Carbon Monoxide Detector Laws by State: Coded Atlas and CO Death Rates

Carbon monoxide detector laws by state: the coded atlas

We opened the statute, session law or state regulation behind each state's CO alarm rule and coded who must install alarms, in which buildings, triggered by what, and since when. 29 of 51 jurisdictions are verified, 1 (Tennessee) is listed by NCSL but not verified for homes, and 21 had no statute in our searches.

The table gives one row per jurisdiction. The CSV adds the trigger condition, the landlord duty, the distance rule, the URL we opened and, for states without a statute, what we searched. Where an official site refused connections from our network, we read the Internet Archive copy of the same official URL and say so in the source list. Three rows rest on state regulations or session laws rather than codified statutes: Georgia (state minimum dwelling code amendment), Rhode Island (state Fire Code) and New Jersey (Uniform Fire Code).

Group A: the law covers existing homes that have a CO source, not only new construction or homes at sale (9 jurisdictions).

Group B: the law applies to existing homes only at a trigger (sale, new tenancy, permitted renovation) or only to rentals, multifamily buildings and named occupancies (15 states).

Group C: the law covers new construction only (5 states).

Which homes the 29 verified laws reach

Rentals are the common denominator. Owner-occupied homes are covered outright in 9 jurisdictions; elsewhere the duty starts at a sale, a renovation or new construction.

All existing homes. Illinois requires an approved alarm within 15 feet of every room used for sleeping in every dwelling unit, with the owner supplying and installing it (430 ILCS 135/10). Minnesota sets 10 feet for every single-family dwelling and every multifamily unit (Minn. Stat. 299F.51). Wisconsin's 101.647 applies to one- and two-family dwellings whatever their construction date, with a detector in the basement and on each floor level (2009 Wis. Act 158).

Trigger states. Colorado requires an alarm within 15 feet of each sleeping room entrance when a home with a fuel-fired appliance, fireplace or attached garage is sold, renovated under permit, or re-let to a new tenant (C.R.S. 38-45-102 to 38-45-104). Nebraska copied that model with a January 1, 2017 start and an alarm on each habitable floor (LB 34). Louisiana requires a long-life sealed-battery CO detector in existing one- and two-family homes at sale or lease (R.S. 40:1581). Pennsylvania only requires disclosure when a one- or two-family home is sold, but gave multifamily buildings with a fuel source 18 months to install alarms (Act 121 of 2013).

Rentals. North Carolina landlords must provide one operable alarm per rental unit per level and repair or replace it within 15 days of written notice (G.S. 42-42(a)(7)). Rhode Island's Fire Code gives owners 7 days to repair an inoperable alarm after notice (RI Fire Code ch. 24). Property managers can compare these duties with the guide at apartments and HOA fire safety.

Fuel appliance or attached garage: the trigger in almost every law

Nearly every verified law applies only where a CO source exists. The definitions differ at the edges, which matters for all-electric buildings and buildings next to parking.

• Alaska counts a dwelling unit that has a carbon-based-fueled appliance, an attached garage or carport, or is adjacent to a parking space (AS 18.70.095).
• Massachusetts covers buildings with fossil-fuel burning equipment or enclosed parking within the structure (M.G.L. c. 148, s. 26F1/2).
• West Virginia reaches residential units connected to a new garage, storage shed or barn that has a fuel-burning heating or cooking source (W. Va. Code 15A-10-12).
• Arkansas exempts all-electric homes and bars mounting a new-home alarm more than 3 feet above the floor (Act 146 of 2011).
• Illinois exempts a unit only if the building has no fossil-fuel heat, ventilation or hot water, no garage connection and no nearby CO source (430 ILCS 135/20).

Hotels, schools and child care: the gap list

Coverage drops sharply outside housing. 9 verified laws name hotels or lodging, 2 name K-12 schools, and 1 names daycare facilities.

Hotel and lodging coverage in the opened texts: California (hotel and motel units by January 1, 2017), Florida (public lodging with a fuel-fired appliance or boiler), Iowa (multiple-unit residential buildings include hotels, motels and dormitories), Maine (licensed hotels, motels, inns and B&Bs), Maryland (guest-room rules from April 1, 2017), Minnesota (every guest room used for sleeping), North Carolina (lodging establishments, with annual inspections), West Virginia (hotels and motels) and Wisconsin (tourist rooming houses, B&Bs and public buildings used for lodging).

