Trump wants to roll back Biden’s standards for toilets and light bulbs

President Donald Trump on Tuesday moved to revert to older standards for light bulbs as well as toilets, showers and other water-using appliances, a day after signing an order promoting plastic straws and rescinding a plan to reduce single-use plastics.

Trump said he would call on the Environmental Protection Agency to go back to water standards from his first White House term that would also affect sinks, washing machines and dishwashers.

In a post on his private social media platform, Trump wrote that he was directing EPA Secretary Lee Zeldin “to immediately go back to my Environmental Orders,” calling them common sense.

“I look forward to signing these orders,” Trump added.

On Monday, Trump signed an executive order encouraging the U.S. government and consumers to buy plastic drinking straws, part of a broader weakening of environmental commitments by the Republican president after taking office on Jan. 20. Trump first served in the White House from 2017-2021.

Trump’s Democratic predecessor, President Joe Biden, had embraced a host of environmental measures, including new energy-efficiency requirements for household clothes washers and dishwashers that capped water usage. Conservatives had challenged the rules in court.

(This story has been corrected to reflect that no action has been taken yet in the headline)

—Susan Heavey, Reuters