HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

654

THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

relating to buildings.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that the State declared a climate emergency and is committed to reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases.  The built environment generates forty per cent of the annual global carbon dioxide emissions.  Buildings are typically operated inefficiently.  For example, commercial buildings, on average, use thirty per cent of energy inefficiently.

     The legislature further finds that various state and local governments, including the city and county of Honolulu, have passed laws that require measuring and tracking greenhouse gas emissions, as well as energy and water consumption from buildings.  All jurisdictions with benchmarking laws have specified the use of the United States Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager measurement and tracking tool.

     The ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager is available at no cost to users, and can be used in a secure online environment.  Forty per cent of commercial building spaces in the United States are already using ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, including thirty-five per cent of Fortune 500 corporations.

     The purpose of this Act is to create a program that uses the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to encourage state and county buildings to become more environmentally sustainable, particularly with respect to greenhouse gas emissions and energy and water consumption.

     SECTION 2.  The Hawaii Revised Statutes is amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"Chapter

BUILDING MANAGEMENT

     §   -1  Purpose.  The legislature finds that there exists a worldwide climate emergency.  Greenhouse gas emissions from all sources of human activity must be reduced dramatically to keep the Earth livable.  The legislature further finds that environmental sustainability also requires the efficient use of energy and water.  The purpose of this chapter is to make buildings within the State more environmentally sustainable, particularly with respect to greenhouse gas emissions and energy and water consumption.

     §   -2  Definitions.  As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

     "Aggregated whole-building data" means energy or water data that has been summed for an entire property, which may include a single occupant or a group of separately metered tenants.

     "Benchmark" means to input and submit the total energy and water consumed for a property for the previous calendar year and other descriptive information for the property as required by the benchmarking tool.

     "Benchmarking tool" means the United States Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, or any additional or alternative tool adopted by the office, used to benchmark, track, and assess the energy and water use of certain properties relative to similar properties.

     "Covered property" means a property that exceeds ten thousand square feet in gross floor area and is owned, leased, or otherwise controlled by the State or a county.

     "Covered property" does not include:

     (1)  Single family, duplex, triplex, and fourplex residential homes and related accessory structures, or any other residential building with fewer than five units;

     (2)  Any building with less than twenty thousand square feet in gross floor area, that is not otherwise part of a campus as described in paragraph (3) of the definition for "property" for the purposes of benchmarking;

     (3)  Properties classified as industrial per designated Standard Industrial Classification codes 20 through 39;

     (4)  Properties owned by government bodies not subject to the authority of this chapter or governed by other chapters; and

     (5)  Other building types not meeting the purpose of this chapter, as determined by the director.

     "Director" means the director of the office of planning and sustainable development.

     "Energy" means electricity, natural gas, steam, or other product sold by a utility to a customer of a property, or renewable on-site electricity generation, for purposes of providing heating, cooling, lighting, water heating, or for powering or fueling other end-uses as recorded in the benchmarking tool.

     "ENERGY STAR score" means the numeric rating generated by the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager tool as a measurement of a building's energy efficiency.

     "ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager" means the tool developed and maintained by the United States Environmental Protection Agency to track and assess the relative energy performance of buildings.

     "Gross floor area" means the total property area, measured between the outside surfaces of the exterior walls of the building.  "Gross floor area" includes all areas inside the building, including but not limited to lobbies, tenant areas, common areas, meeting rooms, break rooms, base level atriums, restrooms, elevator shafts, stairwells, mechanical equipment areas, basements, and storage rooms.

     "Office" means the office of planning and sustainable development.

     "Owner" means the state or county agency that owns, leases, or otherwise controls the covered property.

     "Property" means:

     (1)  A single building;

     (2)  One or more buildings held in the condominium form of ownership, and governed by a single board of directors; or

     (3)  A campus of two or more contiguous buildings that are owned and operated by the same party, have a single shared primary function, and are:

          (A)  Behind a common utility meter or served by a common mechanical or electrical system, such as a chilled water loop, that would prevent the owner from being able to easily determine the energy use attributable to each of the individual buildings; or

          (B)  Used primarily for:

              (i)  A K-12 school;

             (ii)  A hospital;

            (iii)  A hotel;

             (iv)  Multifamily housing; or

              (v)  A senior care community.

