FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katie Weeks, Director of Communications
202-525-2883, x306 | Katie.weeks.@imt.org
Statement from Cliff Majersik: U.S. Department of Energy and CoStar Group Offer Unprecedented Access to Critical Energy Information
May 26, 2016—Washington, DC—Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and CoStar Group, Inc. announced a critical step forward in cutting energy waste in America by increasing the visibility of building energy use in U.S. property markets. The two entities are now working to display building energy performance information in the CoStar Group’s online property platforms, drawing from data that is increasingly becoming public through city and state benchmarking and transparency laws. These laws require building owners to annually measure and report their buildings’ energy use, which is then publicly shared by the cities and states. The Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) is a long-time advocate of building energy use benchmarking and transparency policies, recognizing them as a critical step forward in driving widespread market transformation to better value and reward energy-efficient buildings. In response to the DOE and CoStar Group’s announcement, IMT Executive Director Cliff Majersik released the following statement:
“This announcement heralds unprecedented availability of information to decision makers at the moments they most need it through the channels they use every day to make smarter leasing and investment decisions. Americans spend over $400 billion on energy use in buildings annually, much of which is wasted through poorly operated and inefficient properties. Integrating performance information—such as a building’s ENERGY STAR score—through the established CoStar platforms will allow tenants, brokers, and buyers to make more-informed leasing and investment decisions.
“Using data to help tenants and buyers assess whether they may be overpaying for energy compared to similar buildings is a critical first step toward increasing profits and reducing energy waste and utility bills. The data supports better integration of efficient building performance into the full real estate lifecycle, from planning, selection and lease or purchase negotiation through space design, construction, and operations. Access to the building data can also increase the premiums tenants and investors are willing to pay for energy-efficient buildings and, in so doing, provide stronger financial incentive to owners to improve the efficiency of their buildings. The resulting virtuous cycle of competition can help drive market transformation as owners increasingly compete to make their buildings more efficient and thereby raise the average level of efficiency of all buildings, saving money for landlords and tenants, and reducing pollution from energy consumption.
“We look forward to continued work with the DOE, CoStar Group, and others to transform the market to one in which all buildings are highly efficient and from which everyone benefits.”
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ABOUT IMT: The Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization promoting energy efficiency, green building, and environmental protection in the United States and abroad. IMT seeks to ignite greater investment energy efficiency in the building sector through activities including technical and market research, policy and program development and deployment, and promotion of best practices and knowledge exchange. IMT’s efforts lead to important new policy outcomes, widespread changes in practice, and ultimately, lasting market shifts toward greater energy efficiency, with substantial benefits for the economy and the environment.