Latest news with #Initiative2066
Axios
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Axios
The fight over Washington's natural gas measure isn't over
A Washington ballot measure that aimed to stop government officials from discouraging the use of natural gas was struck down last month by a King County judge — but the court fight isn't over yet. Why it matters: Although Washington voters approved Initiative 2066 with nearly 52% of the vote last fall, the measure has been on hold because of a legal challenge. If the initiative were allowed to go into effect, it would force a rollback of recently adopted state energy codes that promote the use of electric heat pumps over natural gas appliances. I-2066 also could threaten financial incentive programs that help homeowners replace fossil-fuel burning furnaces with electric heat pumps, opponents of the measure argued. Flashback: On the campaign trail last year, I-2066 supporters said the ballot measure was needed to protect access to natural gas, while opponents said it would set back efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. The latest: In an oral decision last month, King County Superior Court Judge Sandra Widlan found I-2066 unconstitutional, ruling that it groups too many subjects under one initiative and didn't make the ballot measure's effects clear in its title. Widlan also found that the text of the ballot measure didn't clearly lay out the text of the laws it sought to amend, another constitutional violation. Seattle and King County were among the plaintiffs that sought to overturn I-2066, joining environmental groups and others. Yes, but: The Building Industry Association of Washington, one of I-2066's main backers, plans to appeal the ruling as soon as the King County court enters a final written order, spokesperson Janelle Guthrie told Axios.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lewis County passes resolution aimed at protecting use of natural gas for heating, cooking
Apr. 2—The Lewis County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, April 1, passed a resolution aimed at protecting the installation of gas furnaces for heating and cooking in new home and commercial construction. The resolution is designed to put county code in line with a 2024 voter initiative that was recently overturned by a King County Superior Court judge's ruling. Initiative 2066, which passed in November with 51.71% of the vote in the state, rolls back a number of state policies passed by the Legislature or enacted by the state Building Code Council that provided incentives for builders to install electric heat pumps in new construction and ramped up Puget Sound Electric's transition away from natural gas. Opponents have said the state's moves are aimed at eliminating natural gas as a heating and cooking source. The new Lewis County resolution follows the guidelines of Initiative 2066 by repealing parts of the Washington State Energy Code that they say discriminate against the use of natural gas appliances and replaces them with parts of the 2021 International Residential Code and the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code, which endorse the use of combustion-fueled heating systems. Lewis County Commissioner Sean Swope introduced the county's resolution and used it as an opportunity to stress that the resolution followed the will of Washington voters who approved Initiative 2066. "We are here to fulfill a duty to our constituents and uphold the will of Washington state voters by passing this resolution to protect access to natural gas in Lewis County," Swope said. "Initiative 2066 passed with overwhelming support last November, clearly stating that people want the freedom to choose reliable and affordable energy options." King County Superior Court Judge Sandra Widlan overturned Initiative 2066 on March 21. Widlan said in her published opinion that the initiative violates a law that limits citizen initiatives to covering just one subject, that its title is misleading and that it does not provide the text of the state laws that it would change. Opponents of the 2024 initiative had claimed that it was unconstitutional when it was passed in November citing the same issues and claiming that many voters likely skipped over the measure because they were unsure what it would do. The Building Industry Association of Washington, which was the leading force behind Initiative 2066, stated at that time that the initiative was crafted with such a legal challenge in mind, according to reporting from The Washington State Standard. The future of the policy is now uncertain. Parts of Initiative 2066 were supposed to be implemented in January. Now, with the court ruling, the initiative is null and void unless ruled constitutional by a higher court. That outcome is possible as supporters of the ballot initiative have said that they intend to challenge the ruling.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Judge overturns Washington natural gas measure approved by voters
Greg Lane, executive vice president of the Building Industry Association of Washington, holds a petition for Initiative 2066, the ballot measure aimed at blocking local and state efforts to transition away from use of natural gas. Anthony Anton, president of the Washington Hospitality Association, and Ryann Blake, owner of Chimney Techniques in Aberdeen, joined a news conference May 15, 2024 in Olympia, Wash. to kick off signature gathering. (Jerry Cornfield/Washington State Standard) A King County Superior Court judge on Friday invalidated the ballot measure approved by voters in November that seeks to slow Washington's shift from natural gas toward technology like electric heat pumps. Superior Court Judge Sandra Widlan ruled that Initiative 2066 is unconstitutional because it runs afoul of a provision limiting citizen initiatives to no more than one subject and requiring them to contain the full text of the portion of state laws they would alter. In issuing her decision from the bench, Widlan said the purpose of the single subject requirement is to prevent 'logrolling'' or pushing through 'undesirable legislation by attaching it to desirable legislation.' 'This is a difficult task in the present case, because the body of the initiative is so broad and free ranging that it makes it hard to say with any precision what the general topic is,' Widlan said, according to a press release from the coalition of groups that filed the lawsuit. 'With 2066 struck down, Washingtonians can get back to work towards a cleaner, healthier, more affordable energy future,' Christina Wong, vice president of programs at Washington Conservation Action, said in a statement. 