Building Performance Standards

Simplify building performance standards (BPS) compliance with Conservice

As climate-related risk & stakeholder demand for ESG increases, a growing number of cities, states, and provinces across North America are enacting Building Performance Standards (BPS). Unlike traditional benchmarking ordinances that require certain buildings to disclose energy and/or water consumption, BPS laws require buildings to meet measurable performance standards or improvements, typically reduced utility consumption or greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

This page provides a basic overview of active BPS laws and their implementation timelines, as well as a list of jurisdictions that have indicated their intent to implement BPS laws and are in the process of developing them. Looking for additional background info on BPS laws, what compliance looks like, potential penalties for noncompliance, & why they're being introduced? Check out the recording of webinar "BPS 101: Understanding & planning for emerging regulations"!

CA: Brisbane

Brisbane, CA Benchmarking

Name: Brisbane Building Efficiency Program (BBEP)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 10,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 10,000+ sqft.
  • Industrial: 10,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

  1. Performance pathway
  2. Prescriptive pathway
  3. Hybrid pathway (Performance + Prescriptive)

Implementation timeline:

Commercial

  • 2027: End of Cycle 1
  • 2028: Start of Cycle 2
  • 2034: Start of Cycle 3

Multifamily & Industrial

  • 2028: End of Cycle 1
  • 2029: Start of Cycle 2
  • 2035: Start of Cycle 3

CA: Chula Vista

Chula Vista, CA benchmarking

Name: Building Energy Saving Ordinance, Ordinance 3498

Property type(s) covered:

  • Non-Residential: 20,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 20,000+ sqft. AND 5+ units

Compliance pathways:

Performance pathway

  1. Energy (ENERGY STAR Score of 80 or above)
  2. Site EUI of 18 or less
  3. Achieve ENERGY STAR certification during preceding year
  4. Achieve LEED Existing Building Certification 3 of 5 preceding years

Prescriptive pathway

  1. Meet minimum improvement (energy performance) requirements or complete energy auditing and retro-commissioning every 5 years
  2. Minimum improvement every 10 years
  3. Multifamily properties older than 2006 must deploy conservation measures

Implementation timeline:

  • Energy Audits: Every 5 years beginning 2026
  • Retro-commissioning: Every 5 years beginning 2026
  • Minimum Improvements: Every 10 years beginning 2031

CA: San Jose

San Jose, CA Benchmarking

Name: Beyond Benchmarking

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 20,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 20,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Performance pathway (energy & water)

  1. Energy (ENERGY STAR Score of 75 or above)
  2. Water, Multifamily (ENERGY STAR Water Score of 80 or above)
  3. Water, Non-residential (Improvement over baseline or median for building type)

Prescriptive pathway (only 1 required)

  1. ASHRAE Level 2 energy and/or water audit
  2. Retro-commission the controls
  3. Deploy energy and/or water conservation measures

Implementation timeline:

  • Performance Year is based on building Assessor Parcel Number (APN)
  • Compliance runs on 5 year cycles
  • First performance year is 2022
  • Last performance year is 2026

CO: Statewide

Colorado Statewide Benchmarking

Name: Building Performance Colorado

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 50,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 50,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Building owners have 4 options for compliance:

  1. Energy efficiency (EUI - kbut/sf)
  2. Emissions (GHG - kgCO2e/sf)
  3. Standard percentage reduction from EUI (kbtu/sf) baseline
  4. Standard percentage reduction from GHG (kgCO2e/sf) baseline

Implementation timeline:

  • 2026: Interim Target Year - Now eliminated per HB1269
  • 2030: Interim Target Year
  • 2040: Interim Target Year - New per HB1269
  • 2050: Final Target Year (net-zero emissions)

CO: Denver

Denver, CO Benchmarking

Name: Energize Denver (High-Performance Existing Buildings Program)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 5,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 5,000+ sqft.
  • Manufacturing/Industrial: 5,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Large Buildings (25,000+ sqft.)

Performance Pathway

Small Buildings (5,000 - 24,999 sqft.)

Prescriptive Pathways (1 of 3 options):

  1. Improve Lighting
  2. Improve Energy Source
  3. Achieve 15% Energy Use Reduction

Implementation timeline:

Large Buildings (25,000+ sqft.)

  • 2028: Interim Target Year
  • 2032: Final Target Year

Small Buildings (5,000 - 24,999 sqft.)

  • 15,001 - 24,999 sqft.: 12/31/2025
  • 10,001 - 15,000 sqft.: 12/31/2026
  • 5,000 - 10,000 sqft.: 12/31/2027

DC: Washington, DC

Washington, DC Benchmarking

Name: DC Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 10,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 10,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Performance Path

Reduce baseline EUI by 20%

Standard Target Path (ENERGY STAR Score above 50)

Reach building type target

Prescriptive Path

Implement energy efficiency measures (package must achieve minimum of 25% site EUI savings)

Alternative Compliance Paths

Allows an owner to apply to follow a path with special criteria

Implementation timeline:

Performance Year 2026

  • Municipal buildings with 10,000+ sqft.
  • Private buildings with 50,000+ sqft.

Performance Year 2027

  • Private buildings with 25,000+ sqft.

Performance Year 2030

  • Private buildings with 10,000+ sqft.

MA: Boston

Boston, MA Benchmarking

Name: BERDO 2.0

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 20,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 20,000+ sqft. OR 15+ units
  • Manufacturing/Industrial: 20,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Emissions Requirements

Meet maximum emissions according to building type and size using the appropriate emissions targets indicated by the policy

Individual Compliance Schedules

Buildings can apply to participate in an alternate compliance schedule that:

  1. Sets progressively more stringent emissions reduction requirements every 5 years
  2. Reduces emissions by 50% by 2030, and
  3. Reduces emissions by 100% by 2050

Additional Compliance Mechanisms

Municipal aggregation, renewable energy credits and power purchase agreements

Alternative Compliance Payments

Buildings can elect to make payments of $234/metric ton exceeded from the target as a compliance method

Implementation timeline:

  • 2025: Properties with 35,000+ sqft.
  • 2030: Properties with 20,000+ sqft.

MA: Cambridge

Cambridge, MA Benchmarking

Name: Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Non-Residential: 25,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Emissions Requirements

Meet maximum emissions according to building type and size using the appropriate emissions targets indicated by the policy

Additional Compliance Mechanisms

  1. Carbon Credits
  2. Alternative Compliance Credits (ACCs)
  3. Deferral Plans

Implementation timeline:

  • 2026: Interim Target Year
  • 2030: Interim Target Year
  • 2035-2050: Covered buildings reach net-zero emissions

MA: Newton

Newton, MA

Name: Newton Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 20,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Emissions Requirements

Meet maximum emissions according to building type and size using the appropriate emissions targets indicated by the policy.

Individual Compliance Schedules

Building owners may apply for an alternative to the CO2e Emissions standard reduction

Hardship Compliance Plans

Building owners with extraordinary characteristics or circumstances may apply for alternative Emissions standards and timelines for compliance

Alternative Compliance Payments

Buildings can elect to make payments of $234/metric ton exceeded from the target as a compliance method

Implementation timeline:

  • 2027: Nonresidential buildings with 100,000+ sqft.
  • 2028: Nonresidential buildings with 50,000-99,999 sqft.
  • 2029: Nonresidential buildings with 35,000-49,999 sqft.
  • 2030: Nonresidential buildings with 20,000-34,999 sqft.

MD: Statewide

Maryland, Statewide Benchmarking

Name: Maryland's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 35,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 35,000+ sqft.
  • Institutional: 35,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Must meet both:

  1. Meet emissions target (GHG - kgCO2e/SF) for building type
  2. Meet energy target (EUI - kbtuh/SF) for building type

Implementation timeline:

  • Performance Years: 2030, 2035, and 2040

MD: Montgomery County

Montgomery County, MD Benchmarking

Name: Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 25,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 25,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Meet energy target (EUI - kbtu/SF) for building type

Implementation timeline:

  • Performance Years 2028 & 2033: Commercial (50,000+ sqft.)
  • Performance Years 2030 & 2035: Commercial (25,000+ sqft.)
  • Performance Years 2030 & 2035: Multifamily (250,000+ sqft.)
  • Performance Years 2031 & 2036: Multifamily (50,000+ sqft.)

MO: St. Louis

St. Louis, MO Benchmarking

Name: St. Louis Building Energy Performance Standard (BEPS)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 50,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 50,000+ sqft.
  • Affordable Housing: 50,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Performance pathway

  1. Meet target for building type
  2. Reduce EUI to halfway between baseline & building type target

Prescriptive pathway

Energy audit, improvement plan, & ECM deployment

Implementation timeline:

Commercial & Residential

  • Performance Year: 2024

Affordable Housing & Houses of Worship

  • Performance Year: 2026

NY: New York City

New York, NY Benchmarking

Name: Sustainable Buildings NYC (Local Law 97)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 25,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily: 25,000+ sqft.
  • Industrial: 25,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Performance Compliance

Building emissions must meet target for occupancy type

Deductions in annual reported emissions are allowed to be taken for:

  1. Renewable energy credits (with restrictions, up to 100% deduction)
  2. Purchased greenhouse gas offsets (with restrictions, up to 10% deduction)
  3. Clean distributed energy resources located at or directly connected to the building

