January 02, 2024
A divided Ninth Circuit on Tuesday stood by its ruling that Berkeley, California's ban on installing natural gas piping for newly constructed buildings is federally preempted, with dissenting judges saying the decision sets a troubling precedent that hamstrings state and local efforts to combat climate change.
July 18, 2023
The first half of the year saw the U.S. Supreme Court redefine federally protected waters, approve constitutional challenges to in-house enforcement at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and open the door to state lawsuits against oil giants for their alleged role in the climate crisis. Here's a look at some of the biggest energy-related court rulings in the first half of the year.
June 13, 2023
The federal government, along with interest groups, academics and nearly a dozen states, argued the Ninth Circuit's April decision blocking a Berkeley, California, ban on natural gas fixtures upsets how states and the government balance energy regulation, in backing a request for an 11-judge panel to review the ruling.
May 31, 2023
The city of Berkeley asked the full Ninth Circuit on Wednesday to review a panel decision that revived the California Restaurant Association's challenge to the city's ban on the installation of natural gas piping in newly constructed buildings.
April 17, 2023
The California Restaurant Association can challenge Berkeley's ban on the installation of natural gas piping in newly constructed buildings, after the Ninth Circuit held Monday that the ban waded into a domain preempted by federal law and revived the association's claims.
May 12, 2022
Counsel for the California Restaurant Association attempted to convince a Ninth Circuit panel during oral arguments on Thursday that a lower court should have found that a ban by Berkeley, California, on natural gas infrastructure in new buildings is preempted by federal law.
March 23, 2022
Berkeley, California, overstepped its authority to regulate utilities by banning natural gas infrastructure in the city, the American Gas Association told the Ninth Circuit in an amicus brief Tuesday, arguing that municipalities may only impose restrictions in the public interest.
February 09, 2022
The U.S. Department of Energy has backed the city of Berkeley against claims its ban on natural gas infrastructure is preempted by federal law, telling the Ninth Circuit that nothing in the statutes prohibits the California city's regulations.
February 03, 2022
The city of Berkeley has urged the Ninth Circuit to side with a California district court that determined the city's ban on natural gas hookups in new buildings isn't preempted by federal laws governing appliance efficiencies.
November 05, 2021
The California Restaurant Association told the Ninth Circuit it must overturn Berkeley's ban on natural gas infrastructure in newly constructed buildings, arguing that the ban is just an "end run" to ban gas appliances themselves.