Tag: Energy Policy

Roundtable Comments on “Model” Local Ordinance Proposing Efficiency and Emissions Requirements on Buildings

Posted on by Trey Jackson

Honolulu

The Real Estate Roundtable submitted comments on April 6 regarding a “model” law developed for cities, counties, and states considering building “performance standards” for energy consumption and GHG emissions. 

Building Performance Standards (BPS): 

  • The model ordinance has been developed by the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) – a D.C.-based policy organization that coordinates with state and local bodies on energy- and climate-related regulations. (IMT’s model ordinance, BPS resources, and blog post, Creating Real-Estate Friendly Building Performance Standards, Jan 21, 2021)
  • A task force of The Roundtable’s Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC) convened to respond to IMT’s proposed law. According to the letter, a “whole-of-economy approach must drive businesses to take bolder actions within their control to minimize their carbon footprints while operating profitably, meeting investors’ demands, and equitably creating jobs in their communities.”
  • “Real estate developers, owners, managers, and financiers – along with building tenants, occupants, public buildings, and … the power supply, transportation, and manufacturing sectors – all have shared obligations to address climate change,” The Roundtable writes.

Roundtable Comments — Talking Points:

Bloomberg Center Cornell Tech campus

  1. BPS laws must rely on consistent standards, methods, and data that reflect the best available government and industry practices. Uniformity is critical to avoid a divergent “patchwork” of state and local laws that would unduly complicate building owners’ compliance and regulators’ enforcement.
  2. No BPS law should mandate building owners to reduce emissions from sources beyond their control.  Owners should not be saddled with responsibilities to “clean-up” the electric grid, district thermal systems, and other community-wide power infrastructure that they do not manage or control.
  3. Any BPS law should include financial assistance to help all regulated owners defray the significant capital expenses needed to bring buildings into compliance.
  4. BPS laws should encourage investments in existing buildings and allocate compliance burdens based on tenants’ and occupants’ energy usage.

  5. The least efficient buildings and communities are frequently the most distressed buildings and communities. Added regulatory costs from BPS mandates could disproportionately affect housing affordability and economically distressed neighborhoods on the “frontlines” of climate change.

Why It Matters: 

Leadership - RER's SPAC

  • “RER members must engage vigorously on climate and energy issues,” said SPAC Chair Anthony E. Malkin, above left, (Chairman, President and CEO, Empire State Realty Trust). “We have the facts, the practice, and the experience to inform the thinking of cities, states, federal officials, and NGOs as they develop goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stride toward a clean energy economy. The field on which the game is played, and the rules themselves, are in constant flux. RER member engagement has never been more important to offer policy recommendations that create green jobs while modernizing U.S. buildings and power infrastructure.” 
  • “It is critical for Roundtable members to have a seat at the table as cities and states consider laws that set efficiency and emissions standards on buildings,” said SPAC Vice Chair, Daniel Egan, above right, (Senior Vice President, Vornado Realty Trust). “Policy makers must design climate programs that encourage owners to invest in their buildings to improve performance, while incentivizing our industry with market-based solutions that can help increase the nation’s supply of clean, renewable energy.”  

State and local jurisdictions have been marching forward with regulatory mandates on buildings to address energy and GHG emissions, which prompted The Roundtable to comment on IMT’s model ordinance. While Democrats in the House of Representatives have offered omnibus climate legislation with provisions that would affect U.S. real estate (see the CLEAN Future Act, H.R. 1512), it faces an uphill battle in the Senate. (Roundtable Weekly, March 5)   

#  #  # 

Bipartisan House Bill Encourages Equipment Upgrades in Commercial and Multifamily Buildings

Posted on by Trey Jackson

Capitol Dome Stormy weather

Roundtable-supported legislation that would accelerate depreciation for high performance upgrades in commercial and multifamily buildings – creating jobs and reducing the built environment’s carbon footprint – was reintroduced this week by House Ways and Means Committee members Brad Schneider (D-IL) and Tom Rice (R-SC).

