Clean Buildings fellowship selected for $7.78 million federal grant
The U.S. Department of Energy selected the Building Efficiency and Clean Operations Network (BEACON), a Department of Commerce project supporting the Clean Buildings Performance Standard, for a $7.78 million grant. Commerce partnered with the Smart Buildings Center Education Program, Strategic Energy Innovations (SEI) and San Timoteo Associates to develop and run the innovative BEACON project, which will help train and match technical experts with building owners who need support to meet the state’s performance standard.
The BEACON fellowship project will establish a cohort of at least 60 fellows to provide energy services to owners/operators of large commercial and multifamily buildings, helping them capture energy savings and comply with the Clean Buildings Performance Standard. Fellows will be placed in communities for three to 12 months, depending on the number of covered buildings in the area and the need for these no-cost technical services. Buildings in areas identified as underserved and overburdened communities will be prioritized.
Commerce is one of 20 grant recipients selected by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of State and Community Energy Programs (SCEP) to support innovative code and standard development and implementation projects. The City of Seattle was also selected under this funding opportunity to support implementation of the city’s Building Emissions Performance Standard.
To learn more about the Clean Buildings Performance Standard and the BEACON project, contact buildings@commerce.wa.gov.
Read the full article.
Tier 1 Early Adopter Incentive Program Guidebook Updates
The Clean Buildings Tier 1 Early Adopter Incentive Program Guidelines were recently updated. The main change was adding a description of the change of the incentive rate. Thanks to the passing of House Bill 1976, Commerce is offering an enhanced incentive for eligible Tier 1 building owners who demonstrate compliance with the Clean Buildings Performance Standard by meeting the energy use intensity target (EUIt) performance metric. The incentives have been significantly improved, with owners now eligible for an incentive payment of $2/sq. ft., along with $0.05 per kBTU saved beyond the 15 kBTU/sf/year minimum EUI reduction. This program is designed to cover up to 50% of the improvement costs for energy-saving upgrades, making it a great opportunity for building owners.
Some other minor changes to the guidebook were also included. The title was changed to make it specific to the Tier 1 Incentive Program. An improved definition of the building improvement plan and the qualified energy auditor was incorporated. Finally, grammatical edits were included throughout.
The newest version is available online: Early Adopter Incentive Guidebook (PDF)
Get expert help from PSE on Clean Buildings Law compliance
Puget Sound Energy (PSE) supports building owners and operators to comply with Washington’s Clean Buildings Law, even if they use electricity from other utilities like Seattle City Light, Tacoma Power or Snohomish PUD.
PSE’s Clean Buildings Accelerator program unpacks the complex law, meets building owners and managers where they’re at with your energy use and goals, and coaches them on compliance through a hands-on series of virtual trainings. PSE uses real building(s) as examples and helps people leverage PSE’s energy management and incentive programs to meet and exceed benchmarking targets.
Space in the Clean Buildings Accelerator program is limited for these last two sessions of 2024 and compliance dates are creeping up for the largest buildings. Visit pse.com/cleanbuildings to learn more and join one of our upcoming information sessions on Sept. 18 or Oct. 15. The next training cohorts begin Sept. 11 and Oct 29.
Uncertain about the Clean Buildings Law or our Accelerator program? Check out this short video. If you have questions or need more information, please contact us at cleanbuildings@pse.com.
Tier 2 incentive funding distribution survey closes Friday
The Tier 2 incentive funding distribution survey is still open! Commerce launched the survey to gather feedback from Tier 2 stakeholders to better understand how building owners intend to implement the Tier 2 reporting requirements, and what costs may be associated with compliance.
The survey is also an opportunity to provide input on how to best structure the enhanced incentive payment above the base payment of $0.30 per square foot, which communities would benefit from an enhanced incentive, and how that support should be prioritized.
Complete the Tier 2 survey.
The survey closes Friday, Sept. 6.
We appreciate your participation in helping us develop the program guidelines. If you have any questions about the survey or would like to provide direct feedback, please reach out to us at cleanbuildingsincentiveprogram@commerce.wa.gov.
Download the new version of the Clean Buildings Performance Standard Integrated Document
The July 2024 version includes Tier 1 and Tier 2 covered buildings and decarbonization of district energy systems. Follow the link below to download the new version.
Download the Washington State Clean Buildings Performance Standard
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