Maryland 2025 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB778 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	sb0778
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 778
8	8	M3, M4 5lr3008
9	9
10	10	By: Senator Gallion
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 27, 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	Environment – Building Energy Performance Standards – Agricultural 2
19	19	Buildings 3
20	20
21	21	FOR the purpose of prohibiting the Department of the Environment from requiring an 4
22	22	owner, lessor, lessee, or operator of an agricultural building to apply to the 5
23	23	Department for an exemption from certain building energy performance standards; 6
24	24	and generally relating to building energy performance standards and agricultural 7
25	25	buildings. 8
26	26
27	27	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 9
28	28	Article – Environment 10
29	29	Section 2–1601(a), (b), and (e) 11
30	30	Annotated Code of Maryland 12
31	31	(2013 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 13
32	32
33	33	BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 14
34	34	Article – Environment 15
35	35	Section 2–1602 16
36	36	Annotated Code of Maryland 17
37	37	(2013 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 18
38	38
39	39	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 19
40	40	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 20
41	41
42	42	Article – Environment 21
43	43
44	44	2–1601. 22
45	45
46	46	(a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. 23
47	47	2 SENATE BILL 778
48	48
49	49
50	50	(b) (1) “Agricultural building” means a structure that is used primarily to 1
51	51	cultivate, manufacture, process, or produce agricultural crops, raw materials, products, or 2
52	52	commodities. 3
53	53
54	54	(2) “Agricultural building” includes a greenhouse. 4
55	55
56	56	(e) (1) “Covered building” means a building that: 5
57	57
58	58	(i) 1. Is a commercial or multifamily residential building in the 6
59	59	State; or 7
60	60
61	61	2. Is owned by the State; and 8
62	62
63	63	(ii) Has a gross floor area of 35,000 square feet or more, excluding 9
64	64	the parking garage area. 10
65	65
66	66	(2) “Covered building” does not include: 11
67	67
68	68	(i) A building designated as a historic property under federal, State, 12
69	69	or local law; 13
70	70
71	71	(ii) A public or nonpublic elementary or secondary school building; 14
72	72
73	73	(iii) A manufacturing building; or 15
74	74
75	75	(iv) An agricultural building. 16
76	76
77	77	2–1602. 17
78	78
79	79	(a) The Department shall develop building energy performance standards for 18
80	80	covered buildings that achieve: 19
81	81
82	82	(1) A 20% reduction in net direct greenhouse gas emissions on or before 20
83	83	January 1, 2030, as compared with 2025 levels for average buildings of similar construction; 21
84	84	and 22
85	85
86	86	(2) Net–zero direct greenhouse gas emissions on or before January 1, 2040. 23
87	87
88	88	(b) To facilitate the development of building energy performance standards under 24
89	89	this section, the Department shall require the owners of covered buildings to measure and 25
90	90	report direct emissions data to the Department annually beginning in 2025. 26
91	91
92	92	(c) (1) On or before June 1, 2023, the Department shall adopt regulations to 27
93	93	implement this section. 28
94	94
95	95	(2) Regulations adopted under this section shall: 29
96	96	SENATE BILL 778 3
97	97
98	98
99	99	(i) Subject to items (ii) and (iii) of this paragraph, include energy 1
100	100	use intensity targets by building type; 2
101	101
102	102	(ii) As necessary, include special provisions or exceptions to account 3
103	103	for: 4
104	104
105	105	1. Building age; 5
106	106
107	107	2. Regional differences; 6
108	108
109	109	3. The unique needs of particular building or occupancy 7
110	110	types, including health care facilities, laboratories, assisted living and nursing facilities, 8
111	111	military buildings, critical infrastructure, and buildings used in life sciences as defined in 9
112	112	§ 3–201 of the Economic Development Article; and 10
113	113
114	114	4. The use of district energy systems and biofuels by covered 11
115	115	buildings; 12
116	116
117	117	(iii) Consider the needs of the owners of covered buildings who: 13
118	118
119	119	1. Are not responsible for the design, modification, fixtures, 14
120	120	or equipment of commercial tenants; 15
121	121
122	122	2. Do not have access to or control over building energy 16
123	123	systems that are used or controlled by commercial tenants; or 17
124	124
125	125	3. Own buildings occupied by commercial tenants who are 18
126	126	responsible for all maintenance of and repairs to the buildings; 19
127	127
128	128	(iv) Provide maximum flexibility to the owners of covered buildings 20
129	129	to comply with building energy performance standards; 21
130	130
131	131	(v) Subject to paragraph (3) of this subsection, include an alternative 22
132	132	compliance pathway allowing the owner of a covered building to pay a fee for greenhouse 23
133	133	gas emissions attributable to the building’s failure to meet direct greenhouse gas emissions 24
134	134	reduction targets; and 25
135	135
136	136	(vi) To the extent authorized by law, include financial incentives 26
137	137	recommended by the Building Energy Transition Implementation Task Force. 27
138	138
139	139	(3) The Department may not set an alternative compliance fee that is less 28
140	140	than the social cost of greenhouse gases adopted by the Department or the U.S. 29
141	141	Environmental Protection Agency. 30
142	142
143	143	(4) THE DEPARTMENT MAY NOT REQUIRE AN OWNER , A LESSOR, A 31
144	144	LESSEE, OR AN OPERATOR OF AN AGRICULTURAL B UILDING TO APPLY TO THE 32
145	145	DEPARTMENT FOR AN EXE MPTION FROM THE REQU IREMENTS OF THIS SEC TION, 33 4 SENATE BILL 778
146	146
147	147
148	148	INCLUDING BY REQUIRI NG THE SUBMITTAL OF ANY DOCUMENTATION TO THE 1
149	149	DEPARTMENT AS PROOF OF ELIGIBIL ITY FOR AN EXEMPTION . 2
150	150
151	151	(d) Electric companies and gas companies shall provide energy data, including 3
152	152	whole–building and aggregate data, to the owners of covered buildings for benchmarