ProGov21 Policy Library

Electrify Everything! How City Government Can Lead the Way

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2024

Level City or Town

State(s) Vermont

Source Mayors Innovation Project

Policy Areas Energy, Environment & Natural Resources, Transportation & Mobility

Climate change and fossil fuel dependency leave communities vulnerable and compromise public health. Cities should prioritize infrastructure investments and incentivize energy efficiency to ensure long-term sustainability. This case study highlights how one community transitioned...

Exploring Energy Efficiency: A Multi-Sector Survey on Energy Efficiency Tracking Platforms

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2016

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Sustainable Endowments Institute

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Energy

Numerous platforms and tools exist to help organizations across all sectors track, manage, and share the results of their sustainability practices and operational policies to reduce energy use. However, there is little information examining what users prioritize and what platforms...

2016 New York City Local Law 133 Establishing Benchmarking Requirements

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2016

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source New York City Council

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Community Development, Public Spaces, Energy

The NYC Benchmarking Law requires owners of large buildings to annually measure their energy and water consumption in a process called benchmarking. The law standardizes this process by requiring building owners to enter their annual energy and water use in the U.S. Environmental...

Building Energy Codes for a Carbon Constrained Era: A Toolkit of Strategies and Examples

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2017

Level City or Town, State

State(s) All States

Source Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships

Policy Areas Energy, Environment & Natural Resources

Zero energy buildings are energy-efficient buildings that produce as much energy as they consume. This report presents strategies to advance the development and adoption of zero energy building codes in state legislatures. Recommendations include establishing a statewide zero energy...

Expanding Access to Electric Vehicles in California’s Low-Income Communities

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2021

Level State

State(s) California

Source Journal of Science Policy & Governance

Policy Areas Economic Justice, Energy, Transportation & Mobility

Following the 2020 executive order from California to have all new passenger vehicles be zero-emission by 2035, the paper outlines the ways to expand access to electric vehicles (EV) to low-income Californians. For the state to meet its clean energy goals, it must include these communities...

IMT Model Statutory Language for States or Localities to Require Building Benchmarking

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2014

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Institute for Market Transformation

Policy Areas Energy, Public Spaces, Environment & Natural Resources

This model ordinance requires electric and gas utilities to maintain records of the energy consumption data of all nonresidential buildings to which they provide service....

Energy Disclosure & The New Frontier for American Jobs

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2012

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Institute For Market Transformation

Policy Areas Energy, Community Development, Public Spaces, Environment & Natural Resources

We have entered a new era of constrained spending, high unemployment and complex political turmoil, yet the question on everyone's mind is simple: How do we create jobs? Surprisingly, the answer is right in front of us. New laws in New York City, San Francisco and other large cities...

Pathways to 100: An Energy Supply Transformation Primer for U.S. Cities

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2017

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Meister Consultants Group

Policy Areas Energy, Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

Pathways to 100 provides a high-level map of pathways for municipalities seeking to transform their energy supply, outlining strategies for both municipal operations and for all energy users within municipal limits. The document is organized around a three-step process that cities...

Solar Power in Your Community

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2022

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source U.S. Department of Energy

Policy Areas Energy, Environment & Natural Resources

This report examines how local governments can promote solar energy development and usage. Recommended strategies include organizing local solar efforts, making solar infrastructure more affordable and accessible, developing workforce training programs, and facilitating the installment...

2018 New York City Ordinance 32 Requiring Energy Efficiency Requirement Improvements

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2018

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source City of New York

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Economic Justice, Energy, Environment & Natural Resources

This ordinance requires the city commissioner to regularly submit proposed amendments to the city's energy code to improve energy efficiency. The proposed amendments should bring the city's code up to date with recommendations from the New York State energy research and development...

2008 King County Ordinance 16147 Green Buildings

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2008

Level County

State(s) Washington

Source King County Council

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Energy

This ordinance requires that all capital projects enacted or funded by the county adhere to sustainable development and building practices. It establishes functional definitions of these projects and their core components and develops a clear and flexible justification for such policy....

Energy Codes are Life Safety Codes

Type Fact Sheet or Infographic

Year -

Level State

State(s) All States

Source Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships

Policy Areas Energy, Environment & Natural Resources, Health, Housing, Public Safety

Energy codes help manage conditions that can affect building integrity and occupant health such as moisture, temperature, and indoor air quality. This infographic highlights the ways in which adherence to energy codes ensures safe and healthy occupants, on top of mitigating climate...

2009 San Antonio Ordinance 0179 Establishing Green Energy Building Standards

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2009

Level City or Town

State(s) Texas

Source San Antonio City Council

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Community Development, Energy, Housing, Public Safety, Data & Technology

This ordinance regulates the design and construction of new buildings and building additions for energy efficiency and incorporates recommendations of the Mayor's Sustainable Building Task Force that aim to achieve energy savings and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The ordinance...

