Blog
Achieving Building Decarbonization Through Building Performance Standards
September 25, 2024
This resource is developed from a webinar held on September 17, 2024.
Overview
Buildings account for 74% of U.S. electricity consumption and nearly a third of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. Energy waste in these structures leads to higher energy bills, dirtier air, and increased vulnerability to power outages and climate-related disasters. We spend over 90% of our time in buildings, meaning buildings have a significant impact on our health and wellbeing.
High-performance buildings can reduce energy use, save money, improve health, and help meet ambitious climate goals. Currently, less than 2% of workplaces and schools, and only 0.2% of homes, receive energy renovations or upgrades each year. To meet climate commitments, the rate of building improvements must accelerate dramatically.
Building Performance Standards as a Solution to Decarbonize Buildings
States have the opportunity to help decarbonize buildings through a variety of policy options. Building Performance Standards (BPS) are the most powerful policy tool available to drive improved performance, including decarbonization, in existing buildings. BPS requires a multi-faceted approach of direct regulation, required action, and long-term market signals instead of a traditional approach such as codes and permits which creates a transactional approach to regulation.
A BPS sets specific targets for how buildings must use energy over time. It requires buildings to meet certain energy or emissions goals to improve performance across one or more quantitative objective measurements. The goal is to make buildings healthier, more cost-effective, and better for the environment by pushing them to meet higher energy standards. Many buildings today could see energy use improvements of 30% or more.
Designing a Building Performance Standard
A well-designed building performance standard aligns with existing climate goals and commitments while promoting social and racial equity. It also ensures regulatory fairness and fosters jobs and economic growth. To be effective, the standard needs to provide maximum certainty and transparency, encouraging early action and accommodating natural building life cycle events, such as renovations or retrofits. Simplicity is key, both in how the standard is structured and how easy it is for building owners to comply and implement, ensuring broad participation and smooth adoption across different sectors.
In January 2021, Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) published the first and only model law for building performance standards.This model law intends to provide the foundation for a strong BPS law in any jurisdiction. Still, it is meant to be modified as necessary to reflect local circumstances and policy priorities.
Policy Options
- California S.B. 48 (enacted 2023): Aims to improve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in large residential and commercial buildings, lower utility bills, improve grid reliability, and help meet state climate targets by directing the Energy Commission (CEC) to develop a strategy, likely using building performance standards, to leverage existing data and reduce energy use.
- Colorado H.B. 1286 (enacted 2021): Requires Colorado’s largest buildings to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7% by 2026 and 20% by 2030, when compared to 2021 levels.
- Maryland S.B. 528 (enacted 2022): Requires buildings 35,000 square feet and larger to achieve a 20% reduction in net direct GHG emissions by 2030, and net zero emissions by 2040.
- Oregon H.B. 3409 (enacted 2023): Enacted a BPS to apply to commercial buildings larger than 35,000 square feet alongside other environmental and climate change policies aimed at meeting the state’s GHG reduction targets.
Looking Forward
In recent years, states have identified buildings as a large portion of their greenhouse gas emissions. To meet ambitious emission reduction goals as well as reduce energy costs for constituents, states need to create a plan to rapidly decarbonize buildings. In conjunction with IRA funding and tax credits, states are looking to improve building performance and appliance standards.