Bill Summary
HB26-1034 scales back Colorado’s state environmental standards for certain irrigation equipment that were set to begin January 1, 2026.
- Repeals the environmental standard for irrigation controllers and removes irrigation controllers from the list of regulated products.
- Deletes the statutory requirements that weather-based and soil moisture-based irrigation controllers meet WaterSense program criteria.
- For spray sprinkler bodies, removes the state requirement for an internal check valve.
- For spray sprinkler bodies, changes the standard from “meet the WaterSense criteria” to “be certified to” the WaterSense specification.
- Keeps the standard effective date and referendum mechanics that apply to most bills.
Position: Support
Colorado should not micromanage product specifications from the Capitol when a recognized program standard already exists. This bill moves us toward fewer mandates, clearer compliance, and less opportunity for regulatory creep, one sprinkler part at a time.
I support water stewardship. I do not support turning everyday purchases into a statewide compliance exercise without clear justification in the bill text.
Why I Am Taking This Position
Principle: Limited government should stay in its lane. If the state is going to restrict what products can be sold or leased, it needs a clear, narrow reason and a record that shows the benefit.
Local impact: These rules hit real people: local landscape contractors, small businesses, HOAs, and property owners who just want to replace equipment that works. When government turns a product shelf into a policy battlefield, costs go up and common sense goes down.
What the bill does right: Repealing the irrigation controller standard is the cleanest part of HB26-1034. The existing statute goes deep into controller types and ties them to meeting WaterSense efficiency and performance criteria. That may be fine as a voluntary benchmark. As a sales restriction, it becomes a mandate with real-world cost and confusion. This bill removes that trap.
On spray sprinkler bodies: HB26-1034 drops the state check valve requirement and shifts compliance to “must be certified to” the WaterSense specification. If Colorado is going to reference WaterSense at all, certification is the clearer, less messy approach. “Meet criteria” invites arguments and paperwork. “Certified to” is straightforward: certified or not.
What’s missing: The bill does not spell out findings, costs, or implementation lessons learned from the prior standards. Even so, when the choice is more statewide product mandates or fewer, I will take fewer. If someone wants to regulate, they should bring evidence and a narrow fix, not a product rulebook.
Call to Action – What You Should Do!
Contact your state representative and senator. Ask them to keep Colorado focused on real water solutions, not backdoor product mandates and sales restrictions.
If you are tired of government “help” that makes everything cost more, share this with a neighbor who still replaces sprinklers the old-fashioned way: with their own money.
