{"id":2377563,"date":"2024-12-07T18:13:55","date_gmt":"2024-12-07T23:13:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/washington-natural-gas-initiative-backer-files-suit-to-force-state-to-comply-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-12-07T18:16:04","modified_gmt":"2024-12-07T23:16:04","slug":"washington-natural-gas-initiative-backer-files-suit-to-force-state-to-comply-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/washington-natural-gas-initiative-backer-files-suit-to-force-state-to-comply-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Washington natural gas initiative backer files suit to force state to comply &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwashington-natural-gas-initiative-backer-files-suit-to-force-state-to-comply-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2377563&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Building Industry Association of Washington has initiated a \u200dlawsuit in Thurston county Superior court aimed at compelling the\u200b washington State building Code Council to adhere to Initiative 2066. This initiative focuses on safeguarding access to natural \u2062gas. \u2062The case centers on the compliance of the state \u200bcouncil with the regulations\u2063 outlined in \u200dthe initiative, which is\u2062 critically important for stakeholders in the state&#8217;s\u200b building and energy sectors. The article highlights \u2064the legal and \u2064regulatory implications of this action within the \u2062context of Washington&#8217;s energy\u2063 policies.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Washington natural gas initiative backer files suit to force state to comply<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1905783\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>(The Center Square)&nbsp;&ndash; The Building Industry Association of Washington&nbsp;on Friday&nbsp;filed a lawsuit in Thurston County Superior Court to declare that the Washington State Building Code Council must comply with Initiative 2066, protecting access to natural gas for homes and businesses in the state.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>Voters narrowly passed I-2066, sponsored by BIAW, in last month&rsquo;s general election. The initiative went into effect Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Millions of voters have spoken&nbsp;and&nbsp;Initiative 2066 is now law,&rdquo; BIAW Executive Vice President Greg Lane said in a news release.&nbsp;&ldquo;Above all else, the&nbsp;members of the&nbsp;State Building Code Council have a duty and obligation to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fla-to-withhold-funding-if-local-school-boards-maintain-unlawful-mask-orders\/\" title=\"Fla. to withhold funding if local school boards maintain unlawful mask orders\">follow state law<\/a>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The building industry has repeatedly and respectfully requested the State Building Code Council adjust the codes to comply with the new law,&rdquo; Lane said. &ldquo;We even offered multiple pathways to do so. The&nbsp;Council&nbsp;has refused to take action. We&nbsp;are left&nbsp;with no other option but to ask a court to tell the&nbsp;Council&nbsp;that they are not above the law.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, BIAW wrote a&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.biaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/241113-BIAW-Letter-RE-I-2066.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">letter<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;to the&nbsp;council, asking it to take emergency action to comply with the new law. The&nbsp;council&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/washington\/article_7df9de9e-b1a9-11ef-b2f6-03353099ea34.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">declined<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;to do so.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit requests that the court issue a binding judgment stating that I-2066 amended the portions of the Revised Code of Washington controlling the SBCC, that the SBCC is subject to the new law, and that emergency rulemaking is appropriate.<\/p>\n<p>I-2066 opponents&nbsp;are also expected&nbsp;to&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/washington\/article_445fd420-b28c-11ef-b40b-db36190b25f2.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sue<\/a><\/strong>&nbsp;soon, claiming that the measure violates the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/prop-hh-to-remain-on-november-ballot-after-colorado-supreme-court-ruling\/\" title=\"Prop HH stays on Nov ballot after CO Supreme Court ruling.\">single-subject requirement<\/a> in the state constitution.<\/p>\n<p>Backers of I-2066 say they carefully crafted the measure to withstand expected legal challenges and that the measure is all about a single subject: protecting consumer energy choice.<\/p>\n<p>I-2066 is a response to&nbsp;<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/app.leg.wa.gov\/BillSummary\/?BillNumber=1589&amp;Year=2023&amp;Initiative=false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">House Bill 1589<\/a><\/strong>, passed during this year&rsquo;s legislative session, to accelerate Puget Sound Energy&rsquo;s transition&nbsp;away&nbsp;from natural gas.<\/p>\n<p>More specifically, I-2066 requires utilities to provide natural gas service to any person or business requesting it&nbsp;and bans&nbsp;the Washington Utility and Trade Commission from <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">approving multi-year rate plans<\/a> that require or incentivize ending natural gas service.<\/p>\n<p>I-2066 proponents say the state&rsquo;s transition&nbsp;away&nbsp;from natural gas has ramped up too quickly. They claim that if the measure&nbsp;is defeated&nbsp;in the courtroom, homeowners and businesses with newer energy hookups will face&nbsp;huge&nbsp;expenses.<\/p>\n<p>With more than 3.7 million votes tallied from the Nov. 5 election, 51.71% approved I-2066, while 48.29% cast their ballots to reject the initiative.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1905783\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1905783\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BIAW sues Washington to enforce Initiative 2066 on natural gas<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2377564,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/AP22250805507674-1024x683.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[36468,4585,41067,46334,4086],"class_list":["post-2377563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-energy-policy","tag-lawsuit","tag-natural-gas","tag-state-compliance","tag-washington"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/AP22250805507674-1024x683.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2377563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2377563"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2377563\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2377567,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2377563\/revisions\/2377567"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2377564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2377563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2377563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2377563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}