On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that removes restrictions on water flow from showerheads. These limits were previously put in place by former Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama to promote water efficiency and conservation. Trump’s new order is part of his campaign to "make America’s showers great again," according to a fact sheet released by the White House.
The Obama and Biden administrations aimed to reduce water usage, and their regulations specified that showerheads, even those with multiple nozzles, should not exceed a total flow of 2.5 gallons per minute. Trump’s order, however, seeks to revert to a 1992 federal law that allows each nozzle to use up to 2.5 gallons per minute. This means that a showerhead with four nozzles could potentially release up to 10 gallons of water per minute.
Trump expressed his frustration with the previous regulations, stating that they made his showers "weak and worthless." He has often mentioned the difficulty of getting enough water pressure to properly wash his hair, saying he sometimes has to stand under the shower for too long. He believes this change will improve the shower experience for many Americans.
The executive order tasks Energy Secretary Chris Wright with redefining what constitutes a showerhead in the U.S. The White House criticized the previous administration’s definitions as excessively long and complicated, contrasting it with the simplicity of the Oxford English Dictionary’s definition.
This isn’t the first time Trump has tackled showerhead regulations. During his first term, he relaxed the rules to allow for multiple nozzles to each spray 2.5 gallons per minute, a change that was finalized in December 2020. However, Biden reversed this policy in 2021, reinstating the previous limits.
The implications of this order could be significant. The average American family spends about $1,000 a year on water, and experts suggest that using water-efficient fixtures can save households over $380 annually. The Environmental Protection Agency reports that showerheads that qualify for the WaterSense label use no more than two gallons per minute.
As water shortages become a growing concern due to climate change and population growth, experts warn that these changes may not align with long-term sustainability goals. The debate over showerhead regulations is just one part of a larger conversation about water usage and conservation in the United States.