Banning the ban: Spokane citizen’s initiative looks to protect natural gas indefinitely

It was one idea tucked into a volunteer subcommittee’s nonbinding draft proposal to address climate change in Spokane.

But the mere mention of a future ban on natural gas connections to new city businesses and homes sparked an immediate reaction and is now bound to become an election-year issue.

A citizens’ initiative heading toward the November general election ballot looks to permanently – and preemptively – prevent elected city leaders from ever implementing a natural gas connection ban.