'This is a win for Washingtonians, not the fossil fuel lobby.' Ben Avery, director of the Washington chapter of the Sierra Club, said the decision sends a 'strong message to polluting industries that using unconstitutional and misleading ballot initiatives is a waste of taxpayers' time and money.' Sponsors of the controversial measure vowed to take the case to the state Supreme Court. 'We will not back away from the fight to ensure the will of the people who voted to make I-2066 law stands,' Greg Lane, executive vice president of the Building Industry Association of Washington, said in a statement. 'Those who want to ban natural gas are trying to force their minority view on the majority of Washingtonians. I fully expect we will prevail at the Supreme Court,' he said. Former Gov. Jay Inslee, who campaigned against the measure, attended Friday's hearing. CONTACT US Initiative 2066, which voters approved in November, aims to unwind changes to the energy code, approved by the state Building Code Council, that went into effect a year ago. Those rules offer builders of homes and commercial buildings permitting incentives for choosing heat pumps – which provide both heating and cooling in the same unit – instead of natural gas furnaces. The measure also repealed provisions in a 2024 state law, House Bill 1589, intended to accelerate Puget Sound Energy's transition away from natural gas. The initiative requires utilities and local governments to provide natural gas to eligible customers and it prevents approval of utility rate plans that end or restrict access to natural gas, or make it too costly. A coalition including Climate Solutions, Washington Conservation Action, Front and Centered, King County and the city of Seattle sued over the initiative in December. Washington is the primary defendant. The Building Industry Association of Washington was allowed to intervene to defend the measure. Attorneys for initiative opponents argued in a court filing that the 'most obvious constitutional infirmity' of Initiative 2066 is that it combines a popular idea of requiring certain utilities and local governments to provide natural gas to customers with a host of other subjects, such as future planning by Puget Sound Energy and the array of changes to the state energy code. 'By joining all of these distinct policy choices and requiring voters to enact all or none of them, I-2066 violates the Constitution's prohibition on logrolling,' they wrote in their legal filing. They also contended the initiative 'improperly amends existing laws' by not spelling out the full text of proposed alterations. And a third claim is that the ballot title did not fully describe for voters what the initiative would do. Lawyers for the state and the Building Industry Association of Washington argued the initiative complied with the constitution. BIAW attorneys emphasized in a court filing that all its provisions relate to preserving energy choice, the subject of the measure. Since voters passed the initiative, the homebuilding association has pressed the state Building Code Council to move faster in aligning energy rules for new construction with provisions in the natural gas initiative. Last month, a Thurston County judge dismissed a BIAW lawsuit that sought to force the state panel to act faster. The Building Industry Association of Washington responded by filing a second suit with a similar purpose. That legal challenge is pending and it was not immediately clear how how Friday's ruling might affect it. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Judge won't compel state panel to scrap building codes targeted by gas initiative
A gas ring on a domestic stove powered by natural gas. () A Thurston County judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit that sought to force the state Building Code Council to move faster in aligning energy rules for new construction with provisions in the natural gas initiative Washington voters approved in November. But Superior Court Judge John Skinder said he hoped the legal effort launched by the Building Industry Association of Washington 'does put the council on notice.' 'This type of action, it does have a purpose,' Skinder said as he granted the state's motion to toss the case. The Building Industry Association of Washington spearheaded the effort to pass Initiative 2066, which became law Dec. 5. It amends and repeals regulations and laws intended to move the state away from natural gas and toward technology like electric heat pumps in new construction. Among its targets are revisions to the residential and commercial building energy codes that took effect in March 2024. Those rules, which offer builders permitting incentives for choosing electric heat pumps instead of natural gas furnaces, are unenforceable, the group says. Following November's election, the homebuilding association pressed the Building Code Council to erase the rules. Council members declined. Instead, they opted to have their technical experts review those rules and initiative language and recommend any changes needed to bring everything into alignment. The builder group sued in December to force the council to act faster than the timetable set out in its mid-November meeting. They argued for emergency rulemaking to resolve conflicts between the new law and the rules. On Friday, July Simpson, an assistant attorney general representing the Building Code Council, said the association was seeking a way around the process with its complaint. Sydney Phillips, representing BIAW, disagreed. She said association members sought clarity on a 'consequential' issue — which codes are enforceable and which are not — to ensure they are in compliance. While the court could direct the council to undertake emergency rulemaking, it wasn't a specific request of the association, she said. Following Skinder's ruling, a BIAW official said a new complaint would be filed against the Building Code Council in the coming days contending its actions violated a state law known as the Administrative Procedures Act. Meanwhile, a lawsuit to invalidate the entire voter-approved initiative is proceeding in King County Superior Court. Opponents sued in December, contending Initiative 2066 is unconstitutional because it runs afoul of a provision limiting citizen initiatives to no more than one subject and requiring them to contain the full text of the portion of state laws they would alter. A judge will consider the arguments in a March 21 hearing. Plaintiffs in this lawsuit include Climate Solutions, Washington Conservation Action, Front and Centered, King County and the city of Seattle. Washington is the sole defendant.
