On Thursday December 12, 2024 the Department of Commerce hosted it’s final meeting on the Tier 2 Early Adopter Incentive Program Guidebook Draft: https://deptofcommerce.app.box.com/s/buo2jivl40z6sw68h2ksgqq8ukfxzsdx
Eligible Buildings
To be eligible for the Tier 2 Early Adopter Incentive Program, it must:
- Be a Tier 2 covered building.
- Be served by at least one participating electric utility, gas company, or thermal energy company in the Clean Buildings Tier 2 Early Adopter Incentive Program.
- Meet the Tier 2 compliance requirements: 1) Benchmarking, 2) Operations & Maintenance Program, 3) Energy Management Plan
Incentive Program details:
Basic Eligibility Requirements – Eligible building owners may receive an incentive payment of up to $0.30/square foot of gross floor area, excluding parking, unconditioned, or semi-conditioned spaces.
Enhanced Incentive Terms – To promote equity and inclusion efforts consistent with the HEAL Act and Justice40 Initiative, the Tier 2 Early Adopter Incentive Program will reserve $100 million of the $150 million for buildings that fall within equity-based criteria. This will allow an enhanced incentive payment of up to $0.75/square foot for qualifying buildings.
Enhanced Incentive Eligibility – Buildings that fall under any of the following criteria are eligible for enhanced incentive funding:
- Buildings located in rural, overburdened or vulnerable communities.
- Multifamily affordable housing.
- Building owners committed to anti-displacement provisions for residential and/or small business tenants.
Buildings are eligible for Tier 2 incentives regardless of where their EUIs are in relation to their targets, so long as the building has been benchmarked and has an energy management plan and operation & maintenance program developed.
Benchmarking:
Create an Energy Star Portfolio Manager account. Then, establish your building’s normal energy use and identify your EUiT target. (Tier 2 is not required to meet an energy target at this time.) Determining your EUI will establish “benchmarking compliance.”
EUI (Energy Use Intensity) is a calculated value (energy/per square foot per year) that is based on measured energy use.
Use the target table link below to look up your building use type:
https://deptofcommerce.app.box.com/s/55449x2gj1ecynad8tmwt1nqkcpd0bz5 (See page 3 for schools.)
Participating utilities that serve over 25K customers must participate in the program (and those under can opt into the program). Commerce is working on a list of participating utility companies.
What can the incentive be used for?
The incentive is intended to help lessen the burden of the cost to comply with the administrative reporting as well as any costs incurred for energy efficiency measures and encouraging energy savings. But the incentive spending is up to the discretion of the building owner receipient.
Penalties for not meeting Tier 2 compliance:
Commerce is authorized to impose administrative penalties upon building owners who fail to submit documentation demonstrating compliance by the scheduled reporting date. Non-compliance will result in progressive penalties by legal notice. Assessment of penalties for non-compliance cannot exceed $0.30 per square foot.
Submit Comment or Feedback before January 31, 2025:
Please use the Comment or Feedback form or send an email to derek.cockle@commerce.wa.gov or cleanbuidlingsincentiveprogram@commerce.wa.gov.