The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against Morris Township in New Jersey over its ban on natural gas and other fossil fuels in newly constructed buildings, the department said in an April 1 statement. [some emphasis, links added]
The ban “drives up energy costs for everyday American consumers and weakens our Nation’s energy dominance,” the DOJ said.
“Such policies reflect a radical left effort to outlaw federally regulated gas stoves, furnaces, water heaters, dryers, and other appliances that American families rely on daily to cook their meals and heat their homes.”
The lawsuit, filed on March 31 in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, challenges an ordinance the township passed in 2022.
The ordinance said that beginning Sept. 1, 2022, officials shall not issue a construction permit for any new apartments consisting of 12 or more units unless the building is all-electric.
The ordinance defines an all-electric building as not using natural gas, propane, or oil heaters, or their associated delivery systems—boilers, piping systems, fixtures, and infrastructure—to meet its energy needs.
In its lawsuit, the DOJ argues that the ordinance denies the township’s consumers “reliable, resilient, and affordable energy,” as well as the option to use commonplace gas appliances for heating, cooking, and other household tasks.
Moreover, the township’s ban on natural gas is unlawful, as the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 preempts state and local regulations related to energy efficiency or energy use of any product subject to the federal government’s energy conservation standard, the complaint said.
The DOJ argued that the Ninth Circuit Court recently ruled that banning the installation of natural gas piping in new buildings was preempted by Congress via EPCA. This legal precedent makes Morris Township’s gas ban “invalid.”
The department asked the court to rule the township’s ordinance as “void and unenforceable.” …snip…
Trump’s Executive Order
In the lawsuit, the DOJ cited President Donald Trump’s April 8, 2025, executive order, titled Protecting American Energy From State Overreach.
State laws and policies that seek to institute climate regulations related to energy weaken America’s national security and bring about financial ruin by pushing up energy costs for families, Trump wrote in the order, adding that such rules undermine federalism by “projecting the regulatory preferences of a few States into all States.”
Trump instructed the attorney general to take “all appropriate action” necessary to stop the enforcement of state and local laws, policies, and practices that burden the development and use of domestic energy resources.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi said the DOJ’s lawsuit against Morris Township follows two similar, successful lawsuits in California.
Read full post at Epoch Times