     "Shared benchmarking information" means information generated by the benchmarking tool and descriptive information about the physical property and its operational characteristics that is shared with the office.  "Shared benchmarking information" includes but is not limited to:

     (1)  Descriptive information, such as:

          (A)  Property address;

          (B)  Primary use;

          (C)  Gross floor area;

          (D)  Number of floors;

          (E)  Number of building parking spaces or parking area in square feet;

          (F)  Number of years the property has been ENERGY STAR certified and the last approval date, if applicable; and

          (G)  Individual or entity responsible for the benchmarking submission; and

     (2)  Output information, such as:

          (A)  Site and source energy use intensity;

          (B)  Weather normalized site and source energy use intensity;

          (C)  The ENERGY STAR score, where available;

          (D)  Total annual greenhouse gas emissions;

          (E)  Monthly energy use by fuel type;

          (F)  Indoor water use and water use intensity, based on consumption per gross square foot;

          (G)  Outdoor water use, where available;

          (H)  Total water use;

          (I)  The ENERGY STAR Water Score, where available; and

          (J)  General comments section, if needed, to explain the building's ENERGY STAR scores.

     "Tenant" means a person or entity occupying or holding possession of a building, part of a building, or premises pursuant to a rental or lease agreement or through ownership of a unit within, or portion of, the building.

     §   -3  Powers and duties of the office.  The office shall:

     (1)  Receive, disburse, use, expend, and account for all funds that are made available by the United States and State for the purposes of this chapter;

     (2)  Provide support and assistance in the administration of the sustainable buildings program;

     (3)  Review federal programs, federal permits, federal licenses, and federal development proposals for consistency with the sustainable buildings program;

     (4)  Facilitate public participation in the sustainable buildings program, including maintaining of a public advisory body to identify sustainable buildings problems and provide policy advice and assistance to the office;

     (5)  Prepare and periodically update a plan for use of building management funds to resolve problems and issues that are not adequately addressed by existing laws and rules;

     (6)  Advocate for agency compliance with this chapter;

     (7)  Monitor the enforcement activities of the state and county agencies responsible for the administration of the objectives and policies of this chapter;

     (8)  Prepare an annual report to the governor and legislature, including recommendations for any proposed legislation necessary to ensure agency compliance with the objectives and policies of this chapter and any guidelines enacted by the legislature; and

     (9)  Coordinate the implementation of the sustainable buildings program.

     §   -4  Collecting and entering benchmarking data.  (a)  Each year the owner of each covered property shall collect and enter all data needed to benchmark the entire property for the previous calendar year into the benchmarking tool in a manner that conforms to the latest guidance provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency for use of the benchmarking tool.  Aggregated whole-building data for the property's energy and water use shall be compiled using at least one of the following methods:

     (1)  Obtaining aggregated whole-building data from a utility;

     (2)  Collecting data from all tenants; or

     (3)  Reading a master meter.

     (b)  If the owner of a covered property does not have access to aggregated whole-building data, the owner shall request aggregated whole-building data from each utility that provides energy or water service to the property.  When a utility does not provide aggregated whole-building data, the owner of a covered property shall request tenant energy and water data using a form provided by the office.  Owners may request authorization from tenants for the utility to share their data in an aggregated format with the owner.  Each utility that provides energy or water service to a property shall, upon request, provide aggregated whole-building data to the owner of the property.

     (c)  Each nonresidential tenant located in a covered property shall, within thirty days of a request by the owner, provide all information that cannot otherwise be acquired by the owner and that is needed by the owner to comply with the requirements of this chapter.

     (d)  Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to permit an owner to disclose or use tenant energy usage data for any purpose except compliance with the requirements of this chapter, nor shall the reporting requirements of this chapter be construed to excuse owners from compliance with federal or state laws governing direct access to tenant utility data from the responsible utility.

     (e)  If the tenant of a covered property fails to provide information to the owner as provided in this chapter, the owner shall be considered in compliance with the reporting requirements of this chapter with respect to the building if:

     (1)  The owner proves that the owner has requested the tenant to provide the information specified in this section in a format as required by the office; and

     (2)  The owner has used the benchmarking tool for the building using all information otherwise available to the owner.

The office may provide alternate values as established by the office.