The E-QUIP Approach

  • The bipartisan Energy Efficient Qualified Improvement Property (E-QUIP) Act (H.R. 2346), originally introduced last December by Reps. Schneider and Rice, encourages energy efficiency building retrofits to replace aging and obsolete HVAC, lighting, windows, roofs, and windows with state-of-the-art systems.
    • The Real Estate Roundtable has rallied a unique coalition of environmental, manufacturing, and business groups to support the bill. The coalition sent an April 1 letter to members of the House Ways and Means Committee, and the Energy and Commerce Committee, to enact the E-QUIP Act and include it in any infrastructure package.
    • Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer stated, “The E-QUIP Act checks all of the boxes for smart energy, climate, and economic policy. Installation of high performance HVAC, lights, windows, and other building components will modernize aging buildings, save businesses billions of dollars on their energy bills, create tens of thousands of jobs, and avoid carbon emissions equal to taking 22 million cars off the road for a year.”
    • DeBoer added, “The E-QUIP Act can also encourage state-of-the-art retrofits that enhance outdoor air ventilation rates — a key practice to improve a building’s health and indoor air quality, according to the best available science.”

    Support for an Energy Efficient Economy

    American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy E-Quip

    • The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) has  prepared a fact sheet and analysis that estimates the climate, energy, and jobs benefits of E-QUIP Act retrofit projects: 
      • 130,000 net additional job-years.
      • $15 billion energy bill savings.
      • 100 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions avoided – or the equivalent emissions from 560,000 rail cars full of coal or taking 22 million cars off the road for one year.
    • Key elements of the E-QUIP Act are:
        
      • Elective 10-year, straight-line cost recovery period for a new category of depreciable property that meets the E-QUIP Act’s high-performance standards.
      • Available to replace or retrofit systems and components in buildings that are at least 10 years old.
      • Certification requirement that E-QUIP is designed, installed, operated, and maintained by credentialed professionals.
      • Five-year duration of incentive.
    • A uniform 10-year depreciation period for components that meet E-QUIP standards would simplify the current cost recovery “patchwork” in the federal tax code for building investments.

    The E-QUIP Act and advocacy efforts to include it as part of infrastructure legislation will be a focus of discussion during The Roundtable’s April 20 (Remote) Spring Meeting.

    #  #  #

    Policymakers Considering Energy and Climate Provisions as Part of Infrastructure Package

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    Congressional Committee leaders are gearing up energy and climate proposals as the Biden Administration assembles its plan for an infrastructure initiative to bolster the recovery of the pandemic-damaged economy.

    What’s at Stake: 

    • The White House is considering including clean energy tax credits in a coronavirus recovery proposal, White House national climate adviser Gina McCarthy said. “You can bet tax credits are a large part of that discussion.” (BGov, March 11.)
    • The scale and scope of energy and climate measures may make it difficult to attract Republican votes in the wake of the nearly $2 trillion pandemic aid package last week that received no GOP support.  
    • Top Democratic tax writers may differ on their approach to clean energy tax incentives that aim to achieve low-and zero-carbon energy targets. (CQ, March 15)
      • Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden’s (D-OR) is seeking to consolidate existing tax incentives.  In 2019, he proposed replacing 44 energy-related tax provisions with three credits: one for clean electricity, one for clean fuels, and one to promote greater energy efficiency. 
         
      • House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) is a leading cosponsor of House Democrats’ GREEN Act, which would expand and enhance existing tax benefits for clean energy and energy efficiency.  
           
    • The Roundtable is currently working with Democratic and Republican Members of the Ways and Means Committee to update and reintroduce a bipartisan proposal, the E-QUIP Act, to encourage energy efficient retrofits of existing commercial and residential rental buildings. (Roundtable Weekly, Dec. 11, 2020).
       
