HB 23-1134

House Bill 23-1134, which has been signed into law in Colorado, requires home warranty contracts issued or renewed after July 1, 2024, to give homeowners the option to replace gas appliances with electric ones when covered under their warranties. This means that if a homeowner's gas furnace, water heater, stove, or other similar appliance needs replacement, they can choose an electric alternative instead, and the warranty company must cover it according to specific efficiency standards. The law also allows for additional costs if the electric option is more expensive than a comparable gas model but caps this extra cost at the difference in retail price between the two options. This bill affects homeowners with home warranties who might want or need to switch from gas to electric appliances.

Official Summary

The act requires every home warranty service contract issued or renewed in Colorado on or after July 1, 2024, that provides coverage for the replacement of any of certain gas-fueled appliances to include terms: Allowing the homeowner the option to replace the gas-fueled appliance with a similar device of the homeowner's choosing that operates on electricity rather than gas; and Providing that the home warranty service company is required to provide a replacement appliance that satisfies statutory efficiency requirements. A home warranty service contract may require a homeowner to pay any additional cost to replace a gas-fueled appliance with an appliance that has a cost that exceeds the cost of replacing the gas-fueled appliance with another gas-fueled appliance under the terms of the home warranty service contract, but any additional cost to the homeowner, excluding any installation or other associated costs, must not exceed the retail cost of the replacement electric appliance minus the retail cost of a replacement gas-fueled appliance. In the case of replacement of a gas-fueled furnace, HVAC system, boiler, or water heater, a home warranty service contract must include terms that allow the homeowner to replace the furnace, HVAC system, boiler, or water heater with a heat pump-based system. In the case of replacement of a gas-fueled stove, a home warranty service contract must include terms that allow the homeowner to replace the gas-fueled stove with either an electric stove or an induction stove, at the homeowner's discretion. APPROVED by Governor March 31, 2023 EFFECTIVE August 7, 2023 NOTE: This act was passed without a safety clause and takes effect 90 days after sine die. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)

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