Cash for Clunkers idea may move to appliances next

(NEWSCHANNEL 3) – The Cash for Clunkers program has proven to be a big success, and under budget.

The government said on Wednesday that dealers submitted 690,000 vouchers totaling close to three billion dollars.

Japanese automakers accounted for 41 percent of sales, while American automakers got 39 percent of the business. The Toyota Carolla was the most popular new-car purchase.

Cash for Clunkers turned out to be a temporary jolt for the car industry, but now it could be Cash for your Clunker Appliances. The federal government is debating whether to pour money into the appliance industry.

The program would basically allow people to take, for example, an old refrigerator, and trade it in for a new, energy efficient one, earning a rebate of perhaps $200. However, finding out exactly how the program was work is proving difficult.

At Rawlinson's Appliances in Vicksburg, it's clear that selling and servicing appliances is the entire business, and owner Julie Merrill wants to keep it that way, but she's still trying to figure out whether a cash for clunker appliance program would impact her.

"There's a lot of confusion and rumors, and so we'll all be learning about this program very soon," said Merrill.

For Merrill, the devil is in the details when it comes to a potential rebate on something like a fridge.

"People have been asking how much the rebate might be, they've been asking when the rebates will start, they've been asking how the rebates will be doled out," said Merrill.

The federal stimulus bill has given $300 million to help people buy things like refrigerators through refrigerators, but it's up to states to decide whether they want some of that money. The State of Michigan has applied and would potentially run a rebate program for home appliances.

All of this is being considered because Cash for Clunkers ended up working so well at temporarily boosting sales, with car lots going from full to empty in a matter of weeks.

Merrill says she'll match prices with any competitor, but she says that just like every other industry, sales have lagged. She does however believe that boosting sales to encourage better efficiency is worthwhile.

"I think people will benefit if they replace an older refrigerator with a new refrigerator that's more efficient," said Merrill.

Now, Merrill is just waiting on some details.

The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers says rebates would be direct and immediate to the consumer, but nobody knows whether that means right in the store, or in some other manner.