Massachusetts Appliance and Equipment Energy Efficiency Standards
Massachusetts' appliance efficiency standards set minimum performance requirements for residential products like dishwashers, ceiling fans, and electric vehicle charging equipment sold in the state, helping reduce your utility bills over time. These standards apply automatically to products you purchase—no special application or enrollment is needed. By 2025, the standards are projected to save Massachusetts consumers and businesses over $100 million annually while cutting carbon dioxide emissions significantly.
Massachusetts appliance standards create a level playing field by requiring all equipment sold in the state to meet minimum efficiency thresholds, including commercial cooking equipment, computers, and EV charging gear. You must ensure that products you specify or install for customers comply with Massachusetts' standards, which were significantly expanded in 2021 with effective dates starting in 2022; consult the official standards list to confirm which products are covered and verify supplier compliance.
Massachusetts' appliance standards program, enacted in 1986 and substantially updated in 2021 through the Energy SAVE Act, sets minimum efficiency requirements for 17 product categories including residential and commercial equipment, with enforcement beginning in 2022. The program is administered by the state and operates by restricting the sale of below-standard products rather than through rebates or incentives; it targets all consumers and businesses purchasing appliances, particularly benefiting low-income renters whose landlords may otherwise choose the cheapest, least-efficient options. The standards are projected to deliver $100 million in consumer savings by 2025 and reduce CO2 emissions by 113,000 metric tons annually—equivalent to removing 24,000 cars from roads.
Program details
- Program ID
- 1567
- Last updated
- 10/31/2024
Eligibility
- Technologies
- dishwasher ceiling fan furnaces boilers other ee commercial cooking equipment personal computing equipment level-2 electric vehicle service equipment
Program summary
Note: The federal government has imposed and updated appliance efficiency standards through several legislative acts,* and now has standards in place or under development for 30 classes of products. In general, states which had set standards prior to federal action may enforce their own standards until the federal standards take effect. States that had not set standards prior to federal action must use the federal standards. This summary addresses (1) state appliance standards that will be in place until the federal standards take effect and (2) products for which the federal government is not currently developing an efficiency standard. Much of the information in this summary comes from the Appliance Standards Awareness Project (ASAP). Visit the ASAP web site for comprehensive information about appliance standards. See the Department of Energy Appliance Standards website for additional information.
Massachusetts’ original appliance standards legislation was enacted in 1986. The standards were expanded in November 2005 and again in January 2021, although to date most of the equipment listed in Massachusetts law has since been preempted by federal law. Other non-federally preempted product standards introduced in 2021 with effective dates beginning in 2022 include:
- Commercial Dishwashers
- Commercial Fryers
- Commercial Ovens
- Commercial Steam Cookers
- Computers and Computer Systems
- Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment
- Faucets
- High-CRI Linear Fluorescent Lamps
- Hot Food Holding Cabinets
- Portable Electric Spas
- Residential Ventilating Fans
- Showerheads
- Spray Sprinkler Bodies
- Toilets
- Urinals
- Water Coolers
Massachusetts sought a waiver of federal preemption from the warm-state standard because of the existing federal standards covering residential furnaces, boilers, and furnace fan. That waiver would have allowed Massachusetts’ cold-state standard to go into effect in 2013. The Massachusetts Attorney General and the Department of Energy Resources (DOER) filed the petition here. The U.S. Department of Energy responded negatively, see the Department of Energy web site for more information on the petition, comments filed, and the denial. There are no state-level appliance standards in effect in MA until the beginning of 2022.
* These acts include the National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987, the Energy Policy Act of 1992, the Energy Policy Act of 2005, and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.
Contact & resources
- Contact email
- doer.energy@mass.gov
- Additional resources
Please verify current program details with the administering agency before making any financial decisions.
