The America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018, signed on October 24, 2018, formally authorized the WaterSense program. This law also requires that, by December 31, 2019, EPA must “consider for review and revise, if necessary, any WaterSense performance criteria adopted before January 1, 2012.” As a result, several WaterSense specifications—including those for tank-type toilets, lavatory faucets and faucet accessories, showerheads, flushing urinals, and weather-based irrigation controllers— were reviewed for potential improvements to water efficiency and/or product performance.

In April 2020, WaterSense issued a notice in the Federal Register to inform the public of the results of the specification review.  The agency has made the decision that it will not make updates or changes to the product specifications.  The notice also invites public input on how the WaterSense program should consider consumer satisfaction in product specification development. 

• Federal Register notice - Notice of Recent Specifications Review and Request for Information on WaterSense ProgramExit
  • ​PDF of notice (7 pp, 360 K, About PDF)
• ​​Federal Register notice - Notice of Recent Specifications Review and Request for Information on WaterSense Program; Extension of Comment PeriodExit
• Docket to Submit Comments on Regulations.gov  - Docket No. EPA-HQ-OW-2020-0026 OR Beta Docket No. EPA-HQ-OW-2020-0026 [Please note that changes are being made to the regulations.gov website over next few months. Depending on the day, you may be redirected to the Beta site.]  
  • Comments must be submitted through the docket by July 24, 2020, using the instructions in the notice.  Please note that this is an extension from the original June 9 date. 

Background

In December 2018, WaterSense issued a Notice of Specification Review to inform the public of the specifications under review and to invite stakeholders to provide feedback. The notice provides general criteria for reviewing WaterSense specifications, summarizes the current specifications and market for each product category, and offers general questions for stakeholders to consider when providing feedback. It also discusses the revision process and tentative timeline for EPA’s adherence to this law.

• Notice of Specification Review (PDF) (14 pp, 389 K, About PDF)

• Notice of Specification Review Public Comments (as of September 26, 2019)(140 pp, 12 MB, About PDF)

On February 14, 2019, EPA held a teleconference and webinar with stakeholders to discuss the Notice of Specification Review. 

• Notice of Specification Review Public Meeting Presentation (PDF)  (58 pp, 1.4 MB, About PDF)
• View Webinar Recording (registration required) Exit
• Notice of Specification Review Public Meeting Webinar Summary (PDF) (12 pp, 395 K, About PDF)

EPA hosted a series of webinars during 2019 that were targeted to specific stakeholder groups to discuss information collected to date and focus in greater depth on topics and issues related to each product category. These webinars were open to all stakeholders but were targeted towards manufacturer and utility partners that would be impacted by specification revisions. 

• Webinar for Plumbing Fitting (faucet and showerhead) Manufacturers: April 24, 2019
  • WaterSense Plumbing Fittings Manufacturers Meeting Presentation (PDF)(62 pp, 2 MB, About PDF)
  • WaterSense Plumbing Fittings Manufacturers Meeting Summary (PDF) (15 pp, 398 K, About PDF)

  • View Webinar Recording (registration required)Exit

• Webinar for Plumbing Fixture (tank-type toilet and flushing urinal) Manufacturers: May 9, 2019
  • WaterSense Plumbing Fixtures Manufacturers Meeting Presentation (PDF) (58 pp, 1 MB, About PDF)
  • WaterSense Plumbing Fixtures Manufacturers Meeting Summary (PDF) (13 pp, 313 K, About PDF)
  • View Webinar Recording (registration required) Exit
• Webinar for Weather-Based Irrigation Controller Manufacturers: May 16, 2019
  • WaterSense Weather-Based Irrigation Controller Manufacturers Meeting Presentation (PDF) (31 pp, 542 K, About PDF)
  • WaterSense Weather-Based Irrigation Controller Manufacturers Meeting Summary (PDF) (13 pp, 366 K, About PDF)
  • View Webinar Recording (registration required)Exit
• Webinar for Utilities and Promotional Partners: June 5, 2019
  • WaterSense Utilities and Promotional Partners Specification Review Meeting Presentation (PDF) (117 pp, 1 MB, About PDF)
  • WaterSense Utilities and Promotional Partners Specification Review Meeting Summary (PDF) (23 pp, 395 K, About PDF)
  • View Webinar Recording (registration required)EXIT
• Summary of Certification Trends and Webinar Poll Results (PDF) (9 pp, 346 K, About PDF)