     §   -5  Submitting a benchmarking report.  (a)  For every covered property subject to this chapter, the owner shall annually submit to the director an energy and water benchmarking report in an electronic format by means of the benchmarking tool, by the date specified in section    -6.

     (b)  The information included in the benchmarking report shall include the data entered in the benchmarking tool and shared benchmarking information.

     (c)  The owner of each covered property shall enter data into the benchmarking tool such that the energy and water benchmarking report shall be based on an assessment of the aggregated total energy and water consumed by the whole property for the entire calendar year being reported.

     (d)  Before submitting a benchmarking report the owner shall run the data quality checker functions available within the benchmarking tool and verify that all data has been accurately entered into the tool.  In order for the benchmarking report to be considered in compliance with this chapter, the owner shall correct all missing or incorrect information as identified by the data quality checker before submitting the benchmarking report to the director.

     (e)  Once the owner learns that any information reported as part of the submission of the benchmarking report is inaccurate or incomplete, the owner shall amend the information reported within the benchmarking tool and provide the office with an updated benchmarking report within thirty days of learning of the inaccuracy.

     §   -6  Benchmarking schedule.  (a)  The owner of a covered property shall ensure that a benchmarking report for that property is generated, completed, and submitted to the office annually in accordance with the schedules and deadlines specified in this chapter.

     (b)  The initial benchmarking reports for each covered property shall be filed in accordance with subsection (e).  Subsequent benchmarking reports for each covered property shall be due by June 1 of each year thereafter.

     (c)  Beginning no later than December 1, 2025, and every year thereafter, the office shall make available on a publicly accessible website an annual report on the results of the benchmarking reports received.  The report shall include a summary of energy and water consumption statistics, and an assessment of compliance rates, accuracy and issues affecting accuracy, changes across the portfolio over time, trends observed, and other information as determined by the director.

     (d)  The office shall make a covered property's data transparency information available to the public beginning the year after the covered property is first required to submit a benchmarking report in accordance with the schedule in the following table.  Subsequent data transparency information shall be made public each year thereafter.

     (e)  The initial reporting deadline shall be December 31, 2024, and initial transparency year shall be 2025.

     §   -7  Benchmarking exemptions.  (a)  The owner of a covered property shall be exempt from the requirements of section    -5 if the owner submits documentation to the office, in such a form and with such certifications as required by the office, establishing that the covered property met at least one of the following conditions for the calendar year to be benchmarked:

     (1)  The property did not have a certificate of occupancy or temporary certificate of occupancy for that full calendar year;

     (2)  The property had a physical occupancy rate of less than fifty per cent over at least ten months of that calendar year;

     (3)  The property was in foreclosure;

     (4)  A demolition permit for the entire property was issued during that year; provided that demolition work commenced, and legal occupancy was no longer possible, prior to the end of that year; or

     (5)  The property or building is solely occupied by the owner of the property and:

          (A)  Is not offered for lease, rental, or similar commercial arrangement to any person or entity; or

          (B)  The only persons or entities permitted to lease or rent the buildings have the same owner as the owner of the property; provided that the owner shall certify to the office that the exception under this subparagraph applies.

     (b)  The covered property's data transparency information shall not be publicly available for the reporting year if the owner submits documentation to the office, in such a form and with such certifications as required by the office, establishing that, due to special circumstances unique to the property, strict compliance with the provisions of this chapter would not be in the public interest.

     (c)  Any owner requesting an exemption pursuant to subsection (a) or (b) shall, by March 1 in the year for which the exemption is being requested, submit to the office any documentation reasonably necessary to substantiate the request or otherwise assist the office in the exemption determination.  Any exemption granted shall be limited to the submission of a benchmarking report or the public disclosure of data transparency information for which the request was made and shall not extend to past or future submittals.

     §   -8  Maintenance of records.  (a)  Owners shall maintain records as the office determines is necessary for carrying out the purposes of this chapter, including but not limited to the energy and water bills and reports or forms received from tenants or utilities.  The records shall be preserved for a period of three years.  At the request of the office, the records shall be made available for inspection by the office.

     (b)  When a covered property is sold, the records and online benchmarking tool records shall be transferred to the new property owner, if the new property owner is another state or county agency.

     (c)  The office shall reserve the right to review records as the office deems necessary to evaluate the efficacy of this chapter.  Records shall be provided to the director upon request.