Schools: Connecticut's 29-292 requires CO detection in all public and nonpublic school buildings, added by P.A. 11-248 effective July 1, 2011 (C.G.S. 29-292). West Virginia requires CO detectors in every public or private school or daycare facility that uses a fuel-burning heating system or device (W. Va. Code 15A-10-12). Utah has no residential mandate, but a State Board of Education rule requires CO detection in school facilities (R277-400-12). Electrical Contractor magazine, summarizing NCSL, also lists California, Illinois, Maine and Maryland as school states; the texts we opened for those four do not contain a K-12 provision, so we list them as unconfirmed. School facility managers can start from our schools fire safety guide.

Child care sits mostly in licensing law rather than housing statutes. Texas has required CO detectors in day-care centers, group day-care homes and family homes since 2003 (S.B. 100), Tennessee in each room of a child care agency since July 1, 2024 (Public Chapter 733), and North Dakota's fire marshal statute refers to CO alarm requirements for licensed early childhood programs (N.D.C.C. 18-01-03.1). None of these three has a residential CO statute in our searches.

Adoption timeline: 2009 was the peak year

Of the 25 laws whose text states a year, 17 were in place by 2009. Seven jurisdictions added a requirement after 2010, the latest being Louisiana's sale-or-lease rule in 2023.

West Virginia came first, requiring CO detectors in certain residential units from July 1, 1998 (SB 389). Connecticut and Vermont followed in 2005, Massachusetts on March 31, 2006 (Acts 2005, c. 123) and Illinois on January 1, 2007. The 2009 cluster includes Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Oregon and Washington. Later additions are Wisconsin (2010), California's first compliance date (2011), Arkansas (2012), Pennsylvania (2013), DC's owner duty (2016), Nebraska (2017), Iowa (2018) and Louisiana (2023).

CO poisoning deaths by state, 2018 to 2024

CDC WONDER counts 3,631 unintentional non-fire CO deaths over seven years. Rates are highest in Alaska and the northern Plains and Mountain states, lowest in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic.

We pooled 2018 to 2024 so that small states publish a count: even so, DC, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Vermont are suppressed because each had 1 to 9 deaths, and Delaware, New Hampshire, South Dakota and Wyoming have 10 to 19 deaths, where CDC notes a relative standard error of 23 percent or more (CDC WONDER notes).

Unintentional non-fire CO death: a death whose underlying cause is ICD-10 X47 (accidental poisoning by other gases and vapours) and whose record also lists T58 (toxic effect of carbon monoxide). Fire deaths and intentional poisonings are excluded.

States with and without a CO alarm law: death rates compared

Using verified rows only, jurisdictions with a CO alarm law have a pooled CO death rate of 1.50 per million, against 1.70 in searched states with no statute found. Tennessee, listed by NCSL but not verified, is left out. The gap is small, the groups differ in climate and rurality, and the comparison does not show cause and effect.

Group A has the lowest pooled rate (1.3 per million) because California and New York, two large low-rate states, dominate its population; its median state rate (1.96) is the highest of the three law groups, partly because Alaska sits in it. Medians across the two broad groups are close: 1.77 for law jurisdictions against 1.98 for searched states with no statute found.

Fire alarm vs carbon monoxide alarm: what the statutes say

Statutes treat smoke and CO alarms as separate devices with separate listings, and several allow a combined unit only if it signals the two hazards differently.

Vermont defines a smoke alarm as a device that detects particles of combustion and a CO alarm as one that detects elevations in carbon monoxide levels (9 V.S.A. 2881). Pennsylvania's approved CO alarm is one listed to ANSI/UL 2034, or a detector listed to ANSI/UL 2075 (Act 121, section 2). Maryland allows a combined unit that meets UL 217 and 2034, or UL 268 and 2075 (Public Safety 12-1103).

Commercial CO detection tied into a building fire alarm system is inspected with that system; see our fire alarm inspection guide. Recalled CO alarms are listed in our smoke and CO alarm recall report.

State CO alarm law registry: citation and source for every jurisdiction

Checked annually, and when a state enacts a CO alarm bill. Last checked 2026-10-27. Entries are neutral records of public data; each links to its source record.

