The Alaska House of Representatives voted almost unanimously Wednesday to allow the use of environmentally friendly refrigerants even if they are not specifically allowed by the state building code.
House Bill 51, from Rep. Stanley Wright, R-Anchorage, was approved in a 35-1 vote with only Rep. David Eastman, R-Wasilla, opposed. Four legislators were in Washington, D.C., and excused absent on Wednesday.
The bill was the first passed by the House this year and the first passed by Wright, a new member.
HB 51 now advances to the Senate for further work. If passed there and approved by Gov. Mike Dunleavy, the bill would implement a change mandated by Congress and signed by former President Donald Trump in the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020.
That law requires the federal Environmental Protection Agency to regulate and phase out the use of hydrofluorocarbons, commonly used in refrigerants but a significant contributor to climate change.
The phaseout is handled at the federal level; the state bill ensures Alaska building standards allow alternatives.
Eastman, the lone vote against the measure, said he doesn’t like that the proposed state law would incorporate federal law by number. Federal law numbers have been included in state laws since Alaska became a state.
An amendment to the federal law could automatically create consequences in Alaska.
All 50 states are required to pass legislation like HB 51, according to documents provided to legislators by the Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute, a trade group. To date, 10 other states have done so, the group said.
