Ferguson signs bill shielding local governments from state energy facility siting decisions

City and county governments can no longer be sued for working with the state’s energy facility siting authority when a project preempts local zoning rules. 

Senate Bill 5317, sponsored by state Sen. Keith Goehner, R-Dryden, passed unanimously in the Senate and had only seven representatives – all Republicans – voting against it in the House.  

No Tri-City area lawmakers voted against the bill, though state Rep. Gloria Mendoza, R-Grandview, was absent for the vote, and two Yakima-area state lawmakers, state Reps. Chris Corry and Jeremie Dufault, voted against it. 

Under the new law, local governments that assist the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) on certified energy facilities, such as nuclear-power plants, large-scale solar arrays, battery-storage sites or clean-energy manufacturing facilities, are shielded from lawsuits claiming their actions are inconsistent with preempted local codes. 

“When a county or city provides technical help or reviews a plan for a wind, solar, or storage project under EFSEC’s process, it shouldn’t have to worry about being dragged into court over zoning rules that the state has already preempted,” Goehner said in a statement.  

State Sen. Matt Boehnke, R-Kennewick, had proposed his own bill regarding EFSEC, which would have given the council, and not the governor, final say on siting decisions.  

Senate Bill 5015 was in response to the controversial siting of Scout Energy’s Horse Heavens Hills Energy Complex. The bill never made it out of committee. 

Then-Gov. Jay Inslee overrode EFSEC’s decision to scale back the project from its original proposal, and it is currently facing lawsuits from Benton County, the Yakama Nation and local activists.