SEATTLE — A coalition of officials plan to file a lawsuit to challenge the constitutionality of Initiative 2066 (I-2066), which was approved by Washington voters in the November general election.
With over 3 million votes tallied in the election, 51.43% (1,593,392 votes) were in favor of approving I-2066 while 1,505,028 votes, or 48.57%, were cast to reject the initiative. I-2066 went into effect 30 days after the election.
I-2066 requires utilities to provide natural gas service to any person or business who requests it and bans the Washington Utility and Trade Commission from approving multi-year rate plans that require or incentivize terminating natural gas service.
The coalition, which includes local government officials, environmental, climate and health advocates, said Wednesday that I-2066 supporters misled Washington voters with an extensive misinformation campaign funded by industry and two gas utilities (NW Natural and Cascade Natural Gas). According to the plaintiffs, the I-2066 campaign made it difficult for voters to recognize the broad scope of the initiative and its potential harms, including higher energy bills and reduced access to energy efficiency upgrades.
"I-2066 jeopardizes the ability of local governments and other entities to promote clean energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions," the coalition said in a statement. "It undermines programs that promote the construction of energy-efficient buildings; and it would make the clean energy transition chaotic and more expensive, especially for low-income households."
Let's Go Washington, which gathered the more than 530,000 signatures needed to get Initiative 2066 on the ballot, released a statement after I-2066 passed in November.
“Today we are celebrating I-2066 being approved by voters alongside the 533,005 Washingtonians who signed their name to protect energy choice in our state," Let’s Go Washington founder Brian Heywood said in a statement. "The legislature’s decision to eliminate natural gas as an energy source was clear overreach. We fought for Washington’s rural communities that couldn’t survive the freezing winters and grid blackouts without natural gas. We fought for small businesses who could not afford to retrofit their buildings to electric. We fought for Washingtonians tired of being forced to comply with policies that make their lives more difficult from a legislature that has proven they aren’t listening to citizens."
I-2066 supporters, like the Building Industry Association of Washington and the Washington State Hospitality Association, fear a future natural gas ban in the state and see the initiative as a way to stop that from happening. The Building Industry of Washington said the ban would hike construction costs while the hospitality association said limiting natural gas could impact restaurants and breweries.