Guest Highlight State Updates by Councilwoman Mary Cheh
The bill will also annually increase the renewable energy portfolio standard, such that, by 2020, 20% of the District’s energy will be from renewable sources. Additionally, the legislation requires that the energy use of all buildings owned or operated by the District, as well as privately owned buildings greater than 50,000 square feet, must be measured annually using the Energy Star Portfolio Manager benchmarking tool, and the results will be made available to the public. The bill also provides measures for submetering nonresidential buildings, so commercial tenants pay for the energy they use, rather than paying according to a metric based on square footage. I sponsored this legislation because the creation of the SEU and the other measures in the bill will deliver comprehensive end-user energy efficiency and customer-sited renewable energy services to households and businesses in the District. This is the most effective way to reduce the increasing costs of residential and commercial energy, and will also provide long-term environmental benefits by decreasing the District’s emissions of greenhouse gases. |
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The Council of the District of Columbia recently passed the Clean and Affordable Energy Act of 2008, which will authorize a privately contracted Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU) to administer sustainable energy programs in the District of Columbia. The main goals of the SEU include reducing per-capita energy consumption and improving the energy efficiency of low-income housing through the use of demand-side management programs. The SEU will also increase renewable energy generation and create green-collar jobs. The SEU will be overseen by a board with diverse representation by many stakeholders, from the environmental and low-income communities to electric utilities and the renewable energy industry.