The U.S. Department of Justice filed lawsuits against the Bay Area cities of Petaluma and Morgan Hill over ordinances that banned natural gas infrastructure and appliances in new buildings. The lawsuits, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, argue that the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) gives the federal government exclusive authority over energy use standards for appliances.
The Trump administration contends that these cities cannot adopt local rules that effectively eliminate the use of natural gas-powered appliances by banning the infrastructure that supports them. In its complaint, the Department of Justice describes Petaluma and Morgan Hill’s restrictions as not only unlawful but also burdensome to residents, arguing they “deny consumers reliable, resilient, and affordable energy” and undermine broader national energy interests.
The natural gas bans follow a similar effort in Berkeley, which imposed the country’s first ban on natural gas in new construction in 2019 before repealing it in 2024. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overturned the ordinance in 2023. The majority opinion of the full panel of judges held that that the EPCA “expressly preempts State and local regulations concerning the energy use of many natural gas appliances, including those used in household and restaurant kitchens.” The Biden administration supported Berkeley’s ordinance in court before the Ninth Circuit.
The reach of the decision is unclear, as the EPCA could allow local governments to discourage the use of natural gas through air quality standards or energy efficiency–based building standards rather than direct bans on federally regulated appliances.
The case is now a central pillar of the federal government’s argument against similar ordinances across California. Petaluma and Morgan Hill both maintain that their gas bans are no longer actively enforced and that they are in compliance with the Ninth Circuit’s Berkeley ruling. The U.S. government’s efforts to block them is likely a way to prevent them from being revived or influencing future building policy.
Stopping State “Overreach”
Municipal gas bans have proliferated since 2019 as part of a broader strategy to reduce emissions from buildings — a sector that accounts for a significant share of greenhouse gases. California has been at the forefront of these efforts, and more than 60 U.S. cities have adopted similar codes aimed at phasing out fossil fuel use in new construction. At the state level, in 2022, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted a plan to ban the sale of gas new furnaces and water heaters by 2030.
Supporters argue these rules accelerate electrification, improve public health, and help meet state and local climate goals. Opponents maintain that fragmented local policies create inconsistency, drive up costs, and exceed the legal authority of cities when federal law covers the same territory.
The challenge to these ordinances is part of President Donald Trump’s policy, outlined in an April 2025 executive order, to stop the “overreach” from “burdensome and ideologically motivated ‘climate change’ or energy policies that threaten American energy dominance and our economic and national security.” Trump’s January 2025 executive order on “Unleashing American Energy” states it is U.S. policy to “safeguard the American people’s freedom to choose from a variety of goods and appliances, including but not limited to lightbulbs, dishwashers, washing machines, gas stoves, water heaters, toilets, and shower heads…” Trump reportedly also considered an executive order to protect gas stoves.
Prior to the April executive order, California’s legislative Republican caucus asked the Department of Energy in February to “engage legally with any California jurisdiction violating EPCA in order to enforce the federal preemption of any state or local gas bans.”