Reform is a capital ideaIMT in the District of Columbia 

 

BUILDING CODES

Greening Building Codes in the Washington, DC Area

DC’s 'Green Building Act of 2006' requires the Mayor to “submit to the Council for approval construction code revisions that shall incorporate as many green building practices as practicable…”  DC recently adopted as amendments to the International Energy Conservation Code 2006 (IECC 2006), the 30% Solution and ASHRAE 90.1 2007, and is considering adopting Standard 189.1 in 2010. The 2008 District of Columbia Construction Code was published in the District of Columbia Register on December 26, 2008.  IMT's Cliff Majersik gave a presentation on Complying with Green Building Requirements in DC on January 16, 2009. The Cases for Strengthening Commercial Energy Codes and Residential Energy Codes.

Maryland and Virginia are expected to adopt the 2009 ICC Codes this year, including IECC 2009 and ASHRAE 90.1 2007.

DC's new building codes mandate greener practices in key areas:

- Water efficiency (low-flow fixtures)

- Commercial energy efficiency requirements 7% higher than MD and VA (ASHRAE 90.1 2007)

- Residential energy efficiency; "The 30% Solution"

- Reduce urban heat island effect (requires flat roofs be cool, green, or limestone ballasted)

- Impediments to green building addressed

- Easier to disconnect downspouts and retain rainwater on site

- Waterless urinals and green piping no longer require wavers

 

Meeting Codes and Standards

A federal tax deduction is available through 2013 for commercial buildings that save 50% of heating and cooling energy of a building meeting ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001.  Federal tax incentives are also available for residential retrofits meeting set codes and standards.  Information about tax incentives can be found at www.energystar.gov.  The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 requires that each governor certify progress in adopting and enforcing energy codes as strong or stronger than IECC 2009 in order for states to receive certain funding, further encouraging the adoption of strong building codes.

 

 

DC GREEN JOBS RESEARCH

DC’s “Green Collar Jobs Demand Analysis Final Report” was prepared by Louis Berger.  IMT helped design the study in 2008 under contract to the Washington DC Economic Partnership (a quasi public agency).  The report estimated that existing DC policies (principally DC's Green Building Act and Energy Act) and proposed initiatives "could produce over 169,000 job opportunities between 2009 and 2018."  Many of those job opportunities would be driven by market transformation resulting from the Energy Act's requirement that buildings over 50,000 square feet Energy Star benchmark and publicly disclose their ratings.

 

BENCHMARKING, RATING & DISCLOSURE

Legislation

 The Clean and Affordable Energy Act of 2008 was passed unanimously by the DC Council on July 15, 2008, and signed into law by District of Columbia Mayor Adrian Fenty on Aug. 4, 2008. Among other energy conservation and efficiency initiatives, the bill required for the first time in any U.S. jurisdiction that the energy performance of commercial buildings be annually rated and disclosed to the marketplace (see background information).

IMT was a lead advisor to DC Councilmember Mary Cheh, the bill's lead sponsor, on crafting provisions in the Energy Act, including the rating and disclosure mandate. (See the rating and disclosure provision in the Energy Act).

 

ENERGY STAR rating

The 2008 CAEA legislation requires the energy performance of private nonresidential buildings to be rated using ENERGY STAR software and disclosed annually. Buildings of 200,000 SF or more must be rated beginning in 2010. Each subsequent year, the size threshold decreases by 50,000 SF until reaching a floor of 50,000 SF in 2013. Annual disclosure will occur via an online database open to the public and administered by the District of Columbia. Disclosure begins in 2012 and requires the posting of an ENERGY STAR Statement of Performance. Public buildings of at least 10,000 SF must also be rated beginning in 2010 and disclosed thereafter via the database.

Additionally, the energy performance of large construction or substantial renovation projects must be estimated using ENERGY STAR software and disclosed if they are at least 50,000 SF. The District Department of the Environment is currently engaged in rule-making.

 

Energy-Saving Actions Yeild HIgh Returns--and Attract Tenants!

IMT recently submitted an article to the District of Columbia Building Industry Association regarding the two new DC energy laws that are driving the city to improve the bottom line of businesses. The article focuses on the benchmarking and submetering provisions of the Energy Act, and the modifications to DC’s building code which resulted from the Green Building Act of 2006.