Bill bolsters federal building energy efficiency
Reps. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) and Marc Veasey (D-TX) introduced Monday legislation designed to enhance federal building energy efficiency.
The All-of-the-Above Federal Building Energy Conservation Act increases flexibility in energy sources for federal buildings by removing the present ban on fossil fuels use in federal buildings while implementing energy efficiency targets.
“The federal government is the single largest consumer of electricity in the United States,” Carter said. “Unfortunately, current law prohibits common-sense measures to make buildings more efficient and more cost-effective. Our legislation will put in place attainable, realistic targets while providing the flexibility needed to lower energy usage and save taxpayer dollars.”
Under the legislation, federal facility managers would be able to choose the energy mix most effective in meeting efficiency goals while saving taxpayers dollars at the same time. It would also ensure significant renovations to existing facilities achieving 30 percent less energy use than the current requirements, which is in line with the standards for new federal buildings.
“Climate Change is a serious problem, and the federal government needs to do more to address the issue,” Veasey said. “By refocusing our goals, we can reduce emissions through increased efficiency in our nation’s federal buildings. The current mandate applies to major retrofits as well as new federal buildings. However, many agencies do not have the ability to comply with the mandate, which ends up costing the federal government more for their energy bills. This bill works to address this problem by creating stronger energy efficiency standards, which results in fewer emissions, and reduces the financial burden of costly energy bills for the federal government and ultimately the American taxpayer.”