Prescriptive Compliance

Qualified affordable housing and houses of worship may comply via implementation of energy conservation measures

Implementation timeline:

  • Performance Years: 2024 through 2050
  • Target decreases: 2030, 2035, 2040, 2050
  • Time extension for Affordable Housing

OR: Statewide

Oregon, Statewide

Name: Energy Performance Standards (HB 3409)

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial (Tier 1): 35,000+ sqft.
  • Commercial (Tier 2): 20,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily (Tier 2): 35,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Tier 1 Compliance Pathways

Performance Pathway

  1. Meet the EUI target
  2. Implement Operations and Management plan (O&M) & Energy Management Plan (EMP)

Prescriptive Pathway

  1. Conduct Energy Audit & Life Cycle Cost Assessment
  2. Implement Operations and Management plan (O&M) & Energy Management Plan (EMP)
  3. Submit annual documentation until EUIt is met

Tier 2 Compliance Requirements

  1. Report building activity and EUIt (targets not required to be met at this time)
  2. Submit calculation of EUI

Implementation timeline:

  • 2028: Tier 1 buildings with 200,000+ sqft. AND All Tier 2 buildings
  • 2029: Tier 1 buildings with 90,000+ sqft.
  • 2030: Tier 1 buildings with 35,000+ sqft.

WA: Statewide

Washington Statewide Benchmarking

Name: Clean Buildings Performance Standard

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial (Tier 1): 50,000+ sqft.
  • Commercial (Tier 2): 20,000+ sqft.
  • Multifamily (Tier 2): 20,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Meet EUI Target (Tier 1 only)

  1. Conditional compliance if buildings complete an energy audit and implement the EEMs specified in the standard

Required Documentation (Tier 1 & Tier 2)

  1. Operations & Maintenance Program
  2. Energy Management Plan

Implementation timeline:

Tier 1

  • Performance Year 2025: Buildings with 220,000+ sqft.
  • Performance Year 2026: Buildings with 90,000+ sqft.
  • Performance Year 2027: Buildings with 50,000+ sqft.

Tier 2

  • Performance Year TBD

WA: Seattle

Seattle, WA Benchmarking

Name: Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS)

Property type(s) covered:

  • All properties with 20,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Three compliance options:

  1. Meet emissions target (GHG - kgCO2e/SF) for building type
  2. Meet percentage emissions reduction from baseline
  3. Building is all-electric

Implementation timeline:

  • Performance Year 2030: Buildings with 220,000+ sqft.
  • Performance Year 2031: Buildings with 90,000+ sqft.
  • Performance Year 2032: Buildings with 50,000+ sqft.
  • Performance Year 2033: Buildings with 30,000+ sqft.
  • Performance Year 2034: Buildings with 20,000+ sqft.

Canada: Vancouver

Vancouver, Canada Benchmarking

Name: Annual Greenhouse Gas & Energy Limits By-Law

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial: 100,000+ sqft.

Compliance pathways:

Meet emissions target (GHG - kgCO2e/SF)

Implementation timeline:

  • 2026: Interim target for GHGI Limits
  • 2027: Carbon Emissions Operating Permits are required annually
  • 2040: Final target for GHGI Limits; HEI limits begin

NV: Reno (voluntary)

Reno, NV Benchmarking

Name: ReEnergize Reno

Property type(s) covered:

  • Commercial
  • Multifamily
  • Industrial

Compliance pathways:

Reduce energy and water use 20% by 2025

Implementation timeline:

  • April 1st, 2026

CA: Statewide (in development)

CA: Santa Monica (in development)

CA: West Hollywood (in development)

CO: Aspen (in development)

CO: Fort Collins (in development)

IL: Statewide (in development)

IL: Evanston (in development)

MI: Grand Rapids (in development)

OR: Portland (in development)

CA: Berkeley (in pre-development)

CA: Los Angeles (in pre-development)

CA: Sacramento (in pre-development)

CA: San Diego (in pre-development)

CA: San Francisco (in pre-development)

CO: Boulder (in pre-development)

FL: Orlando (in pre-development)

GA: Atlanta (in pre-development)

GA: Savannah (in pre-development)

IL: Chicago (in pre-development)

MD: Annapolis (in pre-development)

MI: Ann Arbor (in pre-development)

MO: Kansas City (in pre-development)

NY: Ithaca (in pre-development)

OH: Columbus (in pre-development)

PA: Philadelphia (in pre-development)

PA: Pittsburgh (in pre-development)

WI: Milwaukee (in pre-development)

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Please note: BPS laws are a relatively new development; as such, the status and number of laws is continuously changing. The information on this page is accurate to the best of our knowledge. This page was last modified on 8/4/2025 and will be updated regularly to reflect evolving and emerging regulations.