     §   -9  Compliance.  (a)  All state and county agencies shall ensure that their rules comply with the objectives and policies of this chapter and any guidelines enacted by the legislature.

     §   -10  Rules.  The office may adopt rules in accordance with chapter 91 to carry out the purposes of this chapter."

     SECTION 3.  Section 225M-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:

     "(b)  The office of planning and sustainable development shall gather, analyze, and provide information to the governor, the legislature, and state and county agencies to assist in the overall analysis and formulation of state policies and strategies to provide central direction and cohesion in the allocation of resources and effectuation of state activities and programs and effectively address current or emerging issues and opportunities.  More specifically, the office shall engage in the following activities:

     (1)  State comprehensive planning and program coordination.  Formulating and articulating comprehensive statewide goals, objectives, policies, and priorities, and coordinating their implementation through the statewide planning system established in part II of chapter 226;

     (2)  Strategic planning.  Identifying and analyzing significant issues, problems, and opportunities confronting the State, and formulating strategies and alternative courses of action in response to identified problems and opportunities by:

          (A)  Providing in-depth policy research, analysis, and recommendations on existing or potential areas of critical state concern;

          (B)  Examining and evaluating the effectiveness of state programs in implementing state policies and priorities;

          (C)  Monitoring current social, economic, and physical conditions and trends through surveys, environmental scanning, and other techniques; and

          (D)  Developing, in collaboration with affected public or private agencies and organizations, implementation plans and schedules and, where appropriate, assisting in the mobilization of resources to meet identified needs;

     (3)  Planning coordination and cooperation.  Facilitating coordinated and cooperative planning and policy development and implementation activities among state agencies and between the state, county, and federal governments, by:

          (A)  Reviewing, assessing, and coordinating, as necessary, major plans, programs, projects, and regulatory activities existing or proposed by state and county agencies;

          (B)  Formulating mechanisms to simplify, streamline, or coordinate interagency development and regulatory processes; and

          (C)  Recognizing the presence of federal defense and security forces and agencies in the State as important state concerns;

     (4)  Statewide planning and geographic information system.  Collecting, integrating, analyzing, maintaining, and disseminating various forms of data and information, including geospatial data and information, to further effective state planning, policy analysis and development, and delivery of government services by:

          (A)  Collecting, assembling, organizing, evaluating, and classifying existing geospatial and non-geospatial data and performing necessary basic research, conversions, and integration to provide a common database for governmental planning and geospatial analyses by state agencies;

          (B)  Planning, coordinating, and maintaining a comprehensive, shared statewide planning and geographic information system and associated geospatial database.  The office shall be the lead agency responsible for coordinating the maintenance of the multi-agency, statewide planning and geographic information system and coordinating, collecting, integrating, and disseminating geospatial data sets that are used to support a variety of state agency applications and other spatial data analyses to enhance decision-making.  The office shall promote and encourage free and open data sharing among and between all government agencies.  To ensure the maintenance of a comprehensive, accurate, up-to-date geospatial data resource that can be drawn upon for decision-making related to essential public policy issues such as land use planning, resource management, homeland security, and the overall health, safety, and well-being of Hawaii's citizens, and to avoid redundant data development efforts, state agencies shall provide to the shared system either their respective geospatial databases or, at a minimum, especially in cases of secure or confidential data sets that cannot be shared or must be restricted, metadata describing existing geospatial data.  In cases where agencies provide restricted data, the office of planning and sustainable development shall ensure the security of that data; and

          (C)  Maintaining a centralized depository of state and national planning references;

     (5)  Land use planning.  Developing and presenting the position of the State in all boundary change petitions and proceedings before the land use commission, and assisting state agencies in the development and submittal of petitions for land use district boundary amendments, and conducting reviews of the classification and districting of all lands in the State, as specified in chapter 205;

     (6)  Coastal and ocean policy management, and sea level rise adaptation coordination.  Carrying out the lead agency responsibilities for the Hawaii coastal zone management program, as specified in chapter 205A.  Also:

          (A)  Developing and maintaining an ocean and coastal resources information, planning, and management system;

          (B)  Further developing and coordinating implementation of the ocean resources management plan;

