Judge strikes down Washington’s natural gas initiative, citing constitutional violation

SEATTLE — A King County judge has invalidated a voter-approved initiative on natural gas, ruling it violates the state constitution.

Initiative 2066, which passed in November, aimed to repeal or ban laws and regulations that discourage the use of natural gas. The initiative would have allowed electric utility companies, such as Puget Sound Energy, to promote natural gas usage.

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As a result of the ruling, Puget Sound Energy and other utility services will need to offer gas power to customers who request it but will not be able to provide rebates. They will also be required to inform customers about incentives for installing electric appliances.

Christina Wong from Washington Conservation Action hailed the decision as a victory. “This is an incredible win for the people in Washington. In no way was this challenging for disrupting the initiative process, but validated what we’ve been saying all along, that people were misled in voting for this initiative,” she said.

The initiative impacts building efficiency standards within the Washington Energy Code, balancing access to natural gas with efforts to reduce fossil fuel use.

In response to the ruling, the Building Industry Association of Washington expressed its intent to continue fighting the decision. “We will continue to use every avenue available, including appealing to the state Supreme Court, to protect energy choice for the people of Washington. Today’s decision was based solely on the policy preference of the judge and had no legal basis whatsoever,” the association said.