register, the proposal will be open to public comment for 45 days, and the EPA has said it will hold a virtual hearing before finalizing the rule.
