Washington Supreme Court Strikes Down Natural Gas Initiative

The Supreme Court of Washington ruled in a 6-3 decision that Initiative 2066 is unconstitutional in its entirety. The court found that the 2024 voter-approved measure violated the state constitution's single-subject requirement by bundling four distinct subjects—including utility policies, building codes, and air-pollution regulations—into one initiative.

Chief Justice Debra Stephens wrote the majority opinion, stating that the distinct provisions were not severable. The court determined it was impossible to know if each individual subject would have received majority support if voted on separately. The ruling overturns a measure passed by a 52% to 48% margin, which had required utilities to provide natural gas regardless of other available energy sources.

The litigation was brought by the city of Seattle, King County, and climate advocacy groups, including Washington Conservation Action and the Sierra Club, to protect state decarbonization policies. Climate Solutions hailed the decision as a victory for clean energy and affordable power.

Opponents of the ruling, including the Building Industry Association of Washington and State Senator Matt Boehnke, argued the decision rejects the will of nearly two million voters. The Building Industry Association of Washington claimed the government is telling citizens their opinions do not matter, while Senator Boehnke asserted the ruling does not erase the voters' intent. The initiative was funded by Brian Heywood through Let's Go Washington.