Trump administration sues 2 Bay Area cities over natural gas ban

Two Bay Area cities sued over natural gas ban

The cities of Morgan Hill and Petaluma are facing a lawsuit by the Trump administration over their decision to ban natural gas in most new buildings.

PETALUMA, Calif. - The cities of Morgan Hill and Petaluma are facing a lawsuit by the Trump administration over their decision to ban natural gas in most new buildings.

‘No natural gas’

The two smaller-sized cities as defendants must now face the awesome power and finances of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Petaluma's All-Electric Code mandates all new construction or major reconstruction use only clean, electricity-based systems; no natural gas.

"You know, we've always been forward and progressive with our local policies," said Petaluma Director of Community Development Brian Oh.

Example, Petaluma was the first U.S. city to ban the building of new gas stations to transition away from fossil fuels.

Other all-electric ordinances

More than 70 other California jurisdictions have followed Petaluma and adopted their own All-Electric ordinances.

"You know, I'm an old man. So, as we progress, the world progresses, there are new technologies, new ways of doing things that might be better, might be more environmentally sound, might be more efficient that we should explore," said Petaluma resident Bill Yungert.

After Petaluma passed its All-Electric ordinance in 2021, a federal appeals court struck down Berkeley's similar law.

After the Berkeley decision, the city of Petaluma, on its own, decided not to enforce its law.

Petaluma backs down. Kind of

So, the question arises: why would the federal government sue Petaluma for that it's not even enforcing?

"Litigation on the city would be an unfair exploitation of funds. They're hoping Petaluma is gonna give up quick. I mean it could really go either way," said Petaluma resident and YouTube musician Alexander Tzouvelekis.

It turns out, developers voluntarily choose to obey it anyhow.

"Our new developments that do come in, they are essentially in compliance. They're wanting to do it voluntarily for a number of reasons: to help meet our carbon goals, our climate goals and we're finding, it's just cheaper," said development Director Oh.

But, as a matter of law? "We're fully compliant with Federal law," said Oh.

What's next:

In the long term, the odds are, that a different federal administration may not only allow it but encourage it.

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