Appeals court delivers fatal blow to California city pushing natural gas ban

msn.com ^ | January 2, 2024 | Thomas Catenacci

[KingofZion]

A federal appeals court rejected a petition Tuesday to rehear a case related to a natural gas ban proposed by the City of Berkeley, California, which the panel ruled was illegal last year.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ultimately denied Berkeley's petition for rehearing en banc — a motion that received support from the Biden administration, Democratic-led states and environmentalists — after it failed to receive majority support from the court's non-recused active judges. Berkeley filed the motion last year after the court in April that a Berkeley law banning natural gas pipes in new construction violated federal statute.

In July 2019, Berkeley's city council passed the ban which was set to go into effect in January 2020, making the city the first in the nation to approve such a measure. Berkeley Councilwoman Kate Harrison, who authored the legislation, said at the time that it was part of the city's effort to take "more drastic action" on climate change and curb greenhouse gas emissions.

However, months after it was approved, the California Restaurant Association (CRA) filed a federal lawsuit challenging the city's ability to pass a law banning new natural gas hookups. After a lower court ruled in favor of Berkeley in July 2021, the CRA filed an appeal, leading to the Ninth Circuit ruling in April.

[HKMk23]

I have it on fairly good authority that this reckless pattern ends — with finality — at the Gates of Jerusalem.