2019 San Francisco Ordinance 74-19 Benchmarking Energy Usage

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2019

Level City or Town, County

State(s) California

Source City and County of San Francisco

Policy Areas Data & Technology, Energy

The ordinance requires owners of certain residential and non-residential buildings to track and report their energy usage to San Francisco's Department of the Environment. In turn, the Department of the Environment will make this data available to the public. ...

Benchmarking and Energy Savings Guide

Type Fact Sheet or Infographic

Year 2012

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Energy Star

Policy Areas Energy, Community Development, Public Spaces, Environment & Natural Resources

This fact sheet documents the energy-saving of buildings that consistently benchmark energy performance, with increased efficiency across all building types that track performance. It estimates that 18 million metric tons of CO2 could be reduced annually through consistent performance...

Zero Energy Schools Toolkit

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2020

Level School District, State

State(s) All States

Source Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships

Policy Areas Education, Energy, Finance & Procurement

A zero energy school is a low-energy, combustion-free building that sources all of its annual energy from renewable energy sources. This toolkit describes the educational, health, and environmental benefits of zero energy schools; outlines the process of building or renovating a zero...

Rating Systems vs. “Stretch” Building Energy Codes: Maximizing Energy Efficiency Through Building Standards

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2012

Level State

State(s) Massachusetts

Source Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships

Policy Areas Energy, Environment & Natural Resources

To achieve greater energy efficiency, states should adopt "stretch" energy codes to supplement their base building energy codes. This report explores "stretch" energy codes, outlines the difficulties in enforcing building rating systems as code, and describes how Massachusetts was...

Procurement Roadmap

Type Roadmap

Year 2021

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source ProGov21

Policy Areas Finance & Procurement

All counties, cities, and towns spend money purchasing goods and services; local governments can establish policies to use this spending, or procurement, to encourage certain business practices. ProGov21's updated Procurement Roadmap provides information and resources that aid local...

RECONNECTING FORT WAYNE: Infrastructure Energy Efficiency

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2008

Level City or Town, County

State(s) Indiana

Source Center for Neighborhood Technology

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Energy, Transportation & Mobility

This report outlines the challenges facing Fort Wayne's Energy system. It outlines evidence-based recommendations to establish a large-scale energy efficiency program; including an inventory of existing program delivery capacity, benchmarking and data analysis, working with stakeholders...

Metro Boston Regional Climate Change Adaptation Strategy Report

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2014

Level City or Town, State, National

State(s) All States

Source Tellus Institute

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Health

This report outlines a series of strategies that can be used to reduce the impacts of climate change through risk management in the Metro-Boston region. It provides recommendations in five major sectors (built environment and key infrastructure, coastal zone, natural resources and...

Pay While You Save Utility-Bill: Financing for Energy-Efficiency Improvements

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2012

Level City or Town, City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source Policy Matters Ohio

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Energy

There are numerous barriers to the energy efficiency market. On-bill financing programs, via the electric and/or gas utility bill, address some of the barriers and help make efficiency easy. Savings from efficiency measures offset the costs of improvements, so consumers pay while...

Net Zero Energy Roadmap for the City of Burlington, Vermont

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2019

Level City or Town

State(s) Vermont

Source City of Burlington, Vermont

Policy Areas Community Development, Energy, Transportation & Mobility

Pollution and energy inefficiency are exacerbating the global climate crisis, but cities can pass local policies to address these issues. The City of Burlington, Vermont launched the net-zero-energy program in 2018 to eliminate fossil fuel use by the ground transportation and heating...

Paying For Water Systems

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2019

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Mayors Innovation Project

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Finance & Procurement

Many public water utilities struggle to pay for repairs and upgrades necessary to improve energy efficiency, reduce leaks, and prevent infiltration. This brief outlines existing mechanisms to raise these funds as well as promising new methods for public officials to consider. Some...

2009 New York City Local Law 88 Energy Efficient Utilities

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2009

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source New York City Council

Policy Areas Public Spaces, Energy

This ordinance requires lighting systems to be upgraded and sub-meters to be installed in certain covered buildings based on square footage. It also requires that each tenant or subtenant within a covered tenant space that has a sub-meter to measure electrical consumption shall be...

Demanding Better Energy Information: Cities address market failure for energy upgrades

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2012

Level City or Town, City or Town

State(s) Ohio

Source Policy Matters Ohio

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Economic Justice, Energy, Democracy & Governance

This report emphasizes the importance of providing better energy information to renters, buyers, owners, and operators of buildings. By arming them with this information, they can make more informed choices, differentiate between properties, and determine whether energy upgrades are...

ProGov21 Policy Library

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