Colorado goes statewide with ultra-low NOx furnace rule

A Colorado law that took effect January 1 requires new residential gas furnace and water heater models sold in the state to be ultra-low NOx or meet the latest Energy Star standards.

Why it matters: While some states have local ultra-low NOx equipment requirements, Colorado is the first to implement such a standard at the state level for gas furnaces.

• The change is intended to improve air quality but could mean steep upfront costs for consumers.

What’s happening: Passed in 2023, ‘HB23-1161’ established efficiency standards for a range of appliances and fixtures sold in the state, also including air purifiers and thermostats. 

• It notes that as of this year, no one can “manufacture, distribute, sell, offer for sale, lease, or offer for lease in Colorado any new water heater or fan-type central furnace” unless emissions are within certain limits — thresholds only met by ultra-low NOx equipment — or the product is certified to the most recent version of the Energy Star program. 
• Fines could be assessed at up to $2,000 per violation, with a $500,000 max. 

Of note: Equipment held in inventory on January 1 can still be sold, according to the law’s text. 

What they’re saying: Jim Anley, president at distributor Charles D. Jones Co., told Homepros he became aware of the change about six months ago. “This was hush-hush,” he said. “To me, it’s the most asinine thing that could ever happen.” 

• Anley stocked up on about six months of pre-regulation equipment to sell through and suggested the law might prompt contractors to procure equipment from across state lines. “We’re 22 locations in four states,” he added. “We could play some games — I’ll watch how I word this — but we don’t want to get fined.”
• Dawn Wood, office manager at Comfy Cave Heating & Air, serving the Denver area, told Homepros that so far, “a lot of customers are not happy with that price raise,” and have the attitude that, ‘We’re not interested in California laws. We live in Colorado.’ 

Yes, but: Some are lauding the environmental and health benefits. 

• “There’s a lot of days in the summer when you can’t see the mountains anymore,” Kirsten Schatz, a clean air advocate with nonprofit Colorado Public Interest Research Group, told Homepros. Shifting to more energy-efficient appliances “definitely will help with monthly utility bill costs,” she added, “and the cleanest form of energy that we can use is the energy we don’t even need to use in the first place.”
• “The efficiency increase and the reduction of what we call [nitrogen oxides], that’s going to help with smog and then asthma,” Matthew Peiffer, an HVAC instructor at CMU Tech, told a local news outlet. “People who suffer with asthma, they are affected by NOx.”