PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — In the month since Eugene city councilors voted to ban gas hookups in new low-rise buildings, NW Natural gas company has contributed nearly $1 million toward an organization fighting against the ordinance.
On Feb. 6, Eugene City Council’s 5-3 vote in favor of prohibiting fossil fuel infrastructure in low-rise construction — effective June 30, 2023 — ensued back-and-forth between climate-conscious residents and those who want to keep gas in their homes.
Soon after the City Council’s decision, anti-ordinance group Eugene Residents for Energy Choice was founded.
The organization’s first in-kind contribution came from NW Natural on the same day that it was established. As of Feb. 10, the gas company had given EREC $51,401.31 in funding. As of March 10, NW Natural has contributed about 18 times the amount of its original donation.
According to the Oregon Secretary of State’s Election Division, NW Natural contributed $600,000 on Feb. 16, $22.679.07 on Feb. 22 and $275,000 on Feb. 24.
“With each new financial disclosure, it becomes clearer and clearer that Eugene Residents for Energy Choice exists solely to do NW Natural’s bidding,” Danny Noonan, a climate and energy strategist at Breach Collective, said in a statement. “The eye-watering amount of money flowing into this campaign in such a short time from a single fossil fuel corporation leaves no doubt about this.”
When KOIN 6 previously reported the “front group” accusations against NW Natural, the company’s Senior Director of Communications David Roy denied them, saying that EREC was a separate entity.
Roy said NW Natural customers were made aware of the contributions to EREC. He added that NW Natural was supporting EREC because the group was addressing an issue important to the corporation and the customers that it serves.
Since it was established, EREC has been gathering signatures for a petition to put the Eugene electrification ordinance to an official vote in a future election, instead of leaving it to city councilors.
On Thursday, March 9, the organization announced that it had received 12,262 signatures — more than double the number of signatures required to qualify for the November ballot.
According to EREC, Lane County Elections now has to verify the signatures.