The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced new building energy code requirements for federal buildings that will save taxpayer dollars.
Beginning in April 2023, all new buildings and major retrofits constructed by the Federal government must comply with the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) and the 2019 American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers Standard 90.1 building energy codes. DOE estimates that this measure will save $4.2 million dollars in operating costs within the first year of implementation.
A recent DOE analysis found implementation of the latest IECC building energy codes by states would result in $3.24 billion in annual energy cost savings for consumers. Residential buildings, including those constructed by the Federal government, meeting the 2021 IECC, as compared with buildings meeting the 2018 IECC, would result in national site-energy savings of approximately 9 percent, source-energy savings of nearly 9 percent, and energy-cost savings of more than 8 percent.
Dan Hounsell is senior editor, facility group.
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