SF 2706

3rd Engrossment - 85th Legislature (2007 - 2008) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to energy; providing for development and application of building energy
usage performance standards; amending Minnesota Statutes 2006, section
16B.325, as amended; Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 216B.241,
subdivision 1e, by adding a subdivision.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2006, section 16B.325, as amended by Laws 2008,
chapter 179, section 30, is amended to read:

16B.325 SUSTAINABLE BUILDING GUIDELINES.

Subdivision 1.

Development of sustainable building guidelines.

The Department
of Administration and the Department of Commerce, with the assistance of other agencies,
shall develop sustainable building design guidelines for all new state buildings by January
15, 2003, and for all major renovations of state buildings by February 1, 2009. The
primary objectives of these guidelines are to ensure that all new state buildings, and
major renovations of state buildings, initially exceed the state energy code, as established
in Minnesota Rules, chapter 7676, by at least 30 percent.

Subd. 2.

Lowest possible cost; energy conservation.

The guidelines must focus
on achieving the lowest possible lifetime cost for new buildings and major renovations,
and allow for changes in the guidelines that encourage continual energy conservation
improvements in new buildings and major renovations. The guidelines shall define
"major renovations" for purposes of this section. The definition may not allow "major
renovations" to encompass less than 10,000 square feet or to encompass less than the
complete replacement of the mechanical, ventilation, or cooling system of the building or
a section of the building. The design guidelines must establish sustainability guidelines
that include air quality and lighting standards and that create and maintain a healthy
environment and facilitate productivity improvements; specify ways to reduce material
costs; and must consider the long-term operating costs of the building, including the use of
renewable energy sources and distributed electric energy generation that uses a renewable
source or natural gas or a fuel that is as clean or cleaner than natural gas.

Subd. 3.

Development of guidelines; applicability.

In developing the guidelines,
the departments shall use an open process, including providing the opportunity for public
comment. The guidelines established under this section are mandatory for all new
buildings receiving funding from the bond proceeds fund after January 1, 2004, and for all
major renovations receiving funding from the bond proceeds fund after January 1, 2009.

new text begin Subd. 4. new text end

new text begin Revisions. new text end

new text begin The commissioners of administration and commerce shall
review the guidelines periodically and as soon as practicable revise the guidelines to
incorporate performance standards developed under section 216B.241, subdivision 9.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 216B.241, subdivision 1e,
is amended to read:

Subd. 1e.

Applied research and development grants.

new text begin (a) new text end The commissioner
may, by order, approve and make grants for applied research and development projects
of general applicability that identify new technologies or strategies to maximize energy
savings, improve the effectiveness of energy conservation programs, or document
the carbon dioxide reductions from energy conservation programs. When approving
projects, the commissioner shall consider proposals and comments from utilities and
other interested parties. The commissioner may assess up to $3,600,000 annually for the
purposes of this subdivision. The assessments must be deposited in the state treasury
and credited to the energy and conservation account created under subdivision 2a. An
assessment made under this subdivision is not subject to the cap on assessments provided
by section 216B.62, or any other law.

new text begin (b) The commissioner, as part of the assessment authorized under paragraph (a),
shall annually assess and grant up to $500,000 for the purpose of subdivision 9.
new text end

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2007 Supplement, section 216B.241, is amended by adding
a subdivision to read:

new text begin Subd. 9. new text end

new text begin Building performance standards; Sustainable Building 2030. new text end

new text begin (a) The
purpose of this subdivision is to establish cost-effective energy-efficiency performance
standards for new and substantially reconstructed commercial, industrial, and institutional
buildings that can significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions by lowering energy use in
new and substantially reconstructed buildings. For the purposes of this subdivision, the
establishment of these standards may be referred to as Sustainable Building 2030.
new text end

