Firefighter gear laws began with a seller's notice that turnout gear contains PFAS, and several states now ban gear with intentionally added PFAS. The Defense Department may not buy covered gear that fails the NFPA 1970 restricted substances list from October 1, 2026.
State rules
| Jurisdiction | Requirement | Effective | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IllinoisBan | Sellers may not knowingly manufacture, sell, offer for sale, or distribute in Illinois firefighting personal protective clothing (jackets, pants, shoes, gloves, helmets) containing intentionally added PFAS. | January 1, 2027 | Scheduled | 415 ILCS 170/20(b) |
| MassachusettsBan | A manufacturer or other person selling firefighting PPE to a person, local government or state agency may not manufacture, knowingly sell, offer for sale, distribute for sale or distribute for use in Massachusetts firefighting PPE containing intentionally added PFAS.PPE includes jackets, pants, footwear, gloves, helmets and respiratory equipment. The statute lists no exemptions. | January 1, 2027 | Scheduled | G.L. c. 111, section 245(b) (version effective January 1, 2027); St. 2024, c. 182, sections 2 and 4 |
| Rhode IslandBan | Manufacturers and other sellers may not manufacture, knowingly sell, offer for sale, distribute for sale or distribute for use in Rhode Island firefighting personal protective equipment containing intentionally added PFAS.Added by P.L. 2025, ch. 21 (H 5019) and ch. 24 (S 0241), which also made firefighting PPE a covered product. | January 1, 2027 | Scheduled | R.I. Gen. Laws 23-18.18-5(l)(2); 23-18.18-3(7)(x) |
| ConnecticutBan | No person may manufacture, sell, offer for sale or distribute for sale in Connecticut turnout gear that contains intentionally added PFAS. | January 1, 2028 | Scheduled | Conn. Gen. Stat. 22a-903c |
| New YorkBan | Manufacturers may not manufacture, knowingly sell, offer for sale or distribute firefighting personal protective equipment to which PFAS has been intentionally added or that contains PFAS at or above a level DEC establishes by regulation.Added by the 2025 budget (S3008, Chapter 58 of 2025, signed May 9, 2025 per SGS). No DEC threshold rule was found. | January 1, 2028 | Scheduled | GBL 391-u |
| New JerseyBan | No person may sell, offer for sale, manufacture or distribute firefighting personal protective equipment containing intentionally added PFAS.Equipment other than clothing, such as respiratory protection, hearing protection and communication devices, is exempt until January 1, 2030. | January 20, 2028 | Scheduled | P.L.2025, c.373 |
| VermontBan | A manufacturer or other person selling firefighting equipment may not sell, offer for sale, or distribute for sale or use in Vermont personal protective equipment to which PFAS have been intentionally added.Respirators and respirator protection equipment are exempt until July 1, 2032 if the seller gives written PFAS notice at sale, retained for three years. | July 1, 2029 | Scheduled | 9 V.S.A. section 2494s (version effective July 1, 2029) |
| IllinoisBan | Sellers may not knowingly manufacture, sell, offer for sale, or distribute auxiliary firefighting personal protective equipment containing intentionally added PFAS, such as breathing apparatus and respiratory protection, hearing protection, communication devices, and fall protection. | January 1, 2030 | Scheduled | 415 ILCS 170/20(c) |
| VermontBan | The respirator exemption is repealed, so respirators and respirator protection equipment with intentionally added PFAS may no longer be sold in Vermont.Act 54 of 2025, Sec. 10. | July 1, 2032 | Scheduled | 9 V.S.A. section 2494s(b) (repealed effective July 1, 2032) |
| New HampshirePurchasing | Fire departments may not offer the option of purchasing firefighting station wear (uniform shirts or pants) containing intentionally added PFAS or non-polymeric fire-resistive chemicals.Manufacturers must offer safer alternatives if they exist. | January 1, 2025 | In force | RSA 154:8-c, VI |
| New HampshireUse limit | Fire departments may not offer the option of wearing firefighting station wear containing intentionally added PFAS or non-polymeric fire-resistive chemicals. | July 1, 2025 | In force | RSA 154:8-c, VI |
