Washington state building code officials voted Wednesday to delay the first statewide mandate for electric heat pumps in new buildings, dealing a blow to a landmark restriction on natural gas.
The decision comes after a federal court overturned the nation’s first gas ban for new buildings, which was passed in 2019 in Berkeley, Calif. That court — the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — also handles appeals from Washington.
The Washington State Building Code Council voted 8-2 to delay the mandate for 120 days. It also approved a second motion to begin the process of revising the building codes to reduce the risk of them being overturned.
“We need to comply with their ruling or else leave ourselves and our building officials open to legal risk,” said Kjell Anderson, the SBCC member who authored the motion to delay, during the Wednesday meeting.
