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About the Event:
Your Voice Is Needed in San Francisco!
EBRHA invites you to join housing providers from across the nine-county Bay Area at the Bay Area Air District Board of Directors meeting on Wednesday, September 2, 2026. We are seeking 50 or more members to attend and testify. This is the last full Board meeting before the District finalizes the gas appliance rules, and we need our industry visible and on the record.
What Is the Gas Appliance Ban?
Air District Rules 9-4 and 9-6 set a zero-NOx emissions standard for newly installed furnaces and water heaters across Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma counties. No natural gas appliance currently on the market meets that standard, so in practice every replacement must be an electric heat pump.
The rules do not require removal of working equipment. They take effect at replacement which, for rental housing, means they take effect the day a unit fails. Compliance dates are January 1, 2028 for water heaters under 75,000 BTU/hr (proposed, delayed from 2027), January 1, 2029 for furnaces, and January 1, 2031 for water heaters between 75,000 BTU/hr and 2 million BTU/hr, the range that covers most central multifamily systems.
Why Does This Matter for Housing Providers?
This regulation reaches directly into how we operate and maintain rental housing:
- Water heaters fail without warning, and a heat pump conversion cannot be completed in a single evening the way a like-for-like replacement can
- Older buildings commonly run 60 to 100 amp electrical panels with no spare capacity, requiring panel and sometimes utility service upgrades
- Heat pump units are larger, need clearance and air volume, and require condensate drainage that existing closets and alcoves were never designed for
- Where rent stabilization caps capital improvement pass-throughs, owners absorb costs that cannot be recovered
- Residents may face extended service interruptions or temporary relocation during compliance work
- The District's proposed flexibility covers only small water heaters, leaving furnaces and central multifamily systems without relief
Why Testify?
The Board votes on the water heater amendments in November. What they hear in September shapes what staff puts in front of them. Board members respond to constituents describing real buildings a panel rating, a contractor quote, a closet that will not fit the equipment. That testimony is something no lobbyist or consultant can supply. The District has already moved once in response to public input, delaying the water heater deadline and proposing exemptions. Continued pressure is how we secure the rest.
How to Participate:
Register: Use the link on this page to sign up. Please register even if you plan to attend virtually so we can coordinate speakers and avoid duplicate testimony.
Prepare: Members who want help preparing their two minutes can request a call with our team.
Attend: Join us on Wednesday, September 2. The Board convenes at 10:00 a.m., but goes into closed session first public comment will not begin before 10:30 a.m. and exact timing is unpredictable.
In person: Bay Area Metro Center, 1st Floor Board Room, 375 Beale Street, San Francisco
Virtually: Here is the virtual link for those unable to attend in-person:
https://bayareametro.zoom.us/j/88616929583
or may join Zoom by phone by dialing (669) 900-6833 or (408) 638-0968.
The Webinar ID for this meeting is: 886 1692 9583
Each speaker is allotted two minutes. In-person comment is taken first, followed by virtual.
Cannot attend? Submit written comment through the District's official portal at comments.baaqmd.gov. Comments emailed directly to the District are no longer retained in the rulemaking record.
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