    • A House Energy and Commerce (E&C) hearing on March 18 focused on the Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for our Nation’s (CLEAN) Future Act (H.R. 1512).  The CLEAN Act includes provisions affecting building energy codes, energy benchmarking, and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) public company reporting on climate risk. The bill is not expected to advance far in the Senate. (Roundtable Weekly, March 5).

    Regulation and Federal Funding:

    • A Climate Change Disclosures Request for Information issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 15 addresses a broad range of issues and legal considerations relevant to possible mandatory SEC requirements. The RFI has a 90-day comment window. 
    • Acting SEC Chair Allison Lee addressed the RFI this week, stating the agency will commence a number of new initiatives to address “… the risks and opportunities that climate and ESG [Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance] pose for investors, our financial system, and our economy.”
       
    • A March 17 letter led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) urges President Biden to include robust federal funding for programs that promote energy efficiency as part of the administration’s upcoming budget proposal for fiscal year 2022.  Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is also a signatory on the letter. 
       
    • The letter states, “Increasing investment in energy efficiency programs within the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) can deliver significant emissions reductions, grow jobs in the clean energy sector and provide savings to American consumers.”  The letter also notes that the pandemic and associated economic impacts have hit the energy efficiency sector especially hard, slowing progress and costing jobs, particularly for workers of color.
    • Energy efficiency employment in the United States grew by 20% – nearly three times the rate of growth in the overall economy – in the five years leading up to 2020, and energy efficiency jobs are available in nearly every county in every state, according to the National Association of State Energy Officials.  

    The Real Estate Roundtable’s Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC) continues to work with congressional policymakers, EPA and DOE on energy and climate issues of importance to commercial real estate. 

    #  #  # 

    Infrastructure Legislation Next on Biden Agenda; Michael Regan Confirmed as EPA Administrator

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    Infrastructure Dallas

    The Biden Administration plans to move forward on its “Build Back Better” infrastructure initiative as the next legislative push to spur the economy after he signed the COVID-19 relief package yesterday. (CNBC, March 10 and New York Times, March 3)

    Why It Matters

    • A $312 billion bill was introduced yesterday by House Democrats on the Energy & Commerce (E&C) Committee that would invest in clean energy, drinking water, broadband, and health care infrastructure. LIFT America Act (text, section-by-section analysis, press release).
    • House E&C Democrats last week introduced a sprawling climate change bill, the CLEAN Future Act, which includes provisions on building energy codes, energy benchmarking, and SEC public company reporting on climate risks. (Roundtable Weekly, March 5)
    • More bills are forthcoming on matters addressing highways, mass transit and other surface transportation, as well as energy and infrastructure tax-related matters. In the House, these bills are expected from Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Richard Neal (D-MA), chairs of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Ways and Means Committee, respectively.
    • How to pay for the price tag of these measures remains an overriding issue. Possible revenue sources for infrastructure investments were discussed by the White House with a bipartisan group of Senate leaders on Feb. 11, and House leaders on March 4.  (Roundtable Weekly, Feb. 12 and Feb. 19, and Reuters, March 4)

    Congressional Committees’ Influence

    Senate Energy Committee Chairman Joe Manchin (R-WV)

    • Capitol Hill hearings this week focused on various aspects of low-carbon energy, climate-resilient infrastructure and transportation issues. (Axios, March 8, “Energy and climate move closer to center stage on Capitol Hill”)  The House Energy Committee will start hearings next week on its CLEAN Future Act (E&C press release, March 11)
    • Senate Energy Committee Chairman Joe Manchin (R-WV), above, told “Axios on HBO” that he will seek tax increases to pay for Biden’s upcoming proposal, and will use his leadership position to pursue bipartisan solutions to climate realities.
    • Manchin said the budget process called reconciliation should not be pursued to pass the climate and infrastructure package. Reconciliation was used to advance the pandemic relief bill without Republican support in the 50-50 Senate. (Axios, “Manchin’s Next Power Play,” March 8).
    • Senate Environment and Public Works Chairman Tom Carper (D-DE) told Bloomberg this week that a transportation infrastructure package could move through his committee by the end of May and signed into law as part of a broader economic recovery plan by the end of September. (Bloomberg, March 10)

