Jessica Green of Brightworks also contributed to this post.

The State of Washington and the City of Seattle are passing new laws and ordinances to increase energy efficiency.  In particular, the Washington State Building Code Council adopted changes to the Washington State Energy Code to require building owners to achieve additional energy efficiency.  Public hearings to determine the effective date of the revised code are occurring in September, with a final decision on the effective date to be made in October.  Similarly, later this month the Seattle City Council is scheduled to consider amendments to the Seattle Energy Code to reduce energy consumption by up to 20%, with such changes to go into effect later this year.

In addition, early this year the City of Seattle passed an ordinance to require commercial and multi-family building owners to measure the energy performance of their buildings, to report that information through the Energy STAR Portfolio Manager Program, and, upon request, to disclose the information to current and potential tenants, buyers, and lenders.  As of January 1, 2011, such reporting will be required for commercial properties over 50,000 square feet, which will affect approximately 680 buildings in Seattle.  The following year, the reporting requirements will be expanded to commercial properties between 10,000 and 50,000 square feet and multi-family properties with more than 5 units, which will affect approximately 2,330 commercial buildings and 5,760 multi-family residential buildings.

Building owners and managers need to be aware of these changes in order to comply with the new requirements and maximize their energy savings, thereby reducing costs and gaining market advantage.  Similarly, an informed tenant can benefit from these new requirements by selecting more energy efficient office space or encouraging its current landlord to implement measures to reduce energy use in its existing space.  Implementing measures to increase a building’s energy efficiency now will not only prepare building owners and managers for future reporting requirements, but will provide the following benefits to owners, tenants, and the operational team:

• Reduce capital expenditures through rebates for energy efficient equipment
• Reduce operating costs through lower utility expenses and tax incentives
• Create more competitive leasing through overall reduced operating costs
• Increase marketability by having a high Energy STAR rating (95 or higher)