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Vermont Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards

Act 139 of 2018

As required by Act 139 of 2018, Vermont Department of Public Service has developed Vermont Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards for 17 appliances and water conservation devices to which the State’s efficiency standards under 9 V.S.A. chapter 74 did not previously apply:

  • air compressors,
  • commercial dishwashers,
  • commercial fryers,
  • commercial hot-food holding cabinets,
  • commercial steam cookers,
  • computers
  • computer monitors,
  • faucets,
  • high color rendering index fluorescent lamps,
  • portable air conditioners,
  • portable electric spas,
  • residential ventilating fans,
  • showerheads,
  • spray sprinkler bodies,
  • uninterruptible power supplies,
  • urinals, and
  • water coolers

* ​Please Note: The sale of T12 fixtures is no longer allowed in Vermont. In addition to creating minimum efficiency standards for the the above products, Act 139 also prohibits the sale of T12 fixtures in Vermont:

"On or after July 1, 2019, no new luminaire [fixture] that is designed and marketed to operate with T12 fluorescent lamps may be sold or offered for sale in the State. This prohibition shall not apply to a luminaire that the seller purchased on or before June 30, 2019." 

Rule 19P-039, which contains the specific standards for each product, was adopted on October 3, 2019 by the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules.

Act 42 of 2017

Vermont Department of Public Service Rule 18-001 on Vermont Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards was adopted on January 11, 2018. This rule will implement in Vermont, as a matter of state law, the federal appliance efficiency and water conservation standards currently in effect pursuant to 10 C.F.R. Parts 430 and 431 only if and when those federal regulations are repealed or declared void. The provisions of this rule apply to the following types of new products sold, offered for sale, or installed in the State:

  • Medium voltage dry-type distribution transformers.
  • Metal halide lamp fixtures.
  • Residential furnaces and residential boilers.
  • Single-voltage external AC to DC power supplies.
  • State-regulated incandescent reflector lamps.
  • General service lamps.

* Notice regarding general service lamps (GSLs):

Vermont Act 42 (2017) amended 9 V.S.A. § 2795 to require that, effective January 20, 2020, Vermont "shall adopt a minimum efficacy standard for general service lamps of 45 lumens per watt, when tested in accordance with 10 C.F.R. § 430.23(gg) as that provision existed on January 19, 2017."

However, the scope of the definition of GSLs is currently in litigation. 

In 2017, the United States Department of Energy (US DOE) adopted rules expanding the definition of “general service lamp” covered by efficacy standards under the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act.  Also in 2017, the Vermont legislature adopted the same GSL definition in Vermont, and directed the Department of Public Service to adopt a rule establishing a 45 lumens per watt efficacy standard for these GSLs.  9 V.S.A. §§ 2793(15), 2795(a)(7).  This rule was adopted in Vermont in 2018.

In September 2019, the US DOE withdrew the 2017 rules expanding the definition of GSL.  In November 2019, Vermont, together with other state and municipal entities, filed a legal challenge to the withdrawal of the 2017 definition, so the 2017 definition may be reinstated.  Please contact Keith Levenson keith.levenson@vermont.gov with any questions on the status of this litigation.

In the interim, at a minimum and without expressing any opinion about other lamp types, the following relatively high-selling lamps are subject to Vermont’s 45 lumens per watt standard as of January 20, 2020:

  • Medium screw base bulbs with shapes B, BA, CA, F, G-16½, G-25, G-30, S, and M-14 rated at less than or equal to 40 Watts.
  • Medium screw base T shape bulbs rated at less than or equal to 40 Watts or having a length of more than 10 inches.
  • 3-way incandescent lamps.
  • Reflector lamps that are less than 2.25 inches in diameter.
  • Incandescent reflector lamps of 50 watts or less that are ER30, BR30, BR40, or ER40 lamps.
  • Incandescent reflector lamps rated at 65 watts that are BR30, BR40, or ER40 lamps.
  • R20 incandescent reflector lamps rated 45 watts or less.
  • High-lumen output incandescent lamps (2600-3300 lumens).

Act 42 of 2017 Adopted Rule Documents:

On December 14, 2017, the Department submitted the following proposed Rule 17P028 on Vermont Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards to the Vermont Secretary of State and the Vermont Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules:

On September 20, 2017, the Department held a public hearing at the Vermont State House for input on its proposed Rule on Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards.

On July 31, 2017, the Department submitted the following proposed rule on Vermont Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards to the Vermont Secretary of State's Office:

On July 11, 2017, the Department submitted the following proposed rule on Vermont Appliance Efficiency and Water Conservation Standards to the Interagency Committee on Administrative Rules: