Journal of Science Policy & Governance
Volume 21, Issue 01 | October 17, 2022

Policy Memo: Overcoming State-Level Preemption to Electrify New Buildings: a Philadelphia Case Study

Maura E. Gibbs (1,2), Zakaria Hsain (1,3), Erin K. Reagan (1,4), Shannon Wolfman (1,5), Anne-Marie Zaccarin (1,6)
  1. University of Pennsylvania, Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group, Philadelphia, PA.
  2. University of Pennsylvania, Department of Chemistry, Philadelphia, PA.
  3. University of Pennsylvania, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, Philadelphia, PA.
  4. University of Pennsylvania, Infectious Disease Division, Philadelphia, PA.
  5. University of Pennsylvania, Department of Neuroscience, Philadelphia, PA.
  6. University of Pennsylvania, Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering, Philadelphia, PA.   ​
​
Corresponding author: [email protected]​
Keywords: natural gas; building codes; electrification; local government; climate change
https://doi.org/10.38126/JSPG210104​

Executive Summary

The use of natural gas in heating and cooking negatively impacts environmental and human health. As government investments in clean energy production continue to increase, replacing natural gas appliances with electric alternatives is imperative to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect public health. As a large US city with robust emissions reduction goals, Philadelphia, PA must significantly reduce natural gas use in buildings. However, many states, including PA, have advanced legislation that preemptively restricts municipalities from banning natural gas use. Using Philadelphia as a case study, we propose policy options, including electric appliance rebates, electrification incentives, and building efficiency standards, that US municipalities can pursue to circumvent state preemption laws in electrifying new construction, significantly reducing natural gas demand, and advancing their net-zero emissions goals.

-Read the full article through download.-

Background header image courtesy of Bruce.Emmerling
Maura E. Gibbs is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania where she researches the chemical upcycling of polyolefins through transition metal catalysis. Maura is a member of the Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group.

Zakaria Hsain is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group. His academic interests span electrochemistry, materials science, macroeconomics, and energy policy.

Erin K. Reagan is a Ph.D. candidate in the Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Group at the University of Pennsylvania, researching mRNA vaccine design for infectious diseases. She is also President Emerita of the Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy group.

Shannon Wolfman was a post-doctoral researcher in the Neuroscience Department at the University of Pennsylvania and the President of the Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group. She is currently the Global Climate Change Fellow at Annual Reviews. 
​
Anne-Marie Zaccarin is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Penn Science Policy and Diplomacy Group. Her research interests include microelectromechanical systems and passive wireless sensing.

References

  1. Renewable Natural Gas Can't Deliver the Carbon Neutral Future We Need.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine. https://www.forbes.com/sites/brentanalexander/2020/05/28/new-research-suggests-renewable-natural-gas-cant-deliver-the-carbon-neutral-future-we-need/?sh=12bdd93c278e 
  2. Barbose, Galen. 2019. “U.S. Renewables Portfolio Standards: 2019 Annual Status Report.” https://emp.lbl.gov/publications/us-renewables-portfolio-standards-2 
  3. Bickel, Stephen, Erika Burns, Brenna Rivett, Dan Vida, Matthew Nelson, Jennifer Parsons, and Howard Merson. 2016. “Swimming to Midstream: New Residential HVAC Program Models and Tools.” American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). https://www.aceee.org/files/proceedings/2016/data/papers/7_888.pdf 
  4. Billimoria, Sherri, Leia Guccione, Mike Henchen, and Leah Louis-Prescott. 2018. “The Economics of Electrifying Buildings.” RMI. https://rmi.org/insight/the-economics-of-electrifying-buildings/ 
  5. California Energy Codes and Standards. 2019. “Model Residential Electric Readiness Code, Version 2.8.”  https://localenergycodes.com/download/537/file_path/fieldList/2019%20ModelOrd%20-%20RNC%20Electric-Readiness.docx 
  6. Caruso, Stephen. 2021. “Municipalities want to limit carbon emissions. Pa. utilities want to preempt them.” Pennsylvania Capital-Star. https://www.penncapital-star.com/energy-environment/municipalities-want-to-limit-carbon-emissions-pa-utilities-want-to-preempt-them/ 
  7. City of Boulder. 2020. “2020 City of Boulder Energy Conservation Code.”  https://bouldercolorado.gov/services/energy-conservation-code 
  8. City of New York. 2021. “Mayor de Blasio Signs Landmark Bill to Ban Combustion of Fossil Fuels in New Buildings”. https://www1.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/news/852-21/mayor-de-blasio-signs-landmark-bill-ban-combustion-fossil-fuels-new-buildings#:~:text=Buildings%20of%20all%20sizes%20must,and%20emergency%20or%20standby%20power 
  9. City of Philadelphia. 2021. “Philadelphia Climate Action Playbook”. https://www.phila.gov/media/20210113125627/Philadelphia-Climate-Action-Playbook.pdf 
  10. City of Philadelphia. 2020. Amended Regulation On Energy and Water Use Benchmarking Pursuant to Phila Code §9-3402. https://regulations.phila-records.com/pdfs/Benchmarking%20Reg_Amended%20for%20calendar%20year%202019_final.pdf 
  11. Daughton, Brysen. 2019. “Upstream program designs for different DSM measures”. E Source. Accessed July 17th, 2022. https://www.esource.com/429191azeh/sending-your-dsm-measures-upstream 
  12. DiChristopher, Tom. 2021. “Gas Ban Monitor: Calif. count reaches 50 as West Coast movement grows” S&P Global. https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/gas-ban-monitor-calif-count-reaches-50-as-west-coast-movement-grows-67732585 
  13. DuPuis, Nicole, Trevor Langan, Christiana McFarland, Angelina Panettieri, Brooks Rainwater. 2018. “City Rights in an Era of Preemption: A State-by-State Analysis 2018 Update.” National League of Cities (NLC). https://www.nlc.org/resource/city-rights-in-an-era-of-preemption-a-state-by-state-analysis/ 
  14. Energy Star. n.d.a. “How It Works: Understand the Fundamentals of Shifting Incentives to a Distributor”. Accessed May 9, 2022. https://www.energystar.gov/products/retailers/midstream_programs/how_it_works 
  15. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) “Overview of Greenhouse Gases” Accessed May 14, 2022. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/overview-greenhouse-gases 
  16. Grubert, Emily. 2020. “At Scale, Renewable Natural Gas Systems Could be Climate Intensive: the Influence of Methane Feedstock and Leakage Rates” Environ. Res. Lett. 2020, 15, 084041. https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab9335/meta 
  17. Huxley-Reicher, Bryn, Brynn Furey, and Johanna Neumann. 2021. “Electric Buildings Repowering Homes and Businesses for our Health and Environment.” PennEnvironment. https://pennenvironment.org/sites/environment/files/reports/PA%20Electric%20Buildings%20Web.pdf 
  18. Kawa, Nicholas. 2015. “Gas Leaks Can’t Be Tamed.” The Atlantic, September 2015. https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/09/gas-leaks-are-everywhere/405820/ 
  19. Larson, Eric, Chris Greig, Jesse Jenkins, Erin Mayfield, Andrew Pascale, Chuan Zhang, Joshua Drossman, Robert Williams, Steve Pacala, Robert Socolow, Ejiang Baik, Rich Birdsey, Rick Duke, Ryan Jones, Ben Haley, Emily Leslie, and Amy Swan. 2021. “Net-Zero America Project.” Princeton University. The Trustees of Princeton University, October 29, 2021. https://netzeroamerica.princeton.edu/the-report  
  20. Leber, Rebecca. 2021. “An attack on American cities” is freezing climate action in its tracks” Vox. https://www.vox.com/22691755/gas-utilities-fight-electrification-preemption 
  21. Lebel, Eric D., Colin J. Finnegan, Zutao Ouyang, and Robert B. Jackson. 2022. “Methane and Nox Emissions from Natural Gas Stoves, Cooktops, and Ovens in Residential Homes.” Environmental Science & Technology 56, no. 4 (2022): 2529–39. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c04707 
  22. Lin, Weiwei, Bert Brunekreef, and Ulrike Gehring. “Meta-Analysis of the Effects of Indoor Nitrogen Dioxide and Gas Cooking on Asthma and Wheeze in Children.” International Journal of Epidemiology 42, no. 6 (2013): 1724–37. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyt150 
  23. Mall, Amy. 2019. “Pipeline Incident Statistics Reveal Significant Dangers.”  Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). https://www.nrdc.org/experts/amy-mall/pipeline-incident-statistics-reveal-significant-dangers 
  24. Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (Massachusetts DOER). 2022. “Stretch Energy Code Development 2022.” https://www.mass.gov/info-details/stretch-energy-code-development-2022 
  25. Meyers, Jim. 2020. “Building Electrification: How Cities and Countries are Implementing Electrification Policies.” Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP). https://lpdd.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/building_electrification.pdf 
  26. Michanowicz, Drew R., Archana Dayalu, Curtis L. Nordgaard, Jonathan J. Buonocore, Molly W. Fairchild, Robert Ackley, Jessica E. Schiff et al. "Home is Where the Pipeline Ends: Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds Present in Natural Gas at the Point of the Residential End User." Environmental Science & Technology (2022). https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c08298 
  27. Michigan Legislature. House. No. 4574, (2017) http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2017-HB-4574 
  28. Michigan Legislature. Senate. No. 820, (2022) http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2022-SB-0820 ​
  29. Mufson, Steven. 2021. “The Battle Over Climate Change is Boiling Over on the Home Front” The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/02/23/climate-change-natural-gas/ 
  30. New Buildings Institute (NBI). 2020. “Stretch Codes.” Accessed May 9, 2022. https://newbuildings.org/code_policy/utility-programs-stretch-codes/stretch-codes/ 
  31. New Buildings Institute (NBI)  2017. “Model Stretch Code Provisions for a 20% Performance Improvement in New Commercial Construction.”  https://newbuildings.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/20percent_CodeProvisions.pdf 
  32. Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE). 2012. “Stretch-Reach Codes” Weatherization and Intergovernmental Programs Office. Accessed May 14, 2022. https://www.energy.gov/eere/wipo/stretch-reach-codes-text-version 
  33. Pennsylvania General Assembly. Senate. No. 275, (2021-2022) https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/AmendingLegis.cfm?Title=53&SessYear=2021&SessInd=0 
  34. Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW). 2022. Booklet “Energy for All of Us” Accessed May 9, 2022. https://www.pgworks.com/uploads/media/EFAOU_booklet.pdf 
  35. Philadelphia Gas Works. 2020. “Residential Equipment Rebates” Accessed May 9, 2022. https://pgwenergysense.com/residential-rebates/ 
  36. Quiad, Maureen and Howard Geller. 2014. “Upstream Utility Incentive Programs: Experience and Lessons Learned” Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP). https://www.swenergy.org/data/sites/1/media/documents/publications/documents/Upstream_Utility_Incentive_Programs_05-2014.pdf 
  37. Raguso, Emilie. 2019. “Berkeley First City in California to Ban Natural Gas in New Buildings.” Berkeleyside. https://www.berkeleyside.org/2019/07/17/natural-gas-pipes-now-banned-in-new-berkeley-buildings-with-some-exceptions?gclid=CjwKCAjwjtOTBhAvEiwASG4bCGrV9HNDFg16p0IcfmOK3MMejltgEJsMYs3o_XJm0LAj_s1W11ps_xoC2G0QAvD_BwE 
  38. Raimi, Daniel, Alan J. Krupnick, Jhih Shyang Shah, and Alexandra Thompson. 2021. “Decommissioning Orphaned and Abandoned Oil and Gas Wells: New Estimates and Cost Drivers.” Environmental Science and Technology 55 (15): 10224–30. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c02234 
  39. Roberts, David. 2020 “The False Promise of ‘Renewable Natural Gas.’” Vox. https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2020/2/14/21131109/california-natural-gas-renewable-socalgas 
  40. Seals, Brady, and Andee Krasner. 2020. “Gas Stoves: Health and Air Quality Impacts and Solutions.” RMI. Rocky Mountain Institute. https://rmi.org/insight/gas-stoves-pollution-health 
  41. Semieniuk, Gregor, Philip B. Holden, Jean-Francois Mercure, Pablo Salas, Hector Pollitt, Katharine Jobson, Pim Vercoulen, Unnada Chewpreecha, Neil R. Edwards, and Jorge E. Viñuales. "Stranded fossil-fuel assets translate to major losses for investors in advanced economies." Nature Climate Change (2022): 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-022-01356-y 
  42. Sommer, Lauren. 2022. “California just ran on 100% renewable energy, but fossil fuels aren’t fading away yet” Oregon Public Broadcasting. https://www.opb.org/article/2022/05/13/california-renewable-energy-fossil-fuels/ 
  43. Starkey, Sean. 2022. ”Natural Gas and Fossil Fuel Bans in New Construction” Cushman & Wakefield. https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/united-states/insights/us-articles/natural-gas-and-fossil-fuel-bans-in-new-construction 
  44. Storrow, Benjamin, 2020 “Methane Leaks Erase Some of the Climate Benefits of Natural Gas”. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/methane-leaks-erase-some-of-the-climate-benefits-of-natural-gas/ 
  45. U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). 2022. “DOE Launches New Initiative From President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law To Modernize National Grid.” https://www.energy.gov/oe/articles/doe-launches-new-initiative-president-bidens-bipartisan-infrastructure-law-modernize 
  46. U.S. Department of the Interior (US DOI). n.d.a. “Clean Energy Future: Developing a Robust and Sustainable Clean Energy Economy.” Accessed July 20th, 2022. https://www.doi.gov/priorities/clean-energy-future 
  47. U.S. Department of State (US DOS). 2021. “President Biden Sets 2030 Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Target Aimed at Creating Good-Paying Union Jobs and Securing U.S. Leadership on Clean Energy Technologies.” https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-sets-2030-greenhouse-gas-pollution-reduction-target-aimed-at-creating-good-paying-union-jobs-and-securing-u-s-leadership-on-clean-energy-technologies/ 
  48. U.S. Energy Information Administration (US EIA) 2021. “Use of energy explained: Energy use in homes”. https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/use-of-energy/homes.php#:~:text=Electricity%20is%20used%20in%20almost,use%20energy%20consumption%20in%202020 
  49. Wasser, Miriam. 2022. “Mass. Is Drafting a New Climate-Friendly Building Code. Here's What You Need to Know.” WBUR News. WBUR, https://www.wbur.org/news/2022/03/17/massachusetts-energy-environmental-building-code-proposal-explainer. 
  50. Zhang, Qunfang, Roja H. Gangupomu, David Ramirez, and Yifang Zhu. 2010. “Measurement of Ultrafine Particles and Other Air Pollutants Emitted by Cooking Activities.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 7, no. 4 (2010): 1744–59. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph7041744. ​
DISCLAIMER: The findings and conclusions published herein are solely attributed to the author and not necessarily endorsed or adopted by the Journal of Science Policy and Governance. Articles are distributed in compliance with copyright and trademark agreements.

ISSN 2372-2193
© 2022 Journal of Science Policy & Governance, Inc. All rights reserved. The opinions, findings and conclusions from JSPG publications, additional article commentaries and related events do not necessarily reflect the views of the journal.