top of page
Initiatives across the U.S.
Building Regulations across the US
St. Louis is not alone in building energy regulations. Many cities and even states have laws on the books and new regulations are being passed and considered in cities across the nation as you read this.
Cities
New York City: New York City’s Local Law 97 established a building performance standard that set GHG emissions caps for the city’s largest buildings and applies to buildings 25,000 square feet and larger. Passed in 2019, buildings must be compliant starting in 2024. Theses standards set emissions intensity limits (metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per square foot) for 10 building categories and should result in a 40% reduction in building emissions by 2030 from a 2005 baseline.
Washington DC: The Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS or Standards) were set forth in Title III of the Clean Energy DC Omnibus Act of 2018. The BEPS is a minimum threshold of energy performance that will be no lower than the local median ENERGY STAR score by property type (or equivalent metric). The standards were created to drive energy performance in existing buildings to help meet the energy and climate goals of the Sustainable DC plan — to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption by 50% by 2032.
Boston: On September 22, 2021 the Boston City Council voted unanimously to pass a building performance standard (BPS): the Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance, or “BERDO 2.0" which will require all larger buildings in Boston to put themselves on the path to zero carbon performance by 2050.
Denver: On November 22, 2021 the Denver City Council, voted unanimously to pass Bill 21-1310, a building decarbonization policy that includes a building performance standard for Denver’s largest buildings. Denver’s policy is notable for its comprehensive approach to building decarbonization, utilizing three separate policy mechanisms to drive energy efficiency and electrification of thermal energy loads in covered buildings:
-
A building performance standard with energy efficiency requirements
-
Prescriptive efficiency requirements for small commercial and multifamily buildings
-
Electrification requirements for space and water heating equipment
Chula Vista: January 25, 2022, Chula Vista Mayor Mary Casillas Salas announced that Chula Vista has committed to inclusively implement building performance standards and complementary policies and programs across the city, driving investment into building retrofits and good-paying jobs that create healthier buildings and lower housing and energy costs.
States
Washington State: In 2019, the Legislature directed Commerce to adopt the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standard 100-2018 as a base, and establish energy use intensity targets (EUIt) specific to Washington state for different building occupancy types. The new rules filed Oct. 30, 2020, known as WAC 194-50, implement Washington’s landmark Clean Buildings Performance Standard enacted in 2019 (Chapter 285, Laws 2019).
Colorado: By June 1, 2023, the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission will establish rules for Building Performance Standards (BPS) in order to meet sector-wide greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets of 7% by 2026 and 20% by 2030 from a 2021 baseline.
National
National BPS Coalition: On January 21, 2022 President Biden announced during his remarks at the U.S. Conference of Mayors that his Administration is teaming up with states, cities, labor, and industry to launch the National Building Performance Standards Coalition, a first-of-its-kind partnership between 33 state and local governments including both St. Louis and Kansas City dedicated to delivering cleaner, healthier, and more affordable buildings through building performance regulations.
bottom of page