new text begin (b) The commissioner shall contract with the Center for Sustainable Building
Research at the University of Minnesota to coordinate development and implementation
of energy-efficiency performance standards, strategic planning, research, data analysis,
technology transfer, training, and other activities related to the purpose of Sustainable
Building 2030. The commissioner and the Center for Sustainable Building Research
shall, in consultation with utilities, builders, developers, building operators, and experts
in building design and technology, develop a Sustainable Building 2030 implementation
plan that must address, at a minimum, the following issues:
new text end

new text begin (1) training architects to incorporate the performance standards in building design;
new text end

new text begin (2) incorporating the performance standards in utility conservation improvement
programs; and
new text end

new text begin (3) developing procedures for ongoing monitoring of energy use in buildings that
have adopted the performance standards.
new text end

new text begin The plan must be submitted to the chairs and ranking minority members of the senate and
house of representatives committees with primary jurisdiction over energy policy by
July 1, 2009.
new text end

new text begin (c) Sustainable Building 2030 energy-efficiency performance standards must be firm,
quantitative measures of total building energy use and associated carbon dioxide emissions
per square foot for different building types and uses, that allow for accurate determinations
of a building's conformance with a performance standard. The energy-efficiency
performance standards must be updated every three or five years to incorporate all
cost-effective measures. The performance standards must reflect the reductions in carbon
dioxide emissions per square foot resulting from actions taken by utilities to comply
with the renewable energy standards in section 216B.1691. The performance standards
should be designed to achieve reductions equivalent to the following reduction schedule,
measured against energy consumption by an average building in each applicable building
sector in 2003: (1) 60 percent in 2010; (2) 70 percent in 2015; (3) 80 percent in 2020;
and (4) 90 percent in 2025. A performance standard must not be established or increased
absent a conclusive engineering analysis that it is cost-effective based upon established
practices used in evaluating utility conservation improvement programs.
new text end

new text begin (d) The annual amount of the contract with the Center for Sustainable Building
Research is up to $500,000. The Center for Sustainable Building Research shall expend
no more than $150,000 of this amount each year on administration, coordination, and
oversight activities related to Sustainable Building 2030. The balance of contract funds
must be spent for subcontracts with not-for-profit energy organizations, architecture and
engineering firms, and other qualified entities to undertake technical projects and activities
in support of Sustainable Building 2030. The primary work to be accomplished each
year by qualified technical experts under subcontracts is the development and thorough
justification of recommendations for specific energy-efficiency performance standards.
Additional work may include:
new text end

new text begin (1) research, development, and demonstration of new energy-efficiency technologies
and techniques suitable for commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings;
new text end

new text begin (2) analysis and evaluation of practices in building design, construction,
commissioning and operations, and analysis and evaluation of energy use in the
commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors;
new text end

new text begin (3) analysis and evaluation of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of Sustainable
Building 2030 performance standards, conservation improvement programs, and building
energy codes;
new text end

new text begin (4) development and delivery of training programs for architects, engineers,
commissioning agents, technicians, contractors, equipment suppliers, developers, and
others in the building industries; and
new text end

new text begin (5) analyze and evaluate the effect of building operations on energy use.
new text end

new text begin (e) The commissioner shall require utilities to develop and implement conservation
improvement programs that are expressly designed to achieve energy efficiency goals
consistent with the Sustainable Building 2030 performance standards. These programs
must include offerings of design assistance and modeling, financial incentives, and the
verification of the proper installation of energy-efficient design components in new
and substantially reconstructed buildings. A utility making an expenditure under its
conservation improvement program that results in a building meeting the Sustainable
Building 2030 performance standards may claim the energy savings toward its energy
savings goal established in section 216B.241, subdivision 1c.
new text end

new text begin (f) The commissioner shall report to the legislature every three years, beginning
January 15, 2010, on the cost-effectiveness and progress of implementing the Sustainable
Building 2030 performance standards and shall make recommendations on the need to
continue the program as described in this section.
new text end

Sec. 4. new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE.
new text end

new text begin Sections 1 to 3 are effective the day following final enactment.
new text end