SF 2706

2nd 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; 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, is amended to read:

16B.325 SUSTAINABLE BUILDING GUIDELINES.

new text begin (a) new text end 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. The primary objectives of these guidelines are to
ensure that all new state buildings initially exceed existing energy code, as established
in Minnesota Rules, chapter 7676, by at least 30 percent. The guidelines must focus
on achieving the lowest possible lifetime cost for new buildings and allow for changes
in the guidelines that encourage continual energy conservation improvements in new
buildings. 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. 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.

new text begin (b) The commissioners of administration and commerce shall review the guidelines
periodically and as soon as practicable revise the guidelines based upon 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 substantially reduce carbon emissions from fossil-fuel energy and
reduce overall energy demand 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 and experts in building design and technology, develop a
Sustainable Building 2030 implementation plan.
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 greenhouse
gas 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 shall be updated every three or five years to
incorporate all cost-effective measures. The performance standards must recognize the
reductions in carbon intensity due to compliance with the renewable energy standards in
section 216B.1691. The performance standards should be designed to achieve reductions
to meet the following reduction schedule: (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 the higher
performance standard would result in cost-effective improvements in building design and
construction. The determination of cost-effectiveness must be 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) analysis and evaluation of 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 policy goal through implementation of the
performance standards. These programs must include offerings of design assistance and
modeling, financial incentives, and the verification of energy-efficient design components
of new and substantially reconstructed buildings. Utilities providing conservation
improvement programs that lead to meeting the 2030 standards may claim the energy
savings as part of their goals for the conservation improvement program.
new text end

new text begin (f) Beginning January 15, 2010, and every third year following, the commissioner
shall report to the legislature on the cost-effectiveness and progress of implementing the
2030 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