DC’s Building Energy Performance Standards Take Effect
Owners face public shaming on a published list — as well as fines — if they don’t meet certain benchmarks by 2026
By Keith Loria April 3, 2023 12:26 pm
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It’s go time for energy efficiency in larger buildings in the nation’s capital.
Washington, D.C.’s new Building Energy Performance Standard (BEPS) have gone into effect, requiring all buildings 50,000 square feet and larger to meet minimum energy performance targets with benchmarking submitted as of April 1.
From 2026 onward, buildings of at least 25,000 square feet will fall under BEPS. By 2032, the standards will also apply to developments as small as 10,000 square feet.
Cushman & Wakefield (CWK)’s 2023 DC BEPS Compliance Guide was produced to help property management teams and owners in D.C. stay ahead of local ordinances. By meeting compliance standards, the report noted, building owners can not only avoid penalties but also improve their buildings’ efficiency, reduce their carbon footprint, and potentially attract more tenants who are interested in environmentally responsible buildings.
There are three compliance pathways D.C. building owners can choose from based on their specific needs, C&W said.
With the performance pathway, owners can implement energy efficiency measures of their choosing to reduce energy use in their buildings. To comply with the rules under the standard, buildings need to see a 20 percent reduction in adjusted energy use intensity from the 2019 baseline, according to a statement.
The standard target pathway offers flexibility so owners can pick and choose their preferred methods for educing energy use. Under this pathway, compliance is counted as a success once an owner reaches or exceeds the 2019 benchmark score by the end of the compliance cycle, per the statement.
The third option is the prescriptive pathway, which includes reporting milestones and implementing at least one recommended design changes aimed at 25 percent savings.
Should a building owner not meet these compliance standards, penalties, such as fines, will be imposed. Those buildings that don’t meet the standard will also be subject to five additional years of regulatory oversight and forced to implement energy efficiency measures that reduce building energy use, as outlined in the statement.
Update: This story originally misattributed source material. This has been corrected. We apologize for the error.
Keith Loria can be reached at Kloria@commercialobserver.com.
