According to a July 20, New York Times article: "After government testing showed that scores of consumer products carrying the Energy Star label did not deserve the listing, a wave of class-action lawsuits was filed against the companies that manufacture the products.

"Now, at least one major manufacturer wants Congress to ban the lawsuits and is threatening to withdraw from Energy Star, an Environmental Protection Agency program, unless it gets its way. But consumer advocates say such lawsuits are a healthy form of enforcement.

"“By eliminating consumers’ access to the civil justice system, corporations will not be held accountable in court for swindling customers,” said Sarah Jones, a spokeswoman for the trial lawyers’ organization, the American Association for Justice.

"In 2010, congressional auditors tested the system by submitting applications to apply the Energy Star label to ridiculous products, like a gasoline-powered alarm clock. Many of the applications were approved. One company that built refrigerators, LG, disconnected the ice maker during the efficiency tests. It was caught by Consumer Reports magazine.

"So Congress ordered changes. Now, products must be checked by an independent, certified laboratory, and they are subject to spot checks on units pulled from store shelves.

"...an E.P.A. survey found that the Energy Star logo was influential among 91 percent of consumers, second only to the Good Housekeeping Seal, at 92 percent. In comparison, the survey found, the Better Business Bureau is at 79 percent, and the safety organization Underwriters Laboratories, or UL, is at 75 percent."

Deb Gaber