HB 1462 Washington House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with hydrofluorocarbons.

HB 1462 aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by regulating hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in Washington state. It prohibits the sale or distribution of new bulk HFCs with a global warming potential (GWP) exceeding 1,500 starting January 1, 2030, and exceeding 750 starting January 1, 2033. The bill encourages the use of reclaimed HFCs and establishes a task force to study the transition to climate-friendly refrigerants and enhance recovery and reclamation. This legislation primarily affects businesses involved in selling, distributing, or using HFCs in equipment such as refrigeration and air conditioning.

Issues: ✓ Energy ✓ Environment

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2025

Committee Review

Apr 2025

House Passage

Apr 2025

Senate Passage

Apr 2025

Signed into Law

May 2025

Introduced Jan 21, 2025 Signed May 17, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

Second Substitute Bill → Second Substitute Passed Legislature · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill added formal certification pages to confirm its passage by both legislative chambers. Substantively, the exemption rules for hydrofluorocarbons were expanded to include a new 30-day emergency provision for critical repairs and were clarified to strictly limit purchases to the exact quantity needed for system repairs, preventing over-purchasing.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding exemptions was broadened to explicitly cover emergency repair scenarios and clarified the limits on bulk purchases to ensure they match the specific needs of the repair.

TECHNICAL

Added certification pages detailing the vote counts and dates of passage by the House and Senate.

REQUIREMENT

Restructured exemption rules to explicitly require that emergency purchases of refrigerants must not exceed the total charge needed for the specific system repair.

Introduced a new 30-day emergency exemption process for registered applicants facing critical economic loss or health risks due to refrigerant failure.

Updated the criteria for temporary exemptions to specify that they apply to 'newly produced bulk' hydrofluorocarbons and blends.

Bill → Substitute Bill · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to streamline its structure by removing redundant sections and consolidating refrigerant transition rules into a single new section. The scope was expanded to include tribal representatives and grocery store operators on the task force, while the timeline for the task force report was extended to December 2027. The prohibition on selling high-global-warming-potential refrigerants was tightened, removing an earlier 2027 deadline and shifting the first restriction to January 1, 2030 for gases with a global warming potential exceeding 1,500.

Scope change

The bill's scope was broadened to include tribal organizations and grocery store operators in the transition task force, and the applicability of the sales ban was modified to exclude specific federal aviation and defense uses.

TIMELINE

The deadline for the department to submit the refrigerant transition task force report was moved from December 2026 to December 2027, and the task force was required to focus on achieving the 2035 transition goal.

ELIGIBILITY

The task force membership now includes a representative for tribal or indigenous organizations and a representative of a Washington grocery store with experience in ultra-low global warming potential refrigerants.

REQUIREMENT

The ban on selling virgin bulk hydrofluorocarbons was updated; the initial prohibition date was removed, and the first phase now applies to gases with a global warming potential exceeding 1,500 starting January 1, 2030.

New exemptions were added for hydrofluorocarbons regulated for use in aircraft maintenance by federal authorities.

A separate section requiring the department to adopt rules for low global warming potential alternatives was deleted and merged into a new section with a delayed rule-making start date of January 1, 2028.

TECHNICAL

The bill text was reorganized to remove duplicate sections regarding state procurement and task force establishment, resulting in a more concise legislative structure.

Floor votes · Senate Apr 15, 2025 · House Apr 22, 2025

How they voted

27–23

Passed · 1 other

Total votes 51

Apr 15, 2025

D Democratic31

26 Yea 4 Nay 1

83% Yea

R Republican20

1 Yea 19 Nay

95% Nay

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

May 17, 2025

Signed into law

Governor signed.

executive

Apr 24, 2025

Upper · Passed

President signed.

upper

Apr 23, 2025

Lower · Passed

Speaker signed.

lower

Apr 22, 2025

Lower · Passed

Passed final passage; yeas, 58; nays, 39; absent, 0; excused, 1.

lower

Apr 22, 2025

Lower · Passed

House concurred in Senate amendments.

lower

Apr 15, 2025

Upper · Passed

Committee amendment(s) adopted with no other amendments.

upper

Apr 15, 2025

Senate · Passed

Senate Vote: pass (27-23-1)

senate

Apr 7, 2025

Upper · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

upper

Apr 7, 2025

Upper · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

upper

Apr 7, 2025

Upper · Passed

WM - Majority; do pass with amendment(s).

upper

Apr 7, 2025

Upper · Passed

Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Ways & Means at 1:30 PM.

upper

Apr 5, 2025

Upper · Passed

Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Ways & Means at 12:00 PM.

upper

Mar 26, 2025

Committee

Referred to Ways & Means.

upper

Mar 25, 2025

Committee

And refer to Ways & Means.

upper

Mar 25, 2025

Upper · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

upper

Mar 25, 2025

Upper · Passed

ENET - Majority; do pass.

upper

Mar 25, 2025

Upper · Passed

Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Environment, Energy & Technology at 1:30 PM.

upper

Mar 18, 2025

Upper · Passed

Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Environment, Energy & Technology at 1:30 PM.

upper

Feb 28, 2025

Committee

Referred to Rules 2 Review.

lower

Feb 26, 2025

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 26, 2025

Lower · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

lower

Feb 26, 2025

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Appropriations at 1:30 PM.

lower

Feb 19, 2025

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Appropriations at 4:00 PM.

lower

Feb 7, 2025

Committee

Referred to Appropriations.

lower

Feb 4, 2025

Lower · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

lower

Feb 4, 2025

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 4, 2025

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Environment & Energy at 4:00 PM.

lower

Jan 30, 2025

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Environment & Energy at 8:00 AM.

lower

1 primary · 10 co-sponsors