    Michael Regan Confirmed as EPA Administrator

    EPA Administrator Michael Regan

    • Michael Regan was confirmed this week as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  He will apply his experience as North Carolina’s environmental chief to broad federal policies addressing climate change and energy efficiency. (E&E News and Reuters, March 10)

    What’s Next

    The Real Estate Roundtable, as part of the Build by the 4th coalition, is encouraging Congress to pass a comprehensive infrastructure package by Independence Day 2021. The Roundtable’s Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC) is also focused on climate and energy regulations on buildings emerging at the state and local level. 

    #  #  # 

    House Democrats Introduce Sweeping Climate Legislation Including Building Codes, Benchmarking and SEC Reporting Provisions

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    Capitol with evening sky
    House Democrats on March 2 introduced a sprawling bill aimed at achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 with provisions regarding building construction, operations, and ESG reporting. (Politico, March 3 and CQ News, Reuters, March 2)

    • The 981-page Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for our Nation’s (CLEAN) Future Act– 981-page measure is sponsored by House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ); Climate Change Subcommittee Chairman Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Energy Subcommittee Chairman Bobby Rush (D-IL), (BGov, March 3)
    • The House Committee noted provisions that would impact commercial and residential real estate. “The CLEAN Future Act improves the efficiency of new and existing buildings, as well as the equipment and appliances that operate within them. It establishes national energy savings targets for continued improvement of model building energy codes, leading to a requirement of zero-energy-ready buildings by 2030.” (Energy & Commerce Committee news release, March 2)
    • The CLEAN Future Act also proposes mandatory federal-level energy and water “benchmarking” requirements for buildings over 50,000 square feet. These provisions mimic dozens of existing state and local requirements that currently require building owners to track their assets’ energy and water usage and disclose this information to the public.
    • CLEAN Future Act reference:
    • The bill also directs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to require public companies to disclose in annual reports information about their “direct” and “indirect” GHG emissions, and corporate governance procedures to identify and manage climate-related risks. (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, March 3)
    • Acting SEC Chair Allison Herren Lee recently issued a Climate Change Statement explaining, “[n]ow more than ever, investors are considering climate-related issues when making their investment decisions” and that it is the SEC’s “responsibility to ensure that they have access to material information when planning for their financial future.” (SEC statement, Feb. 24  and Gibson Dunn, March 1) 

    While the measure will likely face substantial challenges to attract 60 votes in the evenly divided Senate, The Roundtable’s Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC) is conducting a detailed analysis of the CLEAN Future Act’s impacts on the real estate sector. 

    #  #  #

     

    Biden Plans Infrastructure Push as Congress, Agencies Prepare to Investigate the Texas Electric Grid Crisis

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    The Biden Administration plans to push for a large-scale infrastructure initiative that takes into account the effects of climate change after Congress finishes consideration of the pandemic relief package. Meanwhile, federal regulators and Congress are preparing to examine the threat that climate change poses to the nation’s electric infrastructure in the wake of last week’s deadly freeze in Texas that stranded millions without power. (Wall Street Journal and Reuters, Feb. 22)   

