New York City enacts legislation designed to increase energy efficiency of buildings

According to the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT), New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the passage of a package of bills that will greatly increase the energy efficiency of New York city’s commercial building stock; a move that will save millions of dollars in energy costs and create thousands of jobs. The legislation, a group of four bills known as the " Greener, Greater Buildings Plan ", was enacted as part of the city’s PlaNYC commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030.

Each of the bills passed with overwhelming majorities, with two achieving unanimous support. Major provisions of the legislation include:
• Annual ENERGY STAR performance benchmarking and public disclosure of energy and water information for public buildings and large private buildings;
• Energy audits and retrocommissioning for large buildings once every 10 years;
• Lighting upgrades and the sub-metering of tenant spaces greater than 10,000 sq ft in large, privately owned buildings
• The creation of a New York City Energy Code that existing buildings must meet upon renovation.
The IMT the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit dedicated to improving the energy efficiency of buildings, advised New York City policymakers on provisions included in the legislation.

"We applaud Mayor Bloomberg, Council Speaker Quinn, the New York City Council and everyone else who worked so hard to create and enact this bold legislation that will reduce energy consumption, create thousands of jobs, and save money for building owners and consumers," said Cliff Majersik, executive director of IMT. "The bills complement each other and together create the country’s most comprehensive effort to date to address the root causes of wasted energy in existing buildings."

Previously, IMT played a lead role in crafting the building energy rating and disclosure mandate included in the " Clean and Affordable Energy Act of 2008 " in the District of Columbia. A central component to the New York City legislation is its building energy rating and disclosure bill, which passed unanimously.

According to Majersik, "Building owners can’t manage what they don’t measure."
The New York City legislation could create 17,880 construction and building-related jobs and save consumers $700 million annually in energy costs, according to city estimates. It is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 4.75% citywide, the largest reduction by any single program in PlaNYC.
The legislation also includes a workforce development initiative to train workers for new jobs, and creates a financing program using $16 million in federal stimulus funding to provide loans to property owners for energy efficiency upgrades.

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