Los Angeles EBEWE (not quite BPS)

Technically not a Building Performance Standard (BPS), the city of Los Angeles, California has requirements beyond a simple compliance benchmark that owners and operators should be aware of and prepared to solve for.  Since 2017, Los Angeles has had the Existing Buildings Energy and Water Efficiency (EBEWE) Program, that requires existing buildings to benchmark annually and perform Audits and Retro-Commissioning every five years. Building owners must benchmark energy and water usage at the building level annually using ESPM. Additionally, every five years, the energy and water systems in the building must be performed and retro-commissioning (repairs or improvements) must be made if the audit shows the building is not up to standard.

It is important to note that Los Angeles also has indicated that it will have a BPS policy that is different from the EBEWE program. Buildings may be subject to both! The details on Los Angeles BPS have not been released at this time but owners and operators should still be improving their buildings on EBEWE.

What will the impact be?

L.A. has a target of a zero carbon grid, zero carbon transportation, zero carbon buildings, zero waste, and zero wasted water by 2050. The target for all existing buildings is to decrease whole building energy use per square foot by 44% by 2050. 

Who is affected by this policy?

EBEWE: This ordinance affects buildings 20,000 square feet or larger, including Multifamily.

What are the requirements?

EBEWE:

Benchmarking: Benchmarking requires a registration fee and whole building energy and water usage to be benchmarked in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager (ESPM) annually by June 1st. Indoor and outdoor water usage, electrical usage, natural gas usage, and energy generated by onsite solar panels must all be reported.   It is important to reiterate that this reporting is to be at the building level.  If a utility meter is shared between buildings, then a campus set up in ESPM can be used for the benchmark, provided that the property is eligible for the setup..  The benchmark must be filed using the Building Identification Number (BIN)  provided by the City.  The BIN number will be located in your notification to comply letter.  If you do not have your letter, you can look up the BIN on the City of Los Angeles portal https://lacitydbs.org/buildinginfo

Audits and Retro-Commissioning (A/RCx): This second part of the ordinance is required every 5 years. It requires paying the necessary fees and submitting the Energy and Water Declarations of Completion or Exemption. The schedule for which buildings require an audit which year is based on the last digit of the buildings’ BIN number as per the audit schedule below from the LADBS EBEWE Audits & Retro-Commissioning FAQs (Rev 06/28/2024)

A qualified California Licensed Architect and Engineer must conduct an audit.  Although the city does not maintain a list of qualified auditors, it is recommended that you confirm the license is active prior to contracting with them for the audit..   The scope of the audit is consistent with an ASHRAE Level II audit with retro commissioning.  The scope of which includes the auditor evaluating the building and its systems (Water and Energy) along with the consumptive data to demonstrate what water and energy is being used by what areas or system.  For example, based on the total hours of operations, the lighting schedule and type of fixtures, the auditor can calculate the kWh and/or % of total energy consumption that is attributable to this system.  The auditor can then extrapolate % of energy saved due to a modification of this system (either runtime schedule or fixture upgrade.)  Once that is determined, the building operator must make the appropriate adjustments. The auditor returns to the site to verify that the changes have been made prior to submitting the report December 1st.  The building audit requirement of EBEWE is time consuming and can involve considerable financial investment depending on various factors.  Additionally since this requirement is at the building level, the cost can quickly add up.  For example, if an audit cost is $10,000 but the property has four buildings, the owner can anticipate paying a total of $40,000 for the audits.  

Penalties

EBEWE:

Benchmarking: SEC. 91.9712 of the EBEWE ordinance puts the non-compliance fee at $202. This fee may be subject to Late fees, Collection fees and interest as defined in LAMC SEC. 98.0411. “Pursuant to L.A.M.C. Section 98.0411 (c), if this invoice is NOT PAID within 30 days of the date of the invoice, an additional 250% late charge/collection fee will be imposed and assignment to a collection agency may be made. After 60 DAYS of NO PAYMENT, interest will accrue at the rate of 12% annually (compounded monthly or portion of a month) until this invoice and any additional charges that have accrued since this invoice was issued have been paid.” It is considerable to note that payment of the non-compliance fee does not cause Compliance. The building will remain out of compliance with the City of Los Angeles and, as with any Los Angeles Municipal Code violation, will be subject to further legal action. Additionally, the status of each building (Complied or Not Complied) is posted publicly and, in the future, may be recorded on the property as an open violation.

Audits and Retro-Commissioning (A/RCx): same as for non–compliance with the benchmarking requirement.  Although the fines may not seem onerous, the legal actions and public display of non compliance can affect other aspects of the owner/operators ability to conduct operations, maintain loan compliance and pursue future developments within the city of Los Angeles.    

Do I have other options?

EBEWE: Exemptions for specific reasons may be requested to the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) such as renovation or demolition. Additionally if the building is eligible for an energy star certification and obtains the certification, provided that the certification occurs in the compliance year for the audit, the certification may exempt the building from the audit requirement.

Can I get help?

GreenT Climate Software now offers our comprehensive Compliance Management Solution that combines both performance data and metrics, with BPS/Benchmarking regulation to provide complete visibility into the portfolio exposure and financial risk down to the building level. For details, please contact us