Appliance Group Challenges Colorado Gas Stove Warning Labels In Court

By Scott Weiser | The Gazette

A trade organization representing gas stove manufacturers filed a request for a temporary restraining order against the state over a requirement that gas stoves sold at retail have a yellow sticker warning buyers of the purported health risks of using natural gas for cooking.

The complaint, filed by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, asserted a First Amendment violation over government-compelled speech and sought an injunction against the law. The trade association alleged HB25-1161’s labeling requirement unconstitutionally compels its members to convey a message they disagree with.

The law went into effect Aug. 1. It requires the yellow label read: “Understand the air quality implications of having an indoor gas stove” and include a QR code to a state website with “information on the health impacts of gas-fueled stoves.”

The Colorado Attorney General’s Office asked U.S. District Court Judge S. Kato Crews to disregard the association’s emergency motion for a temporary restraining order, saying that the complaint violated technical requirements by being too many pages long.

Crews on Monday declined to block the Colorado law, instead suggesting the state work with the challengers to voluntarily halt enforcement in the near-term. He noted he was only assigned to the case after the trade association filed its complaint and its motion, so the plaintiffs could not have known about his page limits.

“The Court strongly encourages Defendants to consider the propriety of a stay of enforcement of HB25-1161 pending a resolution of Plaintiff’s anticipated refiled motion for injunctive relief,” he wrote.

“Judge Crews, perhaps appreciating the gravity of the case and constitutional issues raised, strongly encouraged the parties to agree on a stay of enforcement,” said AHAM President & CEO Kelly Mariotti in a statement to The Denver Gazette. “This is what AHAM’s motion requested in the first place, and it is what the parties are working on.”

The complaint will be refiled by Aug. 19, according to Chris Doscher, AHAM director of communications.

When Gov. Jared Polis signed the bill into law on June 4, he included a signing statement in which he said he opposes Colorado-specific labeling requirements “especially when it puts us at odds with other states, could disrupt existing product production, or is in an inappropriate place for consumer decisions.”

“This bill offers the appropriate place and time for a public health disclosure on the impacts of unvented gas-fueled stoves by informing consumers of the apt information at the point of sale, where a consumer can make an informed choice,” Polis added.

The association’s complaint alleges that the science on the negative health effects of cooking with gas is not settled and that, contrary to claims made by environmental organizations, large scale studies have not linked the use of natural gas for cooking to negative health effects.

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