State-by-state findings

1. 29 of 51 jurisdictions have a CO alarm statute, session law or state regulation that we opened and coded (laws in force on October 27, 2026).^{[3][4][18][29][37]}
2. 1 jurisdiction, Tennessee, is listed by NCSL as a CO statute state, but the Tennessee texts we opened cover child care agencies (2024) and rented RVs (2012), not homes.^[36][46]
3. 9 jurisdictions require CO alarms in existing homes with a fuel-burning appliance or attached garage regardless of sale or tenancy: Alaska, California, DC, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Wisconsin.^{[3][4][7][10][11][15][18][22][45]}
4. 22 of the 29 verified laws cover rental housing, the most common provision in the state CO alarm laws we coded.^{[24][26][19][37]}
5. 9 verified laws expressly cover hotels or lodging (California, Florida, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, West Virginia, Wisconsin); New York and Washington cover them partly or by reference.^{[4][9][11][13][14][18][23][39][30]}
6. 2 verified laws cover K-12 school buildings: Connecticut (public and nonpublic schools, 2011) and West Virginia (public or private schools and daycares with fuel-burning equipment).^[6][39]
7. West Virginia's 1998 law is the oldest in our timeline; 9 of the 25 dated laws took effect or were enacted in 2009.^{[40][5][44][29]}
8. 4 statutes set a distance to sleeping rooms: 10 feet in Minnesota and Florida, 15 feet in Illinois and Colorado.^{[18][8][10][5]}
9. CDC WONDER records 3,631 unintentional non-fire CO poisoning deaths in the United States in 2018 to 2024, a crude rate of 1.56 per million.^[1]
10. Alaska's CO death rate of 10.70 per million (55 deaths, 2018 to 2024) is 6.9 times the U.S. rate.^[1]
11. North Dakota (5.35 per million), Montana (5.32) and Wyoming (4.67) follow Alaska; New Jersey has the lowest published rate at 0.75 per million.^[1]
12. California recorded the most CO deaths of any state in 2018 to 2024 (241), followed by Texas (222) and Florida (189).^[1]
13. 5 of the 10 highest-rate states have a verified CO alarm law (Alaska, Montana, Nebraska, West Virginia, Colorado).^{[1][3][19][37][39][5]}
14. Using verified rows only, the pooled CO death rate is 1.50 per million in the 29 law jurisdictions and 1.70 in the 21 searched states with no statute found, a ratio of 1.13.^[1]

Rankings and ratios we derived

Download the calculations (CSV)

Executive summary

• 29 of 51 jurisdictions have a carbon monoxide alarm law whose statute, session law or regulation text we opened (October 27, 2026). 1 more, Tennessee, is listed by NCSL but its residential rule could not be verified, and 21 had no statewide statute in our searches.
• Nine jurisdictions (Alaska, California, DC, Illinois, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Wisconsin) require CO alarms in existing homes that have a CO source, not just new ones.
• Fifteen states attach the duty to a trigger such as a sale, a new tenancy or a renovation, or limit it to rentals and multifamily buildings; 5 (Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Michigan) cover new construction only.
• Rental housing is the most common target: 22 of the 29 verified laws cover rentals and 17 put an express duty on the landlord or owner.
• Only Connecticut and West Virginia cover K-12 school buildings in the laws we opened; 9 laws expressly cover hotels or lodging, and West Virginia is the only one that names daycare facilities.
• CDC WONDER counts 3,631 unintentional non-fire CO deaths in 2018 to 2024, an average of 518.7 a year; 2024 had 545 deaths, 25.3% more than 2018.
• Using verified rows only, jurisdictions with a CO alarm law had a pooled death rate of 1.50 per million, against 1.70 in searched states with no statute found (ratio 1.13); cold, rural states weigh on both sides, so the gap is descriptive only.

Frequently asked questions

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Methodology

Scope and question: for each of the 50 states and DC we asked whether a statewide statute, session law or state regulation requires carbon monoxide alarms, in which buildings, triggered by what condition, since when, where alarms must go and whether a landlord duty is stated. We counted only requirements in texts we opened on October 27, 2026.

Law sources: we started from the official legislature, code publisher or agency for each state, then ran web searches for every state not yet verified and opened each official text found. Fetches used a plain HTTP client with no proxy or browser impersonation. Where an official site refused connections from our network, we read the Internet Archive capture of the same official URL and list the capture date in the sources. New Jersey's and Utah's regulations were read from the Cornell LII copy. Every opened page is saved in the raw folder with a fetch log.

