300 to 1,800 points | Applicable to All Municipalities
Benchmarking is a policy that a local government adopts that requires the annual reporting of energy used in municipal buildings. In large communities, local governments may require the annual disclosure of energy used in large private buildings.
Benchmarking - Advanced Reporting
300 Points
Submission requirements:
Submit a certified copy of an executed local law, ordinance, or resolution (template legislation can be accessed in the Benchmarking toolkit at www.nyserda.ny.gov/cec) that requires the applying jurisdiction to make available to the public on an annual basis, energy use information for each municipal building that is owned or occupied by the applying jurisdiction and is 1,000 square feet or larger. At a minimum, publicly disclosed energy use information shall include each building’s energy use intensity (EUI), annual greenhouse gas emissions, and an energy performance score where available. Date of completion is when the legislation was adopted. The legislation must require the following.
Create an ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Account
Gather basic information required by Portfolio Manager and set up property profile(s)
Obtain monthly, whole building energy use data for all fuel types including, but not limited to, electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, chilled water, steam, and diesel
Enter property uses and details into profile(s)
Enter energy use data for all fuel types
Generate and review the building’s report in Portfolio Manager
Make available to the public on the internet or other publicly accessible format annual summary statistics for each covered property including Energy Use Intensity (EUI), annual greenhouse gas emissions, and an energy performance score where available
Submit a screenshot of a webpage on the applying jurisdiction's website where a benchmarking report is posted that includes no less than 24-months of energy use information as described above for municipal buildings. If the jurisdiction does not have a website, the jurisdiction must attest that the report is available upon request.
Share your municipality’s Portfolio Manager account with NYSERDA. Add “NYSERDAcec1” contact in your My Contacts. Share with “view all read only access” permissions to the NYSERDAcec1 contact for all buildings and meters in your Portfolio Manager account. Submit a screenshot on the Sharing Tab of your Portfolio Manager account which shows an accepted share request with NYSERDAcec1, or comparable information, stating that NYSERDA has accepted the sharing request. Date of completion is when the sharing request was accepted.
Benchmarking – CEC Energy Study Qualification
No Points Awarded; Free Energy Study
Completing an energy study on your municipal building is the first step to building a solid plan for improving energy efficiency. Municipalities that complete this action will be eligible for a free CEC Energy Study for one municipal building. Prepared by consultants working on NYSERDA's behalf, the CEC Energy Study is a comprehensive, fuel-neutral, unbiased evaluation of all potential cost effective low-cost/no-cost and capital improvement upgrades, as well as potential electrification measures using a standardized calculation methodology pre-approved by NYSERDA. The cost of the study will be paid directly by NYSERDA to the third-party vendor. To complete this action, the applicant must have previously been approved for Benchmarking – Advanced Reporting. Connect with your regional CEC coordinator for assistance with the Share Forward process if necessary. Date of completion is when “Share Forward” abilities were provided to NYSERDA.
Submission requirements:
Enable “Share Forward” abilities to NYSERDA (“NYSERDAcec1”) with all properties in Portfolio Manager and submit a screenshot from Portfolio Manager, or comparable information, stating that NYSERDA has been granted “Share Forward” abilities.
Submit a screenshot of a webpage on the applying jurisdiction's website where a benchmarking report is posted that includes at least the two, most recent full calendar years of data (i.e., 2021 and 2022 if submitting in 2023). If the jurisdiction does not have a website, the jurisdiction must attest that the report is available upon request.
Submit a completed CEC Energy Study Qualification Submission form (accessed in the Benchmarking toolkit at www.nyserda.ny.gov/cec).
Once the action is approved, NYSERDA will provide further instructions and connection with the auditor. Municipalities are encouraged to use their Municipal Building Scorecard to identify a building with the greatest opportunity for energy and cost savings, which would be an ideal candidate for the energy study. NYSERDA reserves the right to reject buildings nominated by the municipality for the CEC Energy Study.
Benchmarking - Large Private Buildings
1,500 Points (applicable to cities, towns, and villages over 40,000 population)
Submission requirements:
Submit a copy of an executed local law or ordinance, (template legislation can be accessed in the Benchmarking Private Buildings toolkit at www.nyserda.ny.gov/cec) as described for Municipal Buildings above, but apply the requirements to the owners of commercial and multifamily buildings that are 25,000 square feet or larger. Date of completion is when the legislation was adopted.
For more information check out this informative webinar hosted by our friends at CCE Delaware!