I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3820 
To encourage benchmarking and disclosure of energy information for 
commercial buildings. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 8, 2014 
Ms. CASTOR of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To encourage benchmarking and disclosure of energy 
information for commercial buildings. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. ENERGY INFORMATION FOR COMMERCIAL 
BUILDINGS. 
(a) REQUIREMENT OF BENCHMARKING AND DISCLO-
SURE FOR LEASING BUILDINGS WITHOUT ENERGY STAR 
LABELS.—Section 435(b)(2) of the Energy Independence 
and Security Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17091(b)(2)) is 
amended— 
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(1) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and inserting 
‘‘paragraph (1)’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘signing the contract,’’ and all 
that follows through the period at the end and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘signing the contract, the following requirements are 
met: 
‘‘(A) The space is renovated for all energy 
efficiency and conservation improvements that 
would be cost effective over the life of the lease, 
including improvements in lighting, windows, 
and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning 
systems. 
‘‘(B)(i) Subject to clause (ii), the space is 
benchmarked under a nationally recognized, on-
line, free benchmarking program, with public 
disclosure, unless the space is a space for which 
owners cannot access whole building utility con-
sumption data, including spaces— 
‘‘(I) that are located in States with 
privacy laws that provide that utilities shall 
not provide such aggregated information to 
multitenant building owners; and 
‘‘(II) for which tenants do not provide 
energy consumption information to the 
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commercial building owner in response to a 
request from the building owner. 
‘‘(ii) A Federal agency that is a tenant of 
the space shall provide to the building owner, or 
authorize the owner to obtain from the utility, 
the energy consumption information of the 
space for the benchmarking and disclosure re-
quired by this subparagraph.’’. 
(b) DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY STUDY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
shall complete a study, with opportunity for public 
comment— 
(A) on the impact of— 
(i) 
State 
and 
local 
performance 
benchmarking and disclosure policies, and 
any associated building efficiency policies, 
for commercial and multifamily buildings; 
and 
(ii) programs and systems in which 
utilities provide aggregated information re-
garding whole building energy consumption 
and usage information to owners of multi-
tenant commercial, residential, and mixed- 
use buildings; 
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(B) that identifies best practice policy ap-
proaches studied under subparagraph (A) that 
have resulted in the greatest improvements in 
building energy efficiency; and 
(C) that considers— 
(i) compliance rates and the benefits 
and costs of the policies and programs on 
building owners, utilities, tenants, and 
other parties; 
(ii) utility practices, programs, and 
systems that provide aggregated energy 
consumption information to multitenant 
building owners, and the impact of public 
utility commissions and State privacy laws 
on those practices, programs, and systems; 
(iii) exceptions to compliance in exist-
ing laws where building owners are not 
able to gather or access whole building en-
ergy information from tenants or utilities; 
(iv) the treatment of buildings with— 
(I) multiple uses; 
(II) uses for which baseline infor-
mation is not available; and 
(III) uses that require high levels 
of energy intensities, such as data 
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centers, trading floors, and televisions 
studios; 
(v) implementation practices, includ-
ing disclosure methods and phase-in of 
compliance; 
(vi) 
the 
safety 
and 
security 
of 
benchmarking tools offered by government 
agencies, and the resiliency of those tools 
against cyber-attacks; and 
(vii) international experiences with re-
gard to building benchmarking and disclo-
sure laws and data aggregation for multi-
tenant buildings. 
(2) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—At the conclu-
sion of the study, the Secretary shall submit to Con-
gress a report on the results of the study. 
(c) CREATION AND MAINTENANCE OF DATABASES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 
after the date of enactment of this Act and following 
opportunity for public notice and comment, the Sec-
retary, in coordination with other relevant agencies 
shall, to carry out the purpose described in para-
graph (2)— 
(A) assess existing databases; and 
(B) as necessary— 
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(i) modify and maintain existing data-
bases; or 
(ii) create and maintain a new data-
base platform. 
(2) PURPOSE.—The maintenance of existing 
databases or creation of a new database platform 
under paragraph (1) shall be for the purpose of stor-
ing and making available public energy-related infor-
mation on commercial and multifamily buildings, in-
cluding— 
(A) data provided under Federal, State, 
local, and other laws or programs regarding 
building benchmarking and energy information 
disclosure; 
(B) buildings that have received energy 
ratings and certifications; and 
(C) energy-related information on buildings 
provided voluntarily by the owners of the build-
ings, in an anonymous form, unless the owner 
provides otherwise. 
(d) COMPETITIVE AWARDS.—Based on the results of 
the research for the portion of the study described in sub-
section (b)(1)(A)(ii), and with criteria developed following 
public notice and comment, the Secretary may make com-
petitive awards to utilities, utility regulators, and utility 
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partners to develop and implement effective and promising 
programs to provide aggregated whole building energy 
consumption information to multitenant building owners. 
(e) INPUT FROM STAKEHOLDERS.—The Secretary 
shall seek input from stakeholders to maximize the effec-
tiveness of the actions taken under this section. 
(f) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter, 
the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the 
progress made in complying with this section. 
(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection (b) 
$2,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2018, 
to remain available until expended. 
Æ 
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