Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB479 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	sb0479
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 479
8	8	M3, M5 5lr2778
9	9	CF 5lr1171
10	10	By: Senators Gallion, Bailey, Jennings, Carozza, Folden, Hershey, and Ready
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 22, 2025
12	12	Assigned to: Education, Energy, and the Environment
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Building Energy Performance Standards – Public Safety, Emergency, and 2
19	19	Public Utility Buildings – Exclusion 3
20	20
21	21	FOR the purpose of altering the definition of “covered building” for purposes of certain 4
22	22	building energy performance standards to exclude certain public safety, emergency, 5
23	23	and public utility buildings; and generally relating to building energy performance 6
24	24	standards and covered buildings. 7
25	25
26	26	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 8
27	27	Article – Environment 9
28	28	Section 2–1601(a) and (f) and 2–1602 10
29	29	Annotated Code of Maryland 11
30	30	(2013 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 12
31	31
32	32	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 13
33	33	Article – Environment 14
34	34	Section 2–1601(e) 15
35	35	Annotated Code of Maryland 16
36	36	(2013 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 17
37	37
38	38	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 18
39	39	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 19
40	40
41	41	Article – Environment 20
42	42
43	43	2–1601. 21
44	44
45	45	(a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. 22
46	46
47	47	(e) (1) “Covered building” means a building that: 23
48	48	2 SENATE BILL 479
49	49
50	50
51	51	(i) 1. Is a commercial or multifamily residential building in the 1
52	52	State; or 2
53	53
54	54	2. Is owned by the State; and 3
55	55
56	56	(ii) Has a gross floor area of 35,000 square feet or more, excluding 4
57	57	the parking garage area. 5
58	58
59	59	(2) “Covered building” does not include: 6
60	60
61	61	(i) A building designated as a historic property under federal, State, 7
62	62	or local law; 8
63	63
64	64	(ii) A public or nonpublic elementary or secondary school building; 9
65	65
66	66	(iii) A manufacturing building; [or] 10
67	67
68	68	(iv) An agricultural building; 11
69	69
70	70	(V) A PUBLIC BUILDING DESI GNATED BY ANY UNIT O F 12
71	71	FEDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL GOVERNMENT FOR: 13
72	72
73	73	1. PUBLIC SAFETY PURPOSE S; OR 14
74	74
75	75	2. USE AS AN EMERGE NCY STORM SHELTER ; OR 15
76	76
77	77	(VI) A PUBLIC UTILITY BUILD ING. 16
78	78
79	79	(f) “Direct greenhouse gas emissions” means greenhouse gas emissions produced 17
80	80	on–site by covered buildings. 18
81	81
82	82	2–1602. 19
83	83
84	84	(a) The Department shall develop building energy performance standards for 20
85	85	covered buildings that achieve: 21
86	86
87	87	(1) A 20% reduction in net direct greenhouse gas emissions on or before 22
88	88	January 1, 2030, as compared with 2025 levels for average buildings of similar construction; 23
89	89	and 24
90	90
91	91	(2) Net–zero direct greenhouse gas emissions on or before January 1, 2040. 25
92	92
93	93	(b) To facilitate the development of building energy performance standards under 26
94	94	this section, the Department shall require the owners of covered buildings to measure and 27
95	95	report direct emissions data to the Department annually beginning in 2025. 28
96	96	SENATE BILL 479 3
97	97
98	98
99	99	(c) (1) On or before June 1, 2023, the Department shall adopt regulations to 1
100	100	implement this section. 2
101	101
102	102	(2) Regulations adopted under this section shall: 3
103	103
104	104	(i) Subject to items (ii) and (iii) of this paragraph, include energy 4
105	105	use intensity targets by building type; 5
106	106
107	107	(ii) As necessary, include special provisions or exceptions to account 6
108	108	for: 7
109	109
110	110	1. Building age; 8
111	111
112	112	2. Regional differences; 9
113	113
114	114	3. The unique needs of particular building or occupancy 10
115	115	types, including health care facilities, laboratories, assisted living and nursing facilities, 11
116	116	military buildings, critical infrastructure, and buildings used in life sciences as defined in 12
117	117	§ 3–201 of the Economic Development Article; and 13
118	118
119	119	4. The use of district energy systems and biofuels by covered 14
120	120	buildings; 15
121	121
122	122	(iii) Consider the needs of the owners of covered buildings who: 16
123	123
124	124	1. Are not responsible for the design, modification, fixtures, 17
125	125	or equipment of commercial tenants; 18
126	126
127	127	2. Do not have access to or control over building energy 19
128	128	systems that are used or controlled by commercial tenants; or 20
129	129
130	130	3. Own buildings occupied by commercial tenants who are 21
131	131	responsible for all maintenance of and repairs to the buildings; 22
132	132
133	133	(iv) Provide maximum flexibility to the owners of covered buildings 23
134	134	to comply with building energy performance standards; 24
135	135
136	136	(v) Subject to paragraph (3) of this subsection, include an alternative 25
137	137	compliance pathway allowing the owner of a covered building to pay a fee for greenhouse 26
138	138	gas emissions attributable to the building’s failure to meet direct greenhouse gas emissions 27
139	139	reduction targets; and 28
140	140
141	141	(vi) To the extent authorized by law, include financial incentives 29
142	142	recommended by the Building Energy Transition Implementation Task Force. 30
143	143	4 SENATE BILL 479
144	144
145	145
146	146	(3) The Department may not set an alternative compliance fee that is less 1
147	147	than the social cost of greenhouse gases adopted by the Department or the U.S. 2
148	148	Environmental Protection Agency. 3
149	149
150	150	(d) Electric companies and gas companies shall provide energy data, including 4
151	151	whole–building and aggregate data, to the owners of covered buildings for benchmarking 5
152	152	purposes. 6
153	153
154	154	(e) In calculating the statewide standards developed by the Department under 7
155	155	this section, an owner of a covered building may not consider greenhouse gas emissions or 8
156	156	energy use by a commercial tenant of the covered building that: 9
157	157
158	158	(1) Is a food service facility as defined in COMAR 10.15.03.02; and 10
159	159
160	160	(2) Engages in commercial cooking and water heating. 11
161	161
162	162	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Ac t shall take effect 12
163	163	October 1, 2025. 13
164	164