Coding rules: Group A means the law reaches existing homes with a CO source; Group B means existing homes only at a trigger (sale, new tenancy, permitted renovation) or only rentals, multifamily buildings and named occupancies; Group C means new construction only. Arkansas is coded from the official bill status page (Act 146 of 2011) and the bill text; its codified section 20-7-138 was seen only on an unofficial host. Georgia is coded from the Department of Community Affairs amendment effective January 1, 2009; the current edition was not opened. 'No provision found' means the opened text does not name that building type. First year is the earliest effective or applicability date in the text, or the session-law year when no date is given.

Unverified and searched-none states: Tennessee appears as a statute state in the NCSL compilation (via Electrical Contractor magazine), but the Tennessee laws we opened cover child care agencies and rented RVs only, so it is coded 'listed by NCSL, text not verified' and excluded from the law vs no-law comparison. For the 21 states coded 'No statute found (searched)' we list in the CSV the official chapters, bills or rules we opened and, where the official code could not be searched directly (Alabama, Hawaii, Indiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma), the web searches run on October 27, 2026. Utah's statute limits county enforcement of CO detector rules to occupants and does not impose a residential mandate. A searched-none code is a finding about what we could check, not proof of absence. The NCSL pages themselves were blocked to our fetcher.

Death data: CDC WONDER Multiple Cause of Death 2018-2024, Single Race (D157), queried on October 27, 2026 through the public request form after accepting the data use agreement. Case definition: underlying cause ICD-10 X47 with multiple cause T58, the convention for unintentional non-fire CO deaths. Results are grouped by state of residence and pooled over seven years to limit suppression; rates are crude per million person-years. Counts of 1 to 9 are suppressed by CDC and we do not estimate them. The WONDER XML API does not allow grouping by state for vital statistics; the CDC Tracking Network API refused non-token requests during our session.

Comparison and limitations: pooled group rates are total deaths over total person-years; medians use published state rates. The law vs no-law comparison uses verified rows only (29 law jurisdictions vs 21 searched states with no statute; Tennessee excluded). It is descriptive and not causal: most laws predate the death data, and climate, heating fuel, generator use and rurality differ between groups. Building and fire codes adopted statewide are not coded except Georgia's and Rhode Island's state-level rules. Smoke alarm laws and fire deaths are outside this report.

Not legal advice and not medical advice: this report summarizes laws as published and is not legal advice; requirements also come from adopted codes and local ordinances, so confirm with your authority having jurisdiction or an attorney. It is not medical advice; anyone with symptoms of CO poisoning should leave the building and call 911. Last updated October 27, 2026; we plan to recheck the laws and CDC data annually.

This report presents published data with its limitations. It is not legal, engineering, financial or investment advice. Requirements depend on the code edition your state and local fire marshal have adopted; confirm with your authority having jurisdiction.

Sources, ranked by quality

Tier 1: primary and official sources (49)