          (C)  Formulating ocean policies with respect to the exclusive economic zone, coral reefs, and national marine sanctuaries; and

          (D)  Coordinating sea level rise adaptation with state agencies having operational responsibilities over state facilities to identify existing and planned facilities, including critical infrastructure, that are vulnerable to sea level rise, flooding impacts, and natural hazards;

     (7)  Sustainable buildings policy.  Carrying out the responsibilities for the sustainable buildings program, as specified in chapter    ;

    [(7)] (8)  Regional planning and studies.  Conducting plans and studies to determine:

          (A)  The capability of various regions within the State to support projected increases in both resident populations and visitors;

          (B)  The potential physical, social, economic, and environmental impact on these regions resulting from increases in both resident populations and visitors;

          (C)  The maximum annual visitor carrying capacity for the State by region, county, and island; and

          (D)  The appropriate guidance and management of selected regions and areas of statewide critical concern.

          The studies in subparagraphs (A) to (C) shall be conducted at appropriate intervals, but not less than once every five years;

    [(8)] (9)  Regional, national, and international planning.  Participating in and ensuring that state plans, policies, and objectives are consistent, to the extent practicable, with regional, national, and international planning efforts;

    [(9)] (10)  Climate adaptation and sustainability planning and coordination.  Conducting plans and studies and preparing reports as follows:

          (A)  Develop, monitor, and evaluate strategic climate adaptation plans and actionable policy recommendations for the State and counties addressing expected statewide climate change impacts identified under chapter 225P and sections 226-108 and 226-109; and

          (B)  Provide planning and policy guidance and assistance to state and county agencies regarding climate change and sustainability;

   [(10)] (11)  Smart growth and transit-oriented development.  Acting as the lead agency to coordinate and advance smart growth and transit-oriented development planning within the State as follows:

          (A)  Identify transit-oriented development opportunities shared between state and county agencies, including relevant initiatives such as the department of health's healthy Hawaii initiative and the Hawaii clean energy initiative;

          (B)  Refine the definition of "transit-oriented development" in the context of Hawaii, while recognizing the potential for smart growth development patterns in all locations;

          (C)  Clarify state goals for transit-oriented development and smart growth that support the principles of the Hawaii State Planning Act by preserving non-urbanized land, improving worker access to jobs, and reducing fuel consumption;

          (D)  Target transit-oriented development areas for significant increase in affordable housing and rental units;

          (E)  Conduct outreach to state agencies to help educate state employees about the ways they can support and benefit from transit-oriented development and the State's smart growth goals;

          (F)  Publicize coordinated state efforts that support smart growth, walkable neighborhoods, and transit-oriented development;

          (G)  Review state land use decision-making processes to identify ways to make transit-oriented development a higher priority and facilitate better and more proactive leadership in creating walkable communities and employment districts, even if transit will only be provided at a later date; and

          (H)  Approve all state agencies' development plans for parcels along the rail transit corridor.  For the purposes of this subparagraph, "development plans" means conceptual land use plans that identify the location and planned uses within a defined area; and

   [(11)] (12)  Environmental review.  Performing duties set forth under chapter 343, serving the governor in an advisory capacity on all matters relating to environmental review, and having such powers delegated by the governor as are necessary to coordinate and, when requested by the governor, direct all state governmental agencies in matters concerning environmental quality control, including:

          (A)  Advising and assisting private industries, government department and agencies, and other persons on the requirements of chapter 343; and

          (B)  Conducting public education programs on environmental quality control;

          provided that the office shall adopt rules in accordance with chapter 91 to implement this paragraph."

     SECTION 4.  There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $           or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2023-2024 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2024-2025 for the sustainable buildings program established by section 2 of this Act.

     The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of business, economic development, and tourism for the purposes of this Act.

     SECTION 5.  If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are severable.

     SECTION 6.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 7.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval; provided that section 4 shall take effect on July 1, 2023.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

 

 


 


 

Report Title:

Buildings; State and Counites; Office of Planning and Sustainable Development; Energy Star; Sustainable Buildings Program; Benchmarking Data; Reporting; Appropriation

 

Description:

Requires state and county agencies to process the aggregated energy and water data of certain properties through the federal Energy Star Portfolio Manager and submit the benchmarking data to the office of planning and sustainable development.  Appropriates funds.

 

 

 

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