Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) and the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) announced on April 9 that they have jointly filed a lawsuit against the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC), challenging recent amendments to a New York regulation that impose restrictions on the HFC refrigerants used in air conditioners, heat pumps, refrigeration, and water heaters.
The amended regulation, 6 NYCRR Part 494, which was finalized late last year, includes 20-year GWP limits of 10 for many new HVAC&R systems starting in 2034, thereby helping to foster the adoption of natural refrigerant-based applications.
HARDI and AHRI’s legal complaint, filed in the New York State Supreme Court, argues that the NYSDEC did not follow New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) and failed to adhere to required administrative procedures in implementing the revised rule. HARDI and AHRI are seeking to invalidate the revised portions of Part 494 and halt enforcement.
The NYSDEC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, it stated last year that the new rules are designed to help implement the CLCPA, which requires the state to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 40% by 2030 and by 85% by 2050, achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
“The rulemaking does not require any person or entity to replace any existing equipment or product.”
Suzanne Hagell, New York Department of Environmental Conservation
The amended regulations also target reductions of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), another potent greenhouse gas. They do not require the replacement of existing equipment prior to the end of its useful life – a major concern among food retailers who opposed the new regulations.
New York’s amended HFC regulations are among the most ambitious in the U.S., surpassing in some respects the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act, implemented by the EPA. The lawsuit asserts that NYSDEC’s amended rule conflicts with the federal regulatory framework established under the AIM Act.
“New York State continues to advance efforts to reduce the harmful pollution fueling climate change, with HFCs and SF6 among the worst offenders,” said Interim DEC Commissioner Sean Mahar late last year. “The new requirements finalized today will help phase down the use of these climate pollutants over time and bolster the use of alternatives that are better for public health and our shared environment and more cost-effective for impacted businesses.”
Other states with proactive HFC regulations include California and Washington. New York, unlike the EPA or other states, uses a 20-year GWP (GWP20) value for gases rather than the traditional 100-year GWP (GWP100) value. (Some of the New York regulations refer to federal rules that use GWP100.)
On April 9, President Donald Trump issued an executive order targeting state-level climate and clean energy regulations, which could include rules restricting high-GWP HFC emissions such as New York’s amended Part 494 rules. New York Governor Kathy Hochul and California Governor Gavin Newsom both pushed back against the order.
‘Strain on businesses’
Both trade groups in the announcement of the lawsuit pointed to the burden that the new rules would have on New York companies. Talbot Gee, CEO of HARDI, stated that the amended Part 494 rules “are overly aggressive, lack clarity, and put unnecessary strain on businesses that are already working to comply with federal HFC phasedown requirements under the AIM Act.” He added that “the best interest of the industry is to follow a single nationwide phase down to prevent increased consumer costs.”
AHRI, the trade association representing HVACR and water heating equipment manufacturers, echoed these concerns. “Long before New York proposed its amendments to Part 494, AHRI members had already invested billions of dollars in developing next-generation refrigerant technologies,” said Stephen Yurek, President and CEO of AHRI. “New York’s regulations introduce additional costs and complexity into an ongoing transition and risk undermining the climate benefits already being achieved through these advancements.”
Last year, during the rulemaking process, the NYSDEC received a number of comments from retailers and other companies and groups objecting to the new regulations. Suzanne Hagell, Climate Change Policy Analyst II at the DEC, addressed what she called “misconceptions” and “misinformation” among stakeholders who pushed back against the regulations during a March 13, 2024, hearing.
“The rulemaking does not require any person or entity to replace any existing equipment or product,” said Hagell at the beginning of the hearing, correcting comments made about the amendments. “It would not require grocery stores, including small and independent businesses, to replace their refrigeration equipment before the end of its useful life.”
In February of 2025, responding to concerns from HARDI, the NYSDEC delayed enforcing the bulk refrigerant sales prohibition in the Part 494 amendments by three months, until Wednesday, April 9, 2025. It also allowed, until the end of the year, the sale of R404A and R507A, two common high-GWP refrigerants used by supermarkets, restaurants, and convenience stores.
The Part 494 amendments do allow the use of reclaimed HFC refrigerants, following a similar provision in California HFC regulations.
