A federal judge ruled July 30 that Oak Park’s ordinance requiring new buildings and residences to be all electric rather than run by fossil fuels is not preempted by a federal law, rejecting a legal challenge from a coalition from the natural gas industry.
U.S. District Court Judge Franklin U. Valderrama upheld Oak Park’s ordinance, that is part of the village’s Climate Ready Oak Park initiative to reduce greenhouse emissions. The ordinance has been in effect since Jan. 1, 2024.
“This ruling is about doing what is right and what our planet urgently needs,” Village President Vicki Scaman said in a statement. “In order to effectively combat the climate change negatively effecting every community across our nation and globe, we must move away from reliance on petroleum.”
Clean Energy Choice Coalition, NFP, an energy advocacy group, filed the lawsuit in 2025, claiming Oak Park’s ordinance conflicted with the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act prohibiting state and local regulations concerning the energy efficient or regular use of select products.
The Clean Energy Choice Coalition did not immediately respond for comment.
Other courts have upheld local-cleaning policies against Energy Policy and Conservation Act preemption challenges, according to the village. Scaman said she is grateful for the ruling and said it will lead to a “stronger future.”
Oak Park’s CROP framework, adopted in 2022, sets a long-term plan to protect residents’ health, safety and welfare and updates building codes. Some of the commitments of the CROP plan is to decrease communitywide greenhouse gas emissions 30% by 2030, and achieve communitywide net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
“It’s gratifying that this ruling confirms what we’ve always held firm,“ said Village Manager Kevin Jackson. “Oak Park has the authority to make its own decisions about reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting the health of our residents. We’re grateful to everyone who stood behind this ordinance, including the community organizations that supported us throughout this litigation.”
Earthjustice, a nonprofit environmental law organization, represented the village on a pro-bono basis.
Timothy Oberleiton, a senior attorney at Earthjustice, said the organization supports local and federal efforts to electrify and shares the village’s vision.
“When you see a municipality under attack from industry using a very faulty reading of an arcane statue, it seems a little lopsided, so we decided to lend support and work with partners as well as in the area to represent the village of Oak Park,” Oberleiton said.
Berkeley, California passed a ban on natural gas pipes in new buildings in 2023. The California Restaurant Association challenged the ban in federal court, saying the city’s ban preempted Energy Policy and Conservation Act rules on energy use of gas appliances, including those in households and restaurant kitchens.
The federal court ruled in favor of Berkley, but the restaurant association appealed to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which found Berkley violated the act and federal authority.
“Every court that has visited this issue has basically said that the CRA vs. Berkeley court got it wrong,” Oberleiton said. “Clearly, we’re seeing an attack on local authority to pass commonsense ordinances and legislation to protect their residents’ health and safety and provide the path for electrification which lead to many health benefits and cost savings.”
chardy@chicagotribune.com
