Gas Stoves May Soon Have Warning Labels in One State

California lawmakers have passed a bill that would make the state the first in the nation to require gas stoves to carry warning labels about harmful emissions. If Gov. Gavin Newsom signs the legislation, gas stoves sold online in California after Jan. 1 next year and in stores after Jan. 1, 2026, will be required to carry this warning:

• Gas stoves can release nitrogen dioxide, benzene, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, and other harmful pollutants into the air, which can be toxic to people and pets. Stove emissions, especially from gas stoves, are associated with increased respiratory disease. Young children, people with asthma, and people with heart or lung disease are especially vulnerable to the toxic effects of combustion pollutants. To help reduce the risk of breathing harmful gases, allow ventilation in the area and turn on a vent hood when gas-powered stoves and ranges are in use.

The legislation follows a series of lawsuits against stove manufacturers and a push from environmental activists to get people to switch to electric stoves to reduce emissions, NPR reports. "We're not banning gas stoves," Assemblymember Gail Pellerin, a Democrat who authored the legislation, told Politico earlier this year. "We're just basically requiring them to be labeled, warning people about how to best use them with good ventilation." Appliance makers have pushed back against the bill, arguing that they are being scapegoated. Similar legislation failed to pass in New York and Illinois.

Pellerin tells NPR that before she knew about the toxic fumes, she turned on the vent when using the cooktop but not while using her gas oven. "So if I've got a lasagna in the oven, I have never put the vent on, because you're not seeing the smoke and everything," she says. "So I was emitting horrible gases into my home." After remarks on regulation from Consumer Product Safety Commission member Richard Trumka Jr. last year, the White House denied claims from conservatives that President Biden was planning to ban gas stoves, which are used by almost 40% of American households. The issue caused controversy around a Thanksgiving photo from Vice President Kamala Harris. (More gas stoves stories.)