| WashingtonReporting | Manufacturers must notify Ecology of intentionally added PFAS in firefighting personal protective equipment.Reporting requirement took effect Jan. 1, 2026; first notice due Jan. 31, 2027, then annually by Jan. 31. Does not apply to products manufactured before Jan. 1, 2026. Total fluorine above 50 ppm is presumed to show intentional addition (rebuttable). | January 1, 2026 | Applies | WAC 173-337-110(13); RCW 70A.350.090(2) |
| WashingtonLabeling | Manufacturers and sellers of firefighting PPE must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale if the equipment contains PFAS, stating the reason PFAS are added.Seller and buyer must keep the notice for three years and give it to Ecology on request. PPE is also a Cycle 1.5 reporting category. | July 1, 2018 | Applies | RCW 70A.400.030 |
| ColoradoLabeling | Manufacturers and others selling firefighting personal protective equipment must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale if it contains intentionally added PFAS, stating the reason PFAS were added.Seller and purchaser must keep the notice for three years and provide it to CDPHE within 60 days of a request. | August 2, 2019 | Applies | C.R.S. 25-5-1305 |
| New HampshireLabeling | A manufacturer or other seller of firefighting PPE must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale stating whether the equipment does or does not contain PFAS; notices go in users' personnel files and are kept in procurement files for 3 years.PPE includes jackets, pants, shoes, gloves, helmets, hoods and respiratory equipment. Notices must be produced to the Department of Safety within 60 days on request. | January 1, 2020 | Applies | RSA 154:8-c, II, III |
| CaliforniaLabeling | Any person, including a manufacturer, that sells firefighter personal protective equipment must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale if the equipment contains intentionally added PFAS, stating that it contains PFAS and why they were added.Seller and purchaser must keep the notice for at least three years and produce it within 60 days of a request by the Attorney General or local prosecutors. Firefighter PPE means equipment covered by 8 CCR 3403 to 3411. No sales ban. | January 1, 2022 | Applies | HSC 13029 |
| MarylandLabeling | Sellers of firefighting personal protective equipment that contains PFAS chemicals must give the purchaser written notice that it contains PFAS and why.Both seller and buyer must retain the disclosure statement for 3 years. | July 1, 2022 | Applies | Env. 6-1603(d) |
| VermontLabeling | A manufacturer or other seller of firefighting equipment must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale if personal protective equipment contains PFAS, stating the reason PFAS are added; seller and buyer keep the notice for three years.Originally 18 V.S.A. section 1664 (Act 36); now 9 V.S.A. section 2494s(a) and (b) until July 1, 2029. PPE includes jackets, pants, shoes, gloves, helmets and respiratory equipment. | July 1, 2022 | Applies | 9 V.S.A. section 2494s (version in effect until July 1, 2029) |
| IndianaLabeling | An Indiana fire department may not purchase firefighter gear (structural firefighting protective clothing, including coats, trousers, helmets, gloves, and footwear) unless it bears a permanently affixed label indicating whether it contains a PFAS chemical.A purchasing and labeling requirement; gear containing PFAS is not banned. Statute text reads 'after June 30, 2024.' | July 1, 2024 | Applies | IC 36-8-27-2 |
| MassachusettsLabeling | A manufacturer or other person selling firefighting PPE containing PFAS to any person, local government or state agency must give written notice at the time of sale stating that it contains PFAS, the reason, and the specific PFAS by chemical and abbreviated name.Seller and purchaser keep the notice for at least 3 years and must provide it with sales documents to DPH within 60 days of a request. This subsection is replaced by the sale ban on January 1, 2027. | January 1, 2025 | Applies | G.L. c. 111, section 245(b) (version in effect until January 1, 2027); St. 2024, c. 182, sections 1 and 3 |
| Rhode IslandLabeling | Manufacturers and other sellers of firefighting personal protective equipment must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale if the equipment contains any PFAS, including the reason PFAS was added.Seller and purchaser must keep the notice for at least 3 years and provide it to DEM within 60 days of a request. | January 1, 2025 | Applies | R.I. Gen. Laws 23-18.18-5(l)(1), (n) |
