SEER2 Regulations

Requirements for Purchasing Air Conditioning Units Manufactured During or Before 2023

Beginning January 1, 2023, the Department of Energy is increasing the minimum efficiencies for central air conditioners and heat pumps (the “Energy Efficiency”). The testing procedures for determining those efficiencies are changing as well (hereafter collectively referred to as the “Regulatory Requirements”.

The Regulatory Requirements mean that in some parts of the US, certain types of AC equipment can no longer be sold for installation after January 1, 2023. Still others may be sold for installation provided they were manufactured prior to January 1, 2023. The Energy Efficiency information of an AC unit is available on each unit’s ‘Hangtag’ and Surplus City’s Website. Any AC unit not meeting the new Regulatory Requirements may not be installed, but may still be sold for replacement parts.

These changes affect the United States by ‘Region’. The Regulatory Requirements apply based on the kind of air conditioner, when the air conditioner is to be installed and in what Region.

The "Southwest Region" is Arizona, California, Nevada, or New Mexico.

The "Southeast Region" is Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories.

The "North Region" is the remainder of the United States.

For air conditioners in the North Region, the minimum Energy Efficiency increases from 13.0 to 14.0 SEER and in the South Region from 14.0 to 15.0 SEER. For 2023 the national heat pump minimum efficiency will increase from 14.0 to 15.0 SEER.

In 2023, all products must be rated using the DOE appendix Mi testing procedure, denoted as SEER2, EER2 and HSPF2. Ratings tested under Mi are up to 5X higher than DOE’s pre-2023 appendix M test procedure (SEER, EER, HSPF).

The new SEER2 ratings are lower, and the minimum efficiencies are reduced to account for the more difficult test procedures.

North Region SEER2 Regulations

For the North region, compliance will be determined by each system's manufacturing date. Specifically, new SEER2 requirements for this region will include:

  • SEER2 rating of at least 13.4 for all AC units and Single Packaged Products
  • SEER2 rating of at least 14.3 for Heat Pumps

AC systems, heat pumps (“HP”), and Single-Packaged Products (“SPP”) manufactured before January 1, 2023, may still be installed and sold in the North region. All units manufactured after this date must meet new SEER2 Regulatory Requirements.

Southeast Region SEER2 Regulations

The Southeast Region, includes Texas, Tennessee, and Florida, and has its own SEER2 requirements. These include:

  • SEER2 rating of at least 14.3 for all residential central air systems below 45,000 BTU
  • SEER2 rating of at least 13.8 for all residential central air systems 45,000 BTU and above
  • SEER2 rating of at least 14.3 for all heat pumps

Much like in the Southwest region, systems that do not meet these standards cannot be sold (except for parts) or installed in the Southeast Region after January 1, 2023, if they do not meet these Regulatory Requirements.

Southwest Region SEER2 Regulations

The Southwest Region is the smallest in the country, consisting of: California, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico. In this region, SEER2 requirements are as follows:

  • SEER2 rating of at least 14.3 for all residential central air systems below 45,000 BTU
  • SEER2 rating of at least 13.8 for all residential central air systems 45,000 BTU and above
  • SEER2 rating of at least 14.3 for all heat pumps

Unlike the North region, equipment that does not meet these new Regulatory Requirements by January 1, 2023, cannot be sold (except for use as parts) or installed in this region — regardless of the manufacturing date.

NOTE: *SEER, EER, and HSPF values shown are based on the current test procedure and are for reference only. Beginning January 2023, products must comply with the SEER2, EER2 and HSPF2 values developed using 2023 test procedures.