THE PRODUCT:

Urinals are most commonly found in commercial and institutional restrooms.

THE STANDARD:

The current national standards for urinals took effect in 1994 and set a maximum water use of 1.0 gallons per flush (gpf). In December 2010, DOE officially waived federal preemption of the national urinal standard. This waiver of federal preemption allows states to set standards provided they are more stringent than the national standard.

In 2014, Colorado set standards for flushing urinals that set a maximum water use of 0.5 gpf. In 2015, California set standards at 0.125 gpf for wall-mounted urinals. As of 2024, 13 states had adopted standards for urinals that are more stringent than the national standard. 

KEY FACTS:

EPA's voluntary WaterSense program (which is similar to ENERGY STAR but focused on helping consumers identify water-efficient products) has set criteria for flushing urinals at no more than 0.5 gpf. Replacing a 1.0 gpf flushing urinal with a WaterSense labeled flushing urinal can save over 2,300 gallons of water per year (assuming that the average urinal is flushed approximately 18 times per day and is in use 260 days per year).

Timeline

Federal Date States
  2024 MD Standard Effective
  2023 ME Standard Effective
  2023 RI Standard Effective
  2022 MD Standard Adopted
  2022 DC Standard Effective
  2022 NY Standard Effective
  2022 MA Standard Effective
  2022 NJ Standard Effective
  2021 ME Standard Adopted
  2021 RI Standard Adopted
  2021 MA Standard Adopted
  2021 NJ Standard Adopted
  2021 WA Standard Effective
  2020 DC Standard Adopted
  2020 VT Standard Effective
  2020 NV Standard Effective
  2019 NY Standard Adopted
  2019 NV Standard Adopted
  2019 WA Standard Adopted
  2018 VT Standard Adopted
  2016 CO Standard Effective
  2016 CA Standard Effective
  2015 CA Standard Adopted
  2014 CO Standard Adopted
  2014 CA Standard Effective
  2014 TX Standard Effective
  2009 TX Standard Adopted
  2007 CA Standard Adopted
1st Federal Standard Effective 1994  
1st Federal Standard Adopted 1992  
EPACT Initial Federal Legislation Enacted 1992