| VermontLabeling | Sellers of firefighter station wear (uniform shirts and pants) must give purchasers written notice at the time of sale if it contains PFAS, with the reason, until the textile article ban applies; both keep the notice for three years.The notice applied only until Vermont's textile ban took effect in 2026. Station wear is now covered by that ban. | July 1, 2025 | No longer applies | Act 54 of 2025, Sec. 11 |
| ConnecticutLabeling | Any manufacturer or other person selling turnout gear that contains intentionally added PFAS must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale stating that the gear contains intentionally added PFAS and why.Turnout gear is protective clothing worn as the main protection for firefighters and EMS personnel during firefighting and post-fire operations. Turnout gear is also banned from January 1, 2028. | January 1, 2026 | Applies | Conn. Gen. Stat. 22a-903c(c)(1) |
| IllinoisLabeling | Anyone selling firefighting personal protective clothing containing PFAS to any person, local government, or state agency must give written notice at the time of sale that it contains PFAS and why.Seller and purchaser keep the notice for three years; the seller must provide it to IEPA within 60 days of a request. Added by HB 2409 (P.A. 104-221). | January 1, 2026 | Applies | 415 ILCS 170/20(a) |
| New JerseyLabeling | Producers selling firefighting personal protective equipment with intentionally added PFAS must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale stating that it contains PFAS, the reason, and each PFAS by chemical name. The notice is kept for three years. | January 20, 2027 | Starts | P.L.2025, c.373 |
| New YorkLabeling | Manufacturers and other sellers of firefighting personal protective equipment that contains PFAS must give the purchaser written notice at the time of sale stating that it contains PFAS and why they were added. From January 1, 2028 the notice need only state that PFAS are present.Start date not confirmed on a primary source. | Not confirmed | Applies | GBL 391-u |
| CaliforniaOther duty | By this date the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board must consider modifying its firefighter PPE safety order to address NFPA performance requirements that lead to PFAS, fluoropolymers, and flame retardants in firefighting garments and auxiliary PPE, and to mandate that PPE certified for future use in California be free of hazardous substances including PFAS, with manufacturer certification.Any modified order must use the 2025 NFPA 1970 standard as a floor, set a later implementation date for auxiliary PPE than for protective garments, and phase out in-use PPE through attrition or within 10 years. Cal/OSHA progress report to the Governor and Legislature due 2026-07-01. No product restriction applies until the Board acts. | January 1, 2028 | Starts | Lab. Code 147.4(d), (e), (f) |
Federal and international rules
| Jurisdiction | Requirement | Effective | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States (federal)Firefighter gear | Beginning October 1, 2026, DoD may not contract to procure or purchase covered personal protective firefighting equipment for federal or civilian firefighters unless it meets the most recently published NFPA 1970 standard, including by not containing any substance on that standard's restricted substances list above the maximum acceptable level.As enacted in 2022 the test was any intentionally added PFAS; the FY2026 NDAA replaced it with the NFPA 1970 test. The deadline extends if the Secretary determines that sufficiently protective compliant equipment is unavailable. DFARS Case 2023-D002 would implement it; no proposed rule had been published as of 2026-09-28. | October 1, 2026 | Scheduled | Pub. L. 117-263, sec. 345(a) |
Questions
Which states ban PFAS in firefighter protective gear?
Seven states ban intentionally added PFAS in firefighter protective gear. Scheduled: Illinois, Massachusetts and Rhode Island (January 1, 2027); Connecticut and New York (January 1, 2028); New Jersey (January 20, 2028); Vermont (July 1, 2029). Use or purchasing limits: New Hampshire (January 1, 2025). Other duties apply in California (labeling or disclosure, since January 1, 2022), Colorado (labeling or disclosure, since August 2, 2019), Indiana (labeling or disclosure, since July 1, 2024), Maryland (labeling or disclosure, since July 1, 2022) and Washington (labeling or disclosure, since July 1, 2018).