← Back to tracker Ban status
Seasonal ban with year-round decibel cap. Memorial Day–Labor Day: only electric/battery-powered leaf blowers permitted, ≤65 dB(A), one blower at a time on lots ≤5,000 sq ft. Labor Day–Memorial Day: gas blowers permitted only if EPA Class 4 (post-Jan 2005) or Class 5 (post-Jan 2008), with manufacturer-rated ≤65 dB(A), full muffler, and extension tube. Year-round: any blower exceeding 65 dB(A) violates Section 21-13 of the noise ordinance.
Enacted: 2021-04-12 In effect since: 2022-05-31
Carve-outs:
Simultaneity cap — One blower at a time on lots ≤5,000 sq ft
Burlington Code of Ordinances Chapter 21, Section 21-14 ("Express Prohibitions – Leaf Blowers"). Adopted unanimously by City Council April 12, 2021 (sponsor: Councilor Karen Paul, Ward 6). Phased rollout: city departments Aug 1, 2021; landscapers >10 properties Sept 6, 2021; smaller landscapers Dec 31, 2021; full residential effective May 31, 2022. Minimum fine $100 per violation. Enforced by Burlington Police Department (non-emergency 802-658-2704). The only Vermont municipality with a binding GLB ordinance. Supports Burlington's Net Zero Energy City by 2030 goal.
Last updated: Jun 2, 2026
Timeline
- 2022-05-31 Effective date reached — Full residential effective date
- 2021-12-31 Effective date reached — Phase: Smaller landscapers (≤10 properties) subject to ordinance
- 2021-09-06 Effective date reached — Phase: Landscapers servicing >10 properties subject to ordinance
- 2021-08-01 Effective date reached — Phase: City departments stop using gas blowers
- 2021-04-12 Adopted — City Council adopted ordinance unanimously
- 2020-01-21 Bill introduced — First reading at City Council
Research & citations
- The Movement to 'Make America Rake Again' — Reasons to be Cheerful
— Reasons to be Cheerful, 2024-01-18
Hannah Wallace profiles the national push to ban gas-powered leaf blowers, opening with Quiet Clean PDX co-chair Michael Hall (Portland, OR) and noting more than 100 US cities have enacted bans alongside 45+ Quiet Clean Alliance member groups. Calls Washington D.C.'s 2022 phase-out the "gold standard" — three-year ramp-up, citizen-affidavit enforcement via DLCP, fines up to $500. Surveys California's CARB AB-1346 zero-emission rule (effective Jan 2024) plus the state's $30M CORE voucher program; cites bans in Burlington VT, Evanston IL, Oakland, Beverly Hills, Santa Barbara, and Montgomery County MD; flags rebate/discount programs in Colorado (30% statewide point-of-sale discount, eff. Jan 2024) and Dallas. Quotes Seagraves Landscaping (West Linn, OR — a Lake Oswego Parks contractor) on crews preferring electric blowers. Closes by linking the movement to the Xerces Society's Leave the Leaves campaign.
- Burlington VT bans gas-powered leaf blowers
City employees comply from Aug 1 2021; effective for all residents May 31 2022.
- City of Burlington — Municipal Code §21-14 (leaf blower / noise)
— City of Burlington
Burlington, VT Code of Ordinances Chapter 21 §21-14 (leaf blower / noise provisions). Source: Code Publishing.
- Noise Pollution & Leaf Blowers — Burlington Police Department
- Burlington Code Chapter 21 — Municode
- Burlington Passes Restrictions on Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers
— Seven Days, 2021-04-13
- Mow Electric! Vermont — voluntary-transition campaign
State procurement Act 154 Sec. E.112 — state procurement directive Enacted 2020-10-01
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