The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has overturned a 2019 natural gas ban that applied to the construction of new buildings in Berkeley, California.
The Washington Times reports Berkeley was the first city in the U.S. to ban natural gas lines in new construction. In a unanimous decision, the City Council said the ban was necessary to support Berkeley’s goal of achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
The federal appeals court’s three-judge panel based in San Francisco handed down the unanimous decision on Monday, siding with the California Restaurant Association to halt the city’s effort, saying it violates federal law that gives the U.S. government the authority to set energy-efficiency standards for appliances.
Judge Patrick Bumatay wrote in the 3-0 Ninth Circuit ruling that a local ordinance that bans appliances such as gas stoves “impacts the quantity of…