• [1] CDC National Center for Health Statistics, CDC WONDER. Multiple Cause of Death, 2018-2024, Single Race (D157), query: UCD X47 and MCD T58 by state and by year. 2018 to 2024 final data. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [2] CDC National Center for Health Statistics, CDC WONDER. Multiple Cause of Death, 2018-2024, Single Race: help and data notes. current documentation. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [3] Alaska Legislature. AS 18.70.095 Smoke and carbon monoxide detection devices. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [4] California Legislature. Health and Safety Code 17926. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [5] Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Services. Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 38, Article 45 (C.R.S. 38-45-101 to 106). CRS 2024 edition (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [6] Connecticut General Assembly. Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 541 (29-292, 29-315b). current statutes (archive copy 2026-08-24). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [7] Council of the District of Columbia. D.C. Code 6-751.02 Duty of owner to install detectors. code in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [8] Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 553.885 Carbon monoxide alarm required. 2026 Florida Statutes. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [9] Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 509.211 Safety regulations (public lodging). 2026 Florida Statutes. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [10] Illinois General Assembly. 430 ILCS 135 Carbon Monoxide Alarm Detector Act, sections 5 to 20. statute in force (archive copy 2025). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [11] Iowa Legislature. Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 10A, section 10A.518. Iowa Code 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [12] Iowa Legislature. Iowa Administrative Code 661, Chapter 211 Carbon Monoxide Alarms (rescinded). IAC 8/6/25. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [13] Maine Legislature. 25 M.R.S. 2468 Carbon monoxide detectors. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [14] Maryland General Assembly. Maryland Public Safety Article 12-1101 to 12-1105. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [15] Massachusetts General Court. M.G.L. c. 148, s. 26F1/2 Carbon monoxide alarms. statute in force (archive copy 2025-03-09). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [16] Massachusetts General Court. Acts of 2005, Chapter 123. approved November 4, 2005 (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [17] Michigan Legislature. MCL 125.1504f. statute in force (archive copy 2026-01-18). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [18] Minnesota Revisor of Statutes. Minn. Stat. 299F.51 Requirements for carbon monoxide alarms. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [19] Montana Legislature. MCA 70-24-303 Landlord to maintain premises. MCA 2025. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [20] New Hampshire General Court. RSA 153:10-a. statute in force (archive copy 2025-07-22). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [21] New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (text via Cornell LII). N.J.A.C. 5:70-4.19 Smoke alarms; carbon monoxide alarms; portable fire extinguishers. regulation in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [22] New York State Senate. New York Executive Law 378. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [23] North Carolina General Assembly. G.S. 143-138 North Carolina State Building Code. statute in force (archive copy 2026-09-16). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [24] North Carolina General Assembly. G.S. 42-42 Landlord to provide fit premises. statute in force (archive copy 2026-06-09). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [25] Oregon Legislature. ORS Chapter 105 (105.836 to 105.844) and 476.725. 2025 ORS (archive copy 2026-09-23). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [26] Oregon Legislature. ORS Chapter 90 (90.317 carbon monoxide alarm). 2025 ORS (archive copy 2026-10-04). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [27] Pennsylvania General Assembly. Carbon Monoxide Alarm Standards Act, Act 121 of 2013. enacted December 18, 2013. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [28] Vermont General Assembly. 9 V.S.A. Chapter 77 Smoke Alarms and Carbon Monoxide Alarms. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [29] Washington State Legislature. RCW 19.27.530 Carbon monoxide alarms. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [30] Wisconsin Legislature. Wis. Stat. 101.149 Carbon monoxide detectors. statute in force (archive copy 2026-07-12). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [31] North Dakota Legislative Branch. N.D.C.C. Chapter 18-01 State Fire Marshal. Century Code current. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [32] Rhode Island General Assembly. R.I. Gen. Laws Title 23 chapter index. index (archive copy 2026-09-20). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [33] Nevada Legislature. NRS Chapter 118A Landlord and Tenant: Dwellings. NRS current (archive copy 2026-10-13). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [34] South Carolina Legislature. S.C. Code Title 27 Chapter 40 Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. code current. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [35] Wyoming Legislature. Wyoming Statutes Title 35 Public Health and Safety. statutes current. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [37] Nebraska Legislature. Legislative Bill 34 (2015), Carbon Monoxide Safety Act, slip law. approved March 18, 2015 (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [38] Rhode Island Fire Safety Code Board of Appeal and Review. Rhode Island Fire Code, Chapter 24 One and Two Family Dwellings. current code (archive copy 2026-02-19). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [39] West Virginia Legislature. W. Va. Code 15A-10-12. code as of February 13, 2025 (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [40] West Virginia Legislature. Enrolled Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 389 (1998). effective July 1, 1998. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [41] Louisiana State Legislature. La. R.S. 40:1581 Smoke detectors; carbon monoxide detectors; one- or two-family dwellings. statute in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [42] Louisiana State Legislature. HB 293 (2022 Regular Session), original text. 2022. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [43] Arkansas General Assembly. HB 1385 (2011) bill status (Act 146) and bill text. 2011 session (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [44] Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Georgia State Amendments to the International Residential Code (revised January 1, 2009). effective January 1, 2009. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [45] Wisconsin Legislature. 2009 Wisconsin Act 158 (creates s. 101.647). published March 24, 2010 (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [46] Tennessee Secretary of State. Public Chapter No. 733 (2024), SB 2066. effective July 1, 2024 (archive copy). Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [47] Utah Legislature. Utah Code 17-50-327 Regulation of carbon monoxide detectors. renumbered 11/6/2025. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [48] Utah State Board of Education (text via Cornell LII). Utah Admin. Code R277-400-12 School Carbon Monoxide Detection. rule in force 2026. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [49] Texas Legislature. S.B. No. 100 (78th Legislature, 2003), enrolled version. effective September 1, 2003. Accessed 2026-10-27.
• [50] Kentucky General Assembly. House Bill 339 (2025 Regular Session) record. 2025. Accessed 2026-10-27.

Tier 3: journalism and expert commentary (1)

• [36] Electrical Contractor magazine (NECA). Carbon Monoxide Detection: Follow state regulations and codes for proper installation. published 2023-05-15. Accessed 2026-10-27.