The Trump administration sued two California cities on Monday, seeking to block local laws that restrict natural gas infrastructure and appliances in new construction.
The lawsuit is the administration’s latest attack on energy policies that seek to rein in the use of fossil fuels to combat climate change. California, a Democratic stronghold, has among the most aggressive climate change policies in the world.
Republicans, including Donald Trump, for years have attacked local Democratic efforts to limit gas-powered appliances.
In the complaint filed in US district court in the northern district of California, justice department attorneys alleged that ordinances passed by the San Francisco-area cities of Morgan Hill and Petaluma since 2019 violated a 1975 law that prevents states and cities from regulating the “energy use” of products subject to federal standards.
“The natural gas bans not only impose crushing costs on California residents but are also unlawful,” the complaint said.