(Daily Caller) Two Democratic Washington state representatives pre-filed a bill on Dec. 5 that would make operating a gas-powered lawn mower or leaf blower a gross misdemeanor punishable by jail time, a fine or both.
State Reps. Amy Walen and Liz Berry authored a bill to be considered in their state’s upcoming legislative session that would ban “gasoline-powered and diesel-powered landscaping and other outdoor power equipment,” a group that includes common lawn care tools like lawn mowers, weed whackers, pressure washers and snow blowers, among others. Violating the new law would be punishable “by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for up to three hundred sixty-four days, or by both for each separate violation.”
The authors of the bill justified their proposed ban by arguing that outdoor power equipment is “contributing to climate change and negatively impacting public health.”
“One hour of running a gas lawnmower can contribute as much smog-forming pollution as driving a passenger car 300 miles,” according to the bill.
The bill would grant the Washington Department of Ecology the authority to “adopt rules to prohibit engine exhaust and evaporative emissions from new outdoor power equipment.” The ban would apply to equipment produced “on or after January 1, 2026” or the soonest point determined to be reasonable by the department, whichever is later.
