BPS Library

Building Performance Standards (BPS) are a rapidly growing tool used by jurisdictions across the United States to decarbonize buildings. In most places, buildings comprise the largest energy users. BPS reduce energy use and carbon emissions, with the added benefits of saving money, improving air quality, and creating jobs. However, because BPS policies can require significant investment in buildings, there is a risk of unintended consequences, imposing cost burdens on disadvantaged communities and exacerbating housing inequalities. This document introduces the key risks to consider when planning a BPS as well as mitigation strategies and case studies from jurisdictions around the country.

A growing number of state and local governments are adopting building performance standards (BPS) to help reduce buildings’ energy costs, reduce peak electricity demand, and support climate change mitigation. Building performance standards require buildings to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, or both to meet set targets. BPS hold the potential to either benefit the affordable housing sector and its residents or cause them unintended harms, depending on how the policies are designed and implemented. This report identifies strategies that local governments, community-based organizations, energy utilities, and other stakeholders can use to support affordable housing properties and their residents during the design and implementation of BPS policies. Download the report from the ACEEE site.

Building Performance Standard (BPS) policies are an emerging policy mechanism designed to improve the energy efficiency of, and reduce the emissions from, existing buildings by requiring each covered building to meet an energy use or carbon emissions performance target by a specific deadline. The DOE and EPA are providing hands-on support to jurisdictions interested in developing and implementing a BPS or similar building intervention policy. This document provides background information on BPS, lists key resources and tools, and describes the types of support that are available.

Standardizing and streamlining the audit documentation process can help Building Performance Standard (BPS) program managers achieve consistency in compliance and aid individual building managers to document and implement building efficiency improvements more effectively. This document describes how the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Audit Template tool can play a key role in managing BPS compliance over time by allowing standardized energy audit data collection, reporting, and management of multiple compliance cycles.

As building performance standards (BPS) gain traction across the US, jurisdictions large and small are faced with the challenge of implementing and administering these new policies. This guide is specifically tailored for jurisdictions that are ready to dive into the details of how to structure, implement and administer a newly enacted BPS, along with best practices from jurisdictions that are on the forefront of BPS implementation efforts.

This document provides an overview of key considerations for aligning a building performance standard (BPS) and energy code. It is intended for BPS policymakers and implementers to understand questions such as: Why align BPS and energy code? How do code compliance paths affect future BPS compliance? What strategies can be used to ensure alignment between the two policies?

This document provides an overview of the process and key considerations for developing a Covered Buildings List (CBL) for a Building Performance Standard (BPS). It is intended for BPS or benchmarking policy administrators and implementers to help plan the process and level of effort needed to develop a CBL. It does not provide detailed technical guidance on data processing.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Better Buildings has put together a list of resources that can provide guidance on what to consider when setting a carbon-related goal and what data is needed to track it. The site offers several resources for target-setting, how to develop a greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) inventory, and how to track GHG data.

As cities design legislation such as BPS or benchmarking, they must consider the timing of the policies, how to prioritize building types and sizes, and how these design decisions will impact the city’s emissions. This paper addresses these questions for one particular US city: Seattle, Washington. A model of Seattle’s building stock was created with benchmarking and tax assessor data. It was then used to predict GHG emissions reductions due to different policy implementations for existing commercial and multifamily buildings.

This DOE guide offers tips on framing the energy data access discussion, understanding major stakeholders, identifying key issues, determining the forum for stakeholder engagement, and describing key elements of the engagement process

Summary of some of Boston's community engagement efforts related to inclusive building policies. 

Jurisdictions and Community-Based Organizations (CBO) can use this quick-reference guide, in conjunction with the full BPS Implementation Guide, to help them establish an empowered and well-resourced CAB.

List of resources to help navigate tools and procedures for tracking, reporting, and compliance with benchmarking and building performance standards.

This library gathers resources that provide information on the components of a BPS and the process for establishing this type of policy in a jurisdiction

Series of BPS-related resources that provide information on building performance standards, including a fact sheet on how cities can benefit from these policies.

Website with information to help building owners, tenants, and contractors make healthy, climate resilient, and low-carbon building improvements.

This Short Model BPS Law establishes broad goals and an equitable process by which stakeholders and one or more agencies will work together after passage to craft BPS rules to achieve shared goals. The streamlined law, and its greater reliance on rulemaking, make it particularly well suited for states passing a BPS.

This is a template for cities and states to develop building performance standards. It provides structural foundation that can be tailored to individual jurisdictions.

This document provides an overview of the following key areas for consideration when developing a BPS: 1. Target Setting 2. Implementation and Enforcement 3. Equitable Application and Compliance Support.

This document presents sample language that can be used by jurisdictions interested in drafting a comprehensive existing building performance policy that encompasses provisions for benchmarking, as well as additional actions beyond benchmarking. The model language, based on best practices that have been identified while working with many of the jurisdictions that have enacted successful policies, can be easily customized by policymakers to meet the unique needs of their city.

This document examines lessons from carbon policy and their applicability to building performance standards. Discusses policy in DC, NYC, and Tokyo. This report assesses the various tradeoffs and challenges of designing building performance standards (BPS) in order to facilitate compliance and promote cost-effectiveness.

Provides strategies for aligning new construction codes with BPS to facilitate a “lifecycle” approach to building performance and drive equitable decarbonization. Conclusions  include recommendations for core program components under an equitable BPS implementation model and how to connect a BPS to new construction codes, enabling both new and existing buildings of all covered types to consistently and predictably meet performance targets.

Provides an overview of building performance standards and offers information on key decision points to consider when designing a BPS.

Overview of the BPS development process, including considerations such as performance target-setting, implementation and enforcement timelines, equitable policy application, and compliance support.

Describes the varied roles that state and local decisions makers have in establishing existing building policies and opportunities to coordinate across jurisdictions.