Written by Kate W.
**Update: The ordinance was adopted by City Council!**
Show your support for the city’s ordinance to the phased-in mandate for all-electric new building construction, the opposition is fierce!
On Tuesday 6/1, the Sacramento City Council will vote to adopt the new building electrification ordinance, one of the ‘Year One’ actions outlined in Sacramento and West Sacramento’s Mayors’ Commission on Climate Change report.
If the ordinance is adopted, then buildings three stories or lower that submit building permits after January 1, 2023 must be built all-electric (January 1, 2026 for all other buildings). There are limited exemptions for restaurant cooking, certain manufacturing processes, and low-income housing projects. Those exemptions expire in 2025. The city’s own analysis shows the immense benefit of building all-electric as soon as possible, even stating that the ““earlier the effective date, the greater the City’s ability to successfully close the [CO2e] gap” on meeting its 2045 carbon neutrality goal.
The opposition to this ordinance will be fierce. Business groups have been meeting with council members and are planning to call in to oppose the ordinance. They say it is not feasible, will impact economic recovery from COVID-19, and imperils traditional methods of cooking. We understand that shifting to all-electric buildings may be challenging, but the technology exists today and the ordinance does not impact existing buildings or existing businesses. Retrofitting existing buildings will be incredibly challenging and we need to make sure the city’s retrofit strategy is equitable and prioritizes disadvantaged communities. We need to pass this new building ordinance so we begin work on advocating for an equitable retrofit strategy.
Your message of support to the City Council truly can make a difference.
Take 10 minutes to voice your support for the new building electrification ordinance through an email to your City Councilmember or a verbal comment on Tuesday’s meeting.
How to take action:
- Email your Councilmember: Find your councilmember, their contact information and a guide on how to make a great comment here. Make sure your subject line says something like “June 1 Council Meeting – New Building Electrification Ordinance”.
- Make a verbal comment at the Tuesday meeting: Once the meeting begins at 5pm, call (916) 808-7213 and Dial 6. Can’t watch the whole meeting? Get a text alert to notify you about when to call in and when the agenda item for electrification is about to begin.
- Watch the meeting: Click here to watch Tuesday’s meeting (the link “Watch Now – meeting In Progress” will appear at 5pm).
- Share this with your friends: Forward this email to your friends who support improving public safety, better indoor air quality and stopping the construction of new gas infrastructure. Ask them to take 10 minutes to express their thoughts to the City council.
For more information about this or our other work, contact us at info@350sacramento.org.
