federal appliance efficiency standards

86ing Natural Gas in New Buildings

Natural gas flame

A new Second Circuit opinions empowers bans on fossil fuels in new buildings.

Three years ago, the Ninth Circuit struck down a Berkeley ordinance banning natural gas hookups for new buildings.  The court said that the ordinance was preempted by a federal law regulating appliance efficiency.  The Second Circuit has now reached the opposite conclusion about an NYC ordinance that basically bans fossil fuels in new buildings.  The Second Circuit opinion  zoomed in on the language of the federal law, which seems more in line with Supreme Court’s current approach to statutory interpretation.  

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