Contractor input requested: Department of Energy weighs delaying furnace rule

Posted on:

May 22, 2026

The Department of Energy (DOE) is considering whether to delay implementation of the Biden-era consumer furnace standards. The furnace rule sets efficiency levels for non-weatherized gas furnaces and mobile home gas furnaces at 95% AFUE, a threshold that effectively mandates condensing technology and eliminates most non-condensing furnace options from the market after December 2028. DOE is asking for public comments regarding a petition that would extend the compliance deadlines to at least January 1, 2030, while ongoing litigation, regulatory reviews, and broader DOE policy changes are resolved. This means that ACCA members have an opportunity to make their voices heard. You can do so by sending a comment to DOE that echoes ACCA’s comments.

Take Action Now

ACCA has consistently raised concerns with DOE’s approach to this rule throughout the rulemaking process. ACCA has argued that the rule does not adequately account for real-world installation conditions, retrofit limitations, housing stock constraints, regional differences, affordability impacts, and the operational realities contractors face every day in the field. ACCA has also repeatedly emphasized that energy policy should not eliminate viable equipment options that remain appropriate, safe, and cost-effective for many American homes and businesses.

This issue directly impacts contractors because non-condensing furnaces are a major portion of the installed market, particularly in older homes, multifamily housing, manufactured housing, colder climates, and retrofit applications where venting modifications can become prohibitively expensive or physically impractical. The petition being considered by DOE notes that non-condensing furnaces still represent roughly 55 percent of the gas furnace market nationally.

For many consumers, especially seniors, low-income households, and small businesses, replacing a non-condensing furnace under the new standard could require extensive venting modifications, condensate drainage work, electrical upgrades, wall or roof penetrations, or, in some cases, complete fuel switching. DOE’s own analysis acknowledged disproportionate impacts on vulnerable households and small businesses.

DOE is explicitly requesting public comments on whether to grant the petition and extend the compliance timeline. Contractor comments matter because they come from the businesses and individuals responsible for installing and servicing this equipment in American homes and businesses. Agencies pay attention when contractors directly explain how regulations affect customers, installations, inventory planning, and project costs in the real world. By signing onto ACCA’s comment, you can help demonstrate that contractors across the country share serious concerns about affordability, consumer choice, stranded inventory, retrofit feasibility, and unintended consequences for homeowners and small businesses.

ACCA has already warned that DOE’s approach risks creating market disruption, reducing equipment flexibility and availability, increasing costs for consumers, and forcing premature transitions that many homes were never designed to accommodate. This campaign gives contractors an opportunity to formally add their voice to that record.

The deadline for DOE comments is May 27, 2026.