This measure provides technical and financial assistance to help municipal and school buildings reduce emissions and save money through energy efficiency, electrification, and other clean energy investments. By leading by example with high-performance standards, retrofitting facilities with renewable energy and efficient technologies, and supporting comprehensive building energy management, local governments can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, lower utility costs, and improve indoor environments. The measure also strengthens community engagement, expands access to resources and incentives, and encourages broader adoption of sustainable practices across public and private sectors

This measure is most appropriate for localities and school districts.

KEY ACTIONS

NEAR-TERM

1. Meet statewide High-Performance Buildings Act requirements to ensure new and renovated public buildings meet efficiency requirements. Ensure all new government buildings meet LEED standards or similar (e.g., Living Building, Earthcraft, etc.). Key Actors: Localities
2. Ensure all new government buildings meet LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards or similar. Key Actors: Localities
3. Retrofit public buildings with solar panels and EV (electric vehicle) charging stations, prioritizing more affordable on-site solar installations that do not trigger grid upgrade requirements. Key Actors: Localities
4. Transition to LEDs and in streetlights, government facilities, and schools. Install motion-sensors. Key Actors: Localities
5. Improve information sharing to ensure local governments are aware of resources available. Key Actors: Localities, regional organizations
6. Develop or clarify zoning to allow for more EV charging facilities. Key Actors: Localities
7. Consider energy saving performance contracting (ESCO) options leveraging information and resources provided by Virginia Energy. Key Actors: Localities
8. Audit existing public buildings to identify potential efficiency upgrades. Key Actors: Localities

VISIONARY

1. Develop building energy performance standards and best practices for all public facilities. Track energy use and emissions to inform project selection to cost-effectively reduce emissions. Key Actors: Localities
2. Include considerations for embodied carbon when designing new municipal or school facilities. Key Actors: Localities
3. Establish a revolving green fund for energy and water efficiency projects, leveraging resources like Department of Energy's Loan Program Office and similar programs at the state level. Key Actors: Localities

Outcomes

This measure aims to empower residents to make informed decisions about energy efficiency and electrification by increasing education and awareness of available utility, state, and federal incentives for home improvements and electric appliances. Through accessible cost-benefit comparisons, support for community-scale aggregation programs like Solarize, prioritization of weatherization, and funding for home energy audits, the goal of this measure is to help households understand their options, reduce energy use, and lower utility bills. By making information and resources more widely available, the measure supports equitable access to clean energy upgrades and encourages broader participation in the transition to efficient, all-electric homes.

This measure is most appropriate for non-profits, private businesses, utilities, regional entities, localities, and state agencies.

KEY ACTIONS

NEAR-TERM

1. Create cost/benefit comparisons between existing gas/oil heating and cooling and electrical heating and cooling. Key Actors: regional organizations, non-profits, state, localities
2. Support community-scale aggregation programs, such as Solarize. Key Actors: Localities, regional entities, non-profits
3. Prioritize weatherization before installation of electrification measures. Key Actors: Localities, private businesses, non-profits, regional entities
4. Provide funding for low- to no-cost home energy audits. Key Actors: non-profits, localities, state agencies
5. Develop and distribute user-friendly guides or toolkits explaining available incentives, eligibility, and application processes tailored for homeowners, renters, and landlords. Key Actors: Private businesses, localities, regional entities, non-profits
6. Host in-person or virtual webinar or workshops to walk residents through the benefits of energy efficiency, electrification, and how to access incentives. Key Actors: Localities, regional entities, non-profits, private businesses
7. Establish partnerships with utilities to include energy efficiency information in monthly bills or through targeted communications. Key Actors: Localities

Outcomes

This measure aims to increase energy efficiency in existing commercial and industrial buildings by offering financial incentives and educational outreach programs. *Note - the emissions from industrial buildings are included in the Industry sector, not the Buildings sector. This measure is cross-cutting.
Providing funding, technical assistance, and support for clean energy lending helps building owners, especially in underserved markets, overcome barriers to upgrading their facilities. Outreach efforts and partnerships with community organizations and utilities ensure that building owners and managers are aware of available resources, best practices, and incentive programs, making it easier to implement energy-saving improvements and reduce emissions.

This measure is most appropriate for state agencies, localities, private businesses, and non-profits.

