Did you know that the City of St. Louis was just the fourth jurisdiction in the United States to pass a Building Energy Performance Standard – and the first in the Midwest? We’re so proud to have played a role in getting both the benchmarking & Building Energy Performance Standard policies across the finish line. We’re even prouder to see the City of St. Louis leading the way in the fight against climate change. Policies like the City’s benchmarking requirements and the Building Energy Performance Standard make St. Louis’ existing buildings heroes in the fight against air pollution and climate change.
The Building Energy Performance Standard (BEPS) was approved by the Board of Aldermen unanimously in April of 2020. Since then the City of St. Louis Building Division’s Office of Building Performance has been hard at work setting the standards, notifying building owners, and working with many partners (like Missouri Gateway GBC and the Building Energy Exchange – St. Louis) to educate owners about the policy and provide resources for improving building performance. The Office of Building Performance rolled out their BEPS Handbook in the fall of 2022. It includes everything you need to know to comply with BEPS. Check it out!
Buildings in the City that are 50,000 square feet and greater have to comply with both benchmarking and BEPS. This includes all commercial, institutional, multi-family and municipal buildings. They have to meet a site Energy Use Intensity (EUI) specific to their building type and based on local benchmarking data. Most buildings have until May 4, 2025 to meet the standard (with 2024 calendar year data). Affordable housing and houses of worship have until May 4 of 2027 to meet the standard (with 2026 calendar year data).
Since St. Louis passed BEPS, others are following. In fact, the Biden-Harris administration launched a national Building Performance Standard Coalition at the beginning of 2022 that St. Louis is part of – along with nearly 40 other jurisdictions. By participating in this coalition, cities and states have agreed to work towards adopting a Building Performance Standard by Earth Day 2024!
Stay tuned for a full year of building performance programming in 2023 from our partners at the Building Energy Exchange St. Louis – to help building owners across the region improve building performance, save money and improve the places that we live, work and learn!