The calendar may just be flipping to 2022, but in the world of efficiency standards, it is not too early to start looking further ahead. Minimum efficiency standards for new residential central air conditioning and air-source heat pumps will bump up as of 2023.
These standards last increased in 2015. At that time, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) broke out a separate standard for the Southeast and Southwest regions and increased requirements for only those areas. Efficiency standards have not increased for the rest of the U.S. since 2006.