Energy Department announces new standards for federal buildings

The Energy Department on Wednesday announced new energy efficiency standards for federal buildings set to take effect in 2023.

The new requirements will mandate all new federal buildings to comply with the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) beginning next April. Any major retrofits to existing federal buildings would also be covered under the updated codes.

The department also announced new proposed energy efficiency standards for residential pool heaters and air conditioners. Combined with the building codes, the federal government estimated the proposals would save more than a net $15 billion over the next three decades and eliminate the equivalent of 14.4 million homes’ carbon emissions.

Similarly, a departmental analysis indicated state-level updates to comply with the latest IECC building codes would save up to $3.24 billion in yearly energy costs. The codes would be optional for state-owned buildings.

The department said the proposals were part of broader Biden administration plans to issue more than 100 appliance and equipment standards by the end of the year, which it estimated would result in an average of over $100 annually per household across the U.S.  The rules are projected to cut emissions equivalent to removing 7.9 million cars from the road over a 30-year period.

The administration has already announced a number of reversals of Trump-era energy efficiency standard rollbacks for consumer products. In December, the administration restored 2013 restrictions on water flow for shower heads.

In January, it reversed a Trump-era rule that exempted quick dishwashers, washing machines and dryers from energy efficiency regulations.

Also in December, the Energy Department proposed a rule that would ban the sale of lightbulbs that fall short of a minimum energy efficiency standard, a move the Trump administration declined to take. The administration is separately seeking to undo another Trump rule exempting certain lightbulbs from efficiency standards.