Gas stove bans are advancing around the country — here’s the rundown
Breanne Deppisch
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Gas stoves became a topic of heated debate this week after a regulator suggested they would be banned at the federal level on safety grounds.
That effort looks unlikely to proceed, but bans on gas stoves and other appliances have been enacted and are being proposed in large numbers at the state and local levels as a way to reduce carbon emissions.
Nearly 100 cities and counties in the United States, mostly in blue areas, have already adopted policies restricting the use of gas-powered stoves and heaters or to begin phasing them out in new construction.
At least 20 states have also introduced or advanced similar efforts.
Here are some of the more noteworthy ones.
SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA: In 2019, the city of Berkeley became the first U.S. city to implement a ban on natural gas appliances, including stoves. That sparked an ultimately unsuccessful court challenge by the California Restaurant Association, which argued in a lawsuit that gas-powered stoves are crucial for chefs to prepare food the way they are classically trained.
In the years since, several other cities in the Bay Area, including San Francisco, Oakland, Los Gatos, and Sunnyvale, as well as Marin County have adopted similar bans, either banning or restricting natural gas appliances, including gas-powered stoves.
It’s worth noting that the California Air Resources Board approved a plan in September to ban the sale of new natural gas-fired furnaces and home water heaters in the state by 2030. But it doesn’t include gas stoves, though its final rules will not come up for a final vote until 2035.
NEW YORK STATE: Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) announced a proposal Tuesday that would make New York the first state to ban natural gas heaters and appliances in new buildings. Beginning in 2025, the law would begin phasing in a ban on natural gas-powered appliances, such as stoves and heaters, in new buildings. From 2030 on, it calls for a complete ban on the sale of any new natural gas heating systems.
Buildings account for the largest percent of emissions in New York, making up a third of its total greenhouse gas output.
NEW YORK CITY: In 2021, New York City Council passed a citywide ban on natural gas hookups in most new construction, which it will begin phasing in this year.
ITHACA, NEW YORK: The city of Ithaca made history in 2021 when it voted to decarbonize and electrify all 6,000 of its residential and commercial buildings by 2030 — an ambitious goal that will involve retrofitting older buildings with solar pumps, installing more efficient heat pumps, and ensuring all its existing natural gas and propane powered appliances are replaced with electric models.
The legislation also extends to all new construction or buildings undergoing renovations, which are also prohibited from installing gas-powered appliances.
THE OBSCURE REGULATOR (AND POLITICAL SCION) WHO SPARKED THE FUROR OVER GAS STOVES
WASHINGTON STATE: Washington state lawmakers passed a law last year banning all natural gas appliances in new commercial construction projects and some residential buildings beginning this summer. The law applies to all buildings that will have four stories or more, echoing an initiative passed by the city of Seattle in 2021.
MASSACHUSETTS: Massachusetts approved first-of-its-kind climate legislation in 2022 that will allow up to 10 cities to ban fossil fuels in new and major construction projects.
The effort was signed into law this summer by then-Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, and requires all participating localities to report data regularly on the gas phaseout, including submitting information on heating costs and affordability.
In applying for the program, cities faced stiff competition: Boston said it tried to join but lost out to other localities who’d applied sooner.
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MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MARYLAND: Last month, Montgomery County became the first U.S. city on the East Coast to ban natural gas in new buildings, passing the gas limits by a unanimous 9-0 vote. The city, home to more than 1 million residents, will require all new construction to rely solely on electric equipment.