    • The Biden Administration is expected to reveal details of its infrastructure package soon, as part of its “Build Back Better” agenda to spur economic recovery. (Roundtable Weekly, Feb. 19)
    • The rolling power outages across Texas and the Midwest due to severe winter storms prompted the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) this week to open a proceeding to examine how electric grid operators prepare for and respond to extreme weather events. (FERC news release and FERC Insight, Feb. 2021)
    • FERC Chairman Richard Glick said, “The effects of climate change are already apparent and we must do everything we can within our statutory authority to ensure that the electric grid is capable of keeping the lights on in the face of extreme weather.” 
    • The Texas power outages have increased scrutiny in Congress on the need for investments in the nation’s electric grid. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) referred to the blackouts when she announced that the House Energy Committee will be investigating the matter. (Axios, Feb. 19)
    • In the Senate, Energy Committee Chairman Joe Manchin (R-WV) told Politico Pro that he is planning his own review of the power grid issue. (Politico, Feb. 19) 
    • The question of how to fund a national infrastructure effort remains the major challenge for Washington policymakers. ( Roundtable Weekly, Feb. 12)  Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Tom Carper (D-DE) suggested at a hearing yesterday that a national pilot program should explore a “vehicle miles travelled” tax, while Manchin separately stated that the gas tax paid by consumers at the pump “is not going to do what we need” to build and modernize roads, bridges, and mass transit. (NATSO, Feb. 25)   
    • The Roundtable and the Build by the 4th coalition is encouraging Congress to pass a comprehensive infrastructure package by Independence Day 2021. Last December it also provided recommendations to the new Administration that included infrastructure funding and modernization as engines to drive recovery and job growth from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

    Construction Industry’s Role

    • The leadership role that the construction industry could take in sustainable development was the focus of a Feb. 7 op-ed in Crain’s New York Business by Suffolk’s Executive President of Business Development, Ann Klee. (Suffolk’s Chairman and Executive Officer John Fish is the Chair-Elect of The Real Estate Roundtable)
    • “The construction industry can be part of the solution by working with developers and owners to reimagine the entire building lifecycle and ensure sustainability is incorporated at every stage of the process, from planning, design and material selection to building operation and energy efficiency after construction completion,” the op-ed states.
    • Other recommendations include more efficient management of the consumer supply chain; just-in-time delivery of materials to project sites; and minimizing construction waste.

    Ms. Klee concludes that sustainable development will require “smart planning, flawless execution and education across the spectrum of stakeholders to ensure these best practices pay significant dividends, both socially and financially, in the long term.”

    #  #  #

    Roundtable Advises that Uniform Federal Data and Voluntary Standards are Needed to Avoid State, City “Patchwork” of Carbon Pricing Protocols

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    FERC logo

    The growing number of state and local mandates to reduce GHG emissions and increase renewable energy supplies are driving the need for uniform and voluntary federal-level practices to measure and price carbon, The Roundtable advised in comments submitted on Tuesday.

    • This is because dozens of state and city laws are setting energy measurement, reduction, and emissions targets on buildings, and imposing renewable energy “portfolio standards” that require greater power supplies from solar, wind, and other carbon-free sources.
    • These state and local mandates have “effectively forced the issue – throughout the United States – that carbon emissions are an economic liability, and carbon reductions are an economic asset,” the letter explains.  Environmental demands from investors, tenants, employee talent, and other audiences also impel real estate owners to voluntarily purchase “clean” power and “offset” carbon emissions.
    • While FERC itself lacks authority from Congress to set a price on carbon, within the Commission’s sphere of regulating bulk electricity sales in “wholesale markets” it can play a “vital role to help facilitate a harmonious nationwide system of standards relating to carbon measurement and pricing,” the comment letter provides.

    SPAC Involvement

    Leadership - RER's SPAC

    • The Roundtable’s Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC) – chaired by Tony Malkin (Chairman, President and CEO, Empire State Realty Trust), above left,  and vice-chaired by Dan Egan (Senior Vice President, Vornado Realty Trust), right, – directed the course of the comments, which also provides:
      • FERC should encourage jurisdictions to rely on federal data provided by power plants and managed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – known as “eGRID” – as the unifying information source to measure how combustion of various fuels used across the country contribute to GHG emissions;
      • Federal measurement standards can support “the types of long-term price signals that our energy future demands,” and minimize a confusing a “hodgepodge” in emerging state and regional markets that already treat carbon as a commodity (such as through the purchase of renewable energy certificates (RECs));
      • Any government revenue raised by state-level carbon pricing regimes should be returned to commercial, residential, and other consumers to help defray their energy costs. Sums from any such “carbon dividend” should also be channeled to create jobs by modernizing energy infrastructure and electrifying the grid.

