Today, the Washington State Supreme Court published its verdict in Climate Solutions et al v. State of Washington et al, ruling that Brian Heywood and the Building Industry Association’s Initiative 2066 is unconstitutional in its entirety because it encompasses more than one subject.

The decision permanently puts the kibosh on the harmful measure, which sought to prevent Washington communities from ditching methane gas as the state moves towards a clean energy future.

I-2066 was the lone Heywood-spearheaded measure to get past voters in 2024.

While Heywood’s measures to repeal the capital gains tax (I-2109), end the Climate Commitment Act (I-2117), and sabotage WA Cares (I-2124) were overwhelmingly rejected, I-2066 passed narrowly, 51.71% yes to 48.29% no.

I-2066 was promptly challenged in court as unconstitutional by a coalition of plaintiffs led by Climate Solutions, and King County Superior Court Judge Sandra Widlan found it to be unconstitutional in March of 2025.

The Supreme Court upheld Widlan’s ruling in its decision released today, on narrower grounds.

Six justices signed the majority opinion, while three dissented, led by Justice Sal Mungia, who was first elected on the same ballot I-2066 appeared on.

“I-2066’s diverse provisions enact distinct policies with discrete regulatory effects and therefore do not share rational unity as ‘omnibus legislation,’ the Court held. “Because I-2066 combines them in one initiative, we find that it violates the single subject rule contained in article II, section 19.”

The Northwest Progressive Institute (NPI), a research and advocacy focused nonprofit that prioritized defeating I-2066 in 2024 and made the measure’s defeat its top electoral priority, lauded the ruling.

“Today is a day of celebration. Washington’s Constitution has once again been upheld and Brian Heywood’s destructive I-2066 has been defeated,” said NPI founder and executive director Andrew Villeneuve. “This is a huge win for every community in our state… urban, suburban, and rural. With I-2066 kaput, we are freed of a major obstacle to our vital work of transitioning away from dirty fossil fuels that negatively impact our lives.”

“Meanwhile, our opposition has been reminded that bundling distinct proposals into a single initiative is not allowed. The Framers of the Washington State Constitution saw ‘logrolling’ as a corrupt, problematic practice, and they insisted on prohibiting it when they wrote our plan of government. A law in Washington cannot pass constitutional muster if it encompasses more than one subject. I-2066 has become the latest in a long list of right wing initiatives to flunk the tests that the courts use to determine compliance with Article II, Section 19 of the Constitution, as we anticipated might happen. The BIAW and Brian Heywood simply couldn’t be bothered to dot their i’s and cross their t’s when they drafted their scheme to lock us into a dirty energy future with methane gas.”

“As a consequence, I-2066 has now met the same fate as most of the Tim Eyman initiatives that voters didn’t reject: it has been struck down as unconstitutional in its entirety.”

NPI is grateful to Pacifica Law Group (which has also done work for NPI) for providing stellar representation for the plaintiffs in this successful legal challenge: Climate Solutions, Washington Conservation Action, Front and Centered, the Washington solar Energy Industries Association, Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility, King County, the City of Seattle, Anthony Maschmedt, and Dwell Development.

2066’s demise means that Heywood is 0 for 4 on the portion of his slate that went to the November 2024 ballot. Three other Heywood measures were taken off the ballot when the Legislature voted to adopt them, but two of those, I-2081 and I-2111, have since been superseded by newer laws the Legislature passed: the Safety Act and the Million Dollar Earners Tax.

After taking a year off, Heywood is back this year with three more initiatives: 645, 001, and 638. 645 seeks to repeal the recently enacted million dollar earners tax, while 001 is an effort to reenact I-2081. 001 and 638 are “culture war” schemes that would jeopardize student rights, endanger LGBTQ+ youth, and deny kids opportunities to play sports with their friends. NPI’s Permanent Defense is urging a ‘NO’ vote on all three through its Wrong For Washington campaign.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT I-2066

NPI provided the hosting for the NO on I-2066 coalition website and continues to maintain it as a “living archive.” Unlike many campaign sites from 2024, the entire site remains accessible today. It is a useful resource for covering today’s Washington State Supreme Court decision.

The coalition opposed I-2066 for the following reasons:

• It would make energy bills more expensive and raise costs for families and individuals, especially those living on low-incomes.
• It would jeopardize energy efficiency programs and take away important customer rebates – reducing access to efficient, money-saving appliances.
• It would prevent towns, cities, and counties from making decisions that work best for their communities.
• It would roll back existing laws that keep our utilities on the path to clean energy.
• It would undermine our Clean Air Act, threatening health protections against harmful air pollution.

A downloadable fact sheet and FAQ are available here.

A list of coalition members is here.