Gavin Tenold: Protect common-sense programs and the state’s energy transition

By Gavin Tenold

This November, Washingtonians will be asked to vote on a complicated and misleading initiative concerning energy efficiency in our built environment, and natural gas service to our homes and buildings. As a professional who has spent my entire career focused on constructing homes and buildings that use less energy, I will be voting no on Initiative 2066.

I-2066 is a solution in search of a problem that doesn’t exist and the special interest backers behind the initiative are lying to voters. The truth is that neither the Washington state energy code (which regulates all buildings), nor state law, bans anyone from using natural gas. Moreover, all gas utilities in our state, including Avista, are required by law to provide gas connectivity to any customer who requests it.

I-2066 actually seeks to dismantle dozens of current, common-sense programs, rules and regulations that are at work right now, reducing energy bills for all of us. Specifically, there are three areas of concern.

Handcuffs local goverments

First, the initiative handcuffs our leaders at the city and county levels by prohibiting them from making decisions about their communities’ energy future. It could prevent local governments from forming important and innovative partnerships with organizations such as SNAP to offer energy-efficiency rebates for switching to heat pumps that are up to four times more efficient than gas furnaces and double as air conditioners.

A noteworthy example of one such program that is in jeopardy is the recently announced $19.9 million dollar collaboration between the city of Spokane, SNAP and Gonzaga involving in part the installation of heat pumps in 300 low-income homes in Spokane.

Increases construction costs

Second, the I-2066 wrecking ball rolls back our state’s energy code, leading to more expensive construction costs and higher energy bills for everyone. If passed, builders cannot claim efficiency benefits from electric devices such as heat pumps when meeting the code’s energy targets, increasing costs as they then must chase deeper insulation, better windows and more efficient ventilation to meet those same targets. Proponents of the initiative are lying about the facts here.

If this initiative were to pass, Washington home buyers would be ultimately forced to pay more for a less efficient home, one that costs more to operate than its all-electric counterpart that is heated and cooled with a heat pump.

Hamstrings utilities’ ability to plan for future

Lastly, I-2066 removes the ability for large utilities to proactively manage the transition from natural gas to electricity while keeping costs low for everyone in their service areas.

The fact is natural gas use is declining statewide, and it is forecasted to continue to decline, even in Eastern Washington with our relatively harsh winters. Large utilities need to be able to plan ahead for the management of their gas assets in this new marketplace of a declining customer base. If I-2066 passes, utilities will not be able to do so, and may begin to lose money on their gas investments. All of us as customers will then pay more for energy as the utility business model simply passes costs onto consumers.

Initiative 2066 is bankrolled by the gas industry, including PACs funded by the Koch Brothers, and the pro campaign has been misleading from when they started paying to gather its signatures. The gas industry wins if Washingtonian utilities are unable to plan ahead for the future, and the gas industry wins when our State’s energy efficiency programs are shuttered.

Meanwhile, Washingtonians lose, especially our most vulnerable communities. We lose because we are forced into less efficient homes and buildings while paying more for the energy to operate them. We lose when our local government is legally stripped of the ability to do anything about it.

Let’s stop the deep-pocketed, fossil fuel industry from hijacking our state’s energy transition. Join me in voting no on I-2066.

Gavin Tenold, of Spokane, owns and operates Northwest Renewables, has built several Passive Houses, and serves on Washington State’s Energy Code Technical Advisory Committee.