Bill would ban most fluorescent lamps, tighten appliance efficiency standards in Massachusetts by 2027

A bill filed Jan. 17, 2025, in the Massachusetts General Court would bar most compact and linear fluorescent lamps from sale in the state starting Jan. 1, 2027, and would update state efficiency standards for faucets, showerheads, commercial ovens and dishwashers, computer server power supplies, gas fireplaces, large battery charger systems and residential water softeners.

The legislation, presented by Representative Marjorie C. Decker and co-petitioned by James B. Eldridge and Representative Natalie M. Higgins, would amend sections of the Massachusetts General Laws (chapter 21H and chapter 25B) to add definitions, set performance criteria and create enforcement mechanisms. The bill was referred under Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy at filing.

If enacted, section 6J of chapter 21H would be changed so that “on and after Jan. 1, 2027, no person shall offer for final sale or distribute in this state as a new manufactured product a screw or bayonet base type compact fluorescent lamp, a pin-base type compact fluorescent lamp, or a linear fluorescent lamp.” The bill inserts detailed statutory definitions for “compact fluorescent lamp” and “linear fluorescent lamp,” including color-temperature (listed as 1,700K to 24,000K) and Duv tolerances, tube diameters and tube length ranges (linear lamps defined to include lengths from 0.5 to 8.0 feet).

The proposal includes a set of exemptions. The prohibitions would not apply to lamps designed and marketed exclusively for image capture and projection (examples listed include photocopying and film/video projection), lamps with high ultraviolet output (including germicidal lamps emitting near 253.7 nanometers), lamps marketed exclusively for disinfection or fly trapping meeting specified spectral proportions, lamps designed for ozone generation, lamps for coral zooxanthellae symbiosis that emit a high proportion of 400–480 nm radiation, certain sunlamp products as defined in 21 C.F.R. §1040.20(b)(9), lamps for medical or veterinary diagnosis or treatment or medical devices, lamps used in pharmaceutical manufacturing or quality control, and lamps for spectroscopy and photometric applications. The bill also exempts compact fluorescent lamps used to replace vehicle lamps in vehicles manufactured on or before Jan. 1, 2020.

Enforcement provisions give the state department authority to inspect distributors and retailers and to investigate complaints. The bill requires the department to issue a warning for an initial violation; violations after a warning may carry civil penalties of up to $100 per offense, and subsequent violations may be penalized up to $500 per offense. The bill treats each lamp offered, sold, or distributed in violation, and each day the violation occurs, as a separate offense. If repeated violations are found, the department must report to the Attorney General, who may seek an injunction in state court. The department also may adopt regulations necessary to implement and enforce the new requirements.

The bill also amends chapter 25B to add and revise definitions and to tighten product standards across several categories. Key changes include: - Faucets and aerators: residential kitchen faucets and replacement aerators would be capped at a flow rate not greater than 1.2 gpm (with optional temporary flow of 2.2 gpm at 60 psi when tested under the referenced federal test procedure). - Showerheads: maximum flow rate set at 1.8 gpm at 80 psi when tested under the specified federal procedure. - Commercial equipment: commercial ovens and commercial dishwashers included in the scope of current ENERGY STAR product specifications (commercial ovens Version 3.0; commercial dishwashers Version 3.0) must meet those qualification criteria. - Computer server power supplies: Computer Server Power Supply Units within the scope of ENERGY STAR’s Computer Servers Version 4.0 must meet that specification’s certification criteria. - Gas fireplaces: requirements include automatic extinguishment of pilot flame when the main burner is extinguished, prevention of any ignition source for the main burner from operating continuously for more than seven days since last main-burner use, and a minimum heating efficiency of 50 percent when tested to CSA P.4.1-15 (as amended or revised). - Large battery charger systems and UPS: such systems are defined and must meet specified efficiency and test-method requirements referenced to Title 20 of the California Code of Regulations (C.C.R.), with “large” defined as BCS with rated input power over 2 kW. The bill directs that the cited C.C.R. sections shall be those adopted on or before the bill’s effective date but allows the Commissioner to amend state rules to conform to later changes in the referenced C.C.R. sections. - Residential water softeners: must comply with NSF/ANSI 44 and meet an efficiency rating of at least 4,000 grains of total hardness exchange per pound of salt (sodium chloride equivalency) and water consumption during regeneration of not more than 4 gallons per 1,000 grains of hardness removed during the service cycle.

The bill would make sale or offering for sale, lease or rent of new products listed in the bill unlawful in the state on or after Jan. 1, 2027 unless the product meets the new standards. It also states that, one year after the sales restrictions take effect, those products may not be installed for compensation in the state unless they meet or exceed the efficiency standards in the section.

The bill explicitly permits the state Commissioner to adjust rule definitions and minimum efficiency standards so they conform with subsequently adopted modifications to the referenced portions of the California C.C.R. The filing also cross-references federal and industry standards and test procedures (ENERGY STAR specifications, CSA P.4.1-15, NSF/ANSI 44, 21 C.F.R., and test procedures in Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations) as the bases for compliance and testing.

Representative Marjorie C. Decker presented the bill (House No. 3477) with James B. Eldridge and Representative Natalie M. Higgins listed as petitioners; the bill was submitted to the Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy committee on filing. There is no recorded vote or committee action in the filing document; the text describes proposed statutory changes and regulatory authorities but does not show enactment or adoption dates beyond the stated prospective compliance and sales dates.

If the measure advances, retailers, manufacturers and installers selling or using covered lamps and appliances in Massachusetts would need to review the specified definitions, exemptions, testing standards and compliance timelines to determine whether products must be removed from inventory or upgraded to meet the new standards.