Raised Bill No. 5221, introduced in the February Session, 2024, addresses the operation of outdoor wood-burning furnaces in the state. The bill proposes an amendment to subsection (c) of section 22a-174k of the general statutes, which would take effect upon passage. The existing regulation, effective from June 6, 2014, prohibits the burning of any material other than non-chemically treated wood in outdoor wood-burning furnaces.

The bill introduces new legal language that would further restrict the use of outdoor wood-burning furnaces. Specifically, it adds a provision that, from the effective date of this section, no person shall operate an outdoor wood-burning furnace on any day when the state is not in attainment of the federal limit for the presence of ozone in the atmosphere. This measure aims to prohibit the use of these furnaces on certain days when air quality is poor, referred to as nonattainment days. The purpose of the bill is to protect air quality and public health by limiting emissions from outdoor wood-burning furnaces on days when ozone levels are already high.