An organization of plumbing fixture manufacturers is urging Congress not to reverse Federal regulations mandating so-called "low-flow" toilets in new construction, saying there is no concrete evidence that "high-flow" toilets are being bootlegged into the country in any appreciable numbers.

The Energy and Policy Subcommittee of the House Commerce Committee is considering legislation that would allow U.S. manufacturers to return to selling toilets that flush 3.5 gallons of water, rather than the currently mandated 1.6 gallons per flush.

The low-flow standard was adopted about five years ago in an effort to conserve water.

Since then consumers have balked at the low-flow toilets, saying they often failed to eliminate waste from the toilet bowl - requiring a conservation-defeating second flush.

It has been alleged that builders and home remodelers, faced with having only low-flow models available to them, have gone to Canada where high-flow toilets are still manufactured, spiriting them back across the border.

U.S. Customs officials say they do not routinely check to see whether returning tourists are carrying illegal toilets.

Harold Williams, president of the American Supply Association, is now asking members of the House subcommittee not to reverse the law just because of rumors and isolated stories.

Williams said if large numbers of Canadian toilets were coming into the United States it would be reflected in lower toilet sales by U.S. distributors. That has not been the case, he says.

He said the ASA surveyed members located in states bordering on or near Canada. The survey results show more than 92 percent of the respondents reported that toilets from Canada were having no impact on product sales.

"If this rumor were true, plumbing wholesalers along the Canadian border would have seen a drop in their sales, but that has not happened," Williams said. "

"Survey results show that 3.5 gallon per flush toilets from Canada have had no impact on U.S. sales of 1.6 gpf toilets. The small number of toilets that have been brought from Canada are isolated instances having little or no impact on sales.

"Repealing the national plumbing products standard is a drastic step with serious long-term implications for water conservation," he said. "It is a step that should not be taken on the basis of exaggerated rumors and isolated anecdotes."

There was no indication that the Energy and Policy subcommittee intended to move quickly on the legislation.

Published: March 14, 2000

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