Biden Administration Backs City Gas Bans In EPCA Preemption Suit

The Biden administration is supporting the ability of cities to adopt policies barring natural gas hookups in new buildings as a climate mitigation strategy, amid an industry lawsuit charging that such steps are preempted by the federal Energy Policy & Conservation Act’s (EPCA) energy efficiency standards. “Put simply, this provision prevents States and localities from attempting to do at their level what the Department does at the federal level. The statute does not preempt the regulation of natural gas distribution,...