KEY ACTIONS

NEAR TERM

1. Leverage clean energy lending programs, such as C-PACE.
2. Provide financial support or incentives for low- to no-cost energy audits for small businesses. Key Actors: Non-profits, localities, state agencies
3. Promote available state and federal incentive and grant opportunities. Provide technical assistance to public entities, businesses, and individuals on how to qualify and utilize them. Key Actors: Localities, regional entities, non-profits, state agencies
4. Encourage large IT users, such as data centers, educational institutions, and others, to adopt efficient equipment procurement processes, such as ENERGY STAR IT equipment. Key Actors: Private businesses, regional entities, localities, state agencies.
5. Conduct outreach and educational campaigns on available incentive programs and facilitate connections between building managers and energy audit programs. Key Actors: Localities, regional entities, state agencies, non-profits
6. Partner with community-based organizations and utilities to educate building owners, including non-profits, places of worship, and small businesses on best practices for decarbonization, as well as any resources and rebate programs from utilities. Non-profits, private businesses, localities, regional entities, state agencies
7. Educate customers (e.g., data center operators, institutions, IT departments) on best practices for servers/IT equipment, which can make up a major portion of a building’s energy use. Refer to Appendix X for suggested best practices. Key Actors: Private businesses, localities, regional entities, state agencies

VISIONARY

1. Provide funding and technical assistance to building owners for scoping projects and combine multiple sources of funding to pay for building upgrades. Prioritize underserved markets. Key Actors: Non-profits, localities, state agencies
2. Research mechanisms for local businesses to cost-effectively pursue energy efficiency upgrades in their buildings and operations, including on-bill financing and tax incentives. Key Actors: Localities, state agencies
3. Explore creative funding opportunities, including working with local lenders and the philanthropic community, to provide zero-interest, short term loans for retrofitting and upgrading public housing. Key Actors: Localities, private businesses, state agencies
4. Create a voluntary energy performance tracking and annual reporting program for commercial and large multi-family or mixed-use buildings. A recognition program for high-performing buildings could incentivize participation and promote the efforts of participating businesses to the public.
5. Report on the power use effectiveness (PUE) of facilities with dedicated IT infrastructure, such as higher education institutions and research facilities, data centers, and telecommunication facilities. Reporting could be incentivized through a voluntary program or required through local ordinance or state regulation. Key Actors: Private businesses, localities, state agencies.
6. Facilitate connections between commercial and industrial building energy managers and utilities to conduct energy audits and support knowledge sharing on tangible ways to decrease energy consumption. Key Actors: Localities, private businesses, state agencies

Outcomes

This measure reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through encouraging the design, construction, and operation of residential, commercial, and industrial buildings above current code requirements. By promoting advanced standards such as passive house design, solar-ready construction, and energy efficiency incentives, the measure aims to significantly reduce building energy use, lower emissions, and enhance comfort and resilience. Supporting above-code development through incentives, recognition, and technical resources helps drive innovation and showcases the benefits of high-performing, sustainable buildings to the broader community.

This measure is most appropriate for non-profits, private businesses, utilities, regional entities, and localities.

KEY ACTIONS

NEAR TERM

1. Incentivize solar- and EV (electric vehicle)-ready development through tax incentives. Research and promote the return on investment of developing buildings with these standards. Key Actors: State agencies, localities
2. Leverage density bonuses to incentive land use patterns that are energy efficient and improve access to high quality affordable housing. Key Actors: Localities
3. Provide resources to encourage more buildings to track energy usage and implement energy efficiency improvements after commissioning a building. Key Actors: Localities, non-profits, private businesses · Publicize high performing buildings (LEED Platinum etc.) to ensure that people are aware of the energy efficiency updates that can be made and motivate buildings that are already high performing to continue their efforts. · Provide public tours of high performing buildings to help construction companies, building owners, and other entities to envision future energy efficiency changes · Adopt C-PACE, if not already locally adopted, and better promote it to commercial building owners to encourage energy efficiency upgrades in the commercial sector.
4. Encourage implementing best practices for cooling & air management of IT equipment. Key Actors: Private businesses, localities. Strategies could include:
   1. Free air cooling through air economizers
   2. In-row, overhead, or rear door refrigerant-based heat exchangers.
   3. Hot aisle/cold aisle arrangements when air cooling is utilized
5. Encourage onsite energy efficiency improvements of water-cooling systems. Key Actors: Private businesses, localities. Strategies could include:
   1. Raising the chilled water temperature to be only as cold as necessary.
   2. Evaluating chillers for upgrades and replacements
   3. Utilizing monitoring systems for real-time management and efficiency
   4. Reviewing operation and efficiency on a regular basis and conducting regular staff training.
   5. During site selection and design, evaluate opportunities to use recycled wastewater and closed-loop cooling systems to minimize impacts on public water supplies.
6. Implement best practices for power infrastructure and uninterruptible power supplies (UPS). Key Actors: Private businesses, localities.

VISIONARY

1. Emphasize passive house design in new construction. Key Actors: Private businesses, localities
2. Under the authority granted by Virginia Code §58.1-3221.2, create a separate property tax class for energy-efficient buildings, including those exceeding the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code energy standards by 30% or that meet standards for the Green Globes, LEED, EarthCraft House Program, or federal ENERGY STAR programs. Key Actors: Localities
3. Support buildings that have already implemented energy efficiency upgrades though initiating and coordinating a voluntary benchmarking and recognition program for new high performing buildings. Key Actors: Localities, non-profits, private business
4. Investigate novel or creative options to encourage above-code development. Key Actors: Localities

Outcomes