    “The SPAC has been hard at work for years on real estate related topics around energy production, distribution, consumption, and pricing that now are front and center,” Malkin said.  “Our members can be comfortable that they have excellent representation and access to information, that RER is on its front foot here, and that representation on SPAC by our members is critical to their ability to get the best information and have the opportunity to help inform The Roundtable’s actions.”

    #  #  #

    EPA Launches Voluntary “ENERGY STAR Tenant Space” Program to Certify High Performance Leased Office Suites

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    EnergyStar Tenant Space

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Oct. 13 launched its voluntary “ENERGY STAR Tenant Space” labeling program to recognize tenants who collaborate with their landlords on design and construction of high performance leased office spaces. (Download EPA’s Oct. 15 webinar slides – How to Apply for ENERGY STAR Tenant Space Recognition.)

    • EPA’s new certification for office tenants is now a permanent ENERGY STAR program offering, to complement the agency’s popular “whole building” label. The ENERGY STAR label is a key marketplace influence to signal energy efficient assets, impacting nearly 35,000 buildings and plants nationwide that represent more than 5 billion square feet of commercial space. (ENERGY STAR Facts and Stats)
    • “ENERGY STAR Tenant Space” recognition requires office tenants to estimate their suites’ energy use, separately meter their spaces, use efficient office equipment, and share energy usage data with their landlords. (See EPA’s guide, “How to Prepare for Tenant Space Recognition.”)
    • EPA will also offer access to a new online tool for estimating lighting energy usage within its commonly used Portfolio Manager benchmarking platform. Use of this new lighting assessment function, and requiring an office suite to meet a lighting efficiency “target,” will be a prerequisite for the voluntary Tenant Space label.
    • The Tenant Space label is currently available to office tenants. EPA explained to SPAC members that it intends to expand the program to provide recognition opportunities to retail and warehouse tenants in the coming months.
    • ENERGY STAR building ratings and the corollary Tenant Space program were part of a discussion held October 1 at The Real Estate Roundtable’s offices in Washington, D.C., between EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler and Roundtable President and CEO Jeffrey DeBoer. 
    • In a video of the discussion, Wheeler stated he is a “strong” ENERGY STAR proponent and that the agency’s expansion of the label to cover tenant spaces was “the right thing to do.” Wheeler also emphasized these platforms must remain voluntary to encourage additional private-sector technological innovations in buildings and manufacturing. (See video at 12:40 and Roundtable Weekly, Oct. 2)

    EPA’s tenant recognition efforts are authorized by the so-called “Tenant Star” law, passed by Congress in 2015 with The Roundtable’s strong backing. (Commercial Property Executive, May 4, 2015)

    #  #  # 

    Roundtable Interview with US-EPA Administrator Covers ENERGY STAR, Coronavirus Guidance, and Brownfields Redevelopment in Opportunity Zones

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    Jeffrey DeBoer and Andrew Wheeler, EPA Administrator

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator, Andrew Wheeler, above right, met yesterday with Real Estate Roundtable President and CEO, Jeffrey D. DeBoer, above left, to discuss a wide range of energy and environmental policy matters that impact the U.S. real estate sector.  (Video on Roundtable’s YouTube page)

    DeBoer interviewed Wheeler at The Roundtable’s offices in Washington, D.C., as part of a series of “listening sessions” between EPA and stakeholders.  Their discussion covered:

    • EPA’s development of a standardized process to systematically calculate the economic costs and environmental benefits of its regulatory programs (video at 3:29);
    • A “science transparency” regulation that makes the scientific studies relied upon by EPA available to the public (video at 4:56);
    • Wheeler’s implementation of a “lean management” system to streamline the agency’s procedures for project permitting and environmental reviews (video at 8:15);

    Energy Star Tenant Space logo

    • ENERGY STAR building ratings, and EPA’s corollary Tenant Space program that will launch on October 13.  Wheeler stated he is a “strong” ENERGY STAR proponent, expanding the program to cover tenant spaces was “the right thing to do” – and that these platforms must remain voluntary to spur technological innovations deployed in buildings and manufacturing. ( video at 12:40);
    • EPA’s development of COVID-related guidance to help the economy re-open, such as updated Portfolio Manager benchmarking instructions to account for recent changes in building occupancy and hours of operations, EPA’s approvals of cleaning and disinfecting products to combat COVID-19, and information on flushing pipes and plumbing systems to maintain indoor water quality (see, e.g., Roundtable Weekly, July 31, 2020 and May 22, 2020) (video at 15:45)
    • Public-private partnerships to re-develop Brownfield sites in economically-distressed “opportunity zones” created under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.  Wheeler remarked that every dollar EPA invests in a Brownfields clean-up leverages up to an estimated $20 dollars in private sector investment capital for surrounding low-income neighborhoods. ( video at 18:40)
    • Also yesterday, EPA career staff spoke to The Roundtable’s Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee (SPAC) regarding the imminent launch of the ENERGY STAR Tenant Space program on October 13.  Opportunities to certify high performance design and construction of leased office spaces will become a permanent EPA offering, and stem from the so-called “Tenant Star” law Congress passed in 2015 with the Roundtable’s strong backing.  (Commercial Property Executive, May 4, 2015)

    The Roundtable participates in EPA’s Smart Sectors Program, the agency’s platform to collaborate with industry sectors to protect the environment and public health though sensible, cost-effective regulatory and incentive programs.  (EPA news release, Oct. 3, 2017)

    #  #  #  

    House Approves Government Funding Until Dec. 11 and Passes Comprehensive Energy Package

    Posted on by Trey Jackson

    Capitol Building Dusk

    The House of Representatives on Tuesday night passed a bipartisan Continuing Resolution (CR) by a vote of 359-57 to extend federal government funding through December 11 and avoid a government shutdown at the end of the month.  (Text of H.R. 8337 and Section-by-section summary of the legislation)

    • The CR includes short-term funding extensions (with no policy changes) for surface transportation funding, the National Flood Insurance Program, and the EB-5 Regional Center Program.
    • The Senate is expected to pass the CR next week and send it to President Trump for his signature before FY’2021 starts on October 1, 2020. 

    Energy Package Passes

    skyline-chicago-night-x475w

    • The House yesterday also passed a comprehensive energy package (H.R.4447) that includes sections on building energy codes, federal energy data regarding commercial buildings, and grant programs for underserved communities and green infrastructure.  The measure passed with mostly Democratic support by a 220-185 vote.  (CQ, Sept. 24)
    • One of the major goals of the legislative package is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 80% by 2050. (BGov, Sept. 16)
    • The Clean Economy and Jobs Innovation Act includes a section – strongly supported by The Roundtable – that would require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) to report to Congress through a “coordination agreement” regarding each agency’s separate collection of data regarding commercial building energy consumption.
    • The House bill also includes Roundtable-backed provisions that would bring greater transparency to how the U.S. Department of Energy provides federal recommendations to develop building energy codes, which state and local governments may ultimately adopt through a long-established process. (Roundtable Weekly, June 19, 2019)

    White-House-475w-edit

    • The White House on Sept. 21 stated its opposition to H.R. 4447.  Among the reasons for its veto threat, the Administration believes that the bill sets “rigid targets” on Federal buildings to reduce water and energy consumption, and is concerned that State and local governments might establish building codes “not grounded in available technologies.”
    • In the Senate, Energy Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AL) hopes to reintroduce bipartisan energy legislation (S. 2657) next week.  Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), the Senate Energy Committee’s ranking member and co-sponsor of S. 2657, said they are working through issues to overcome an impasse on the building energy codes section. (BGov, Sept. 24)

    If the Senate passes its bill, a “conference” would be convened – perhaps during the Lame Duck Congressional session after Election Day – for House and Senate committee leaders to reconcile any differences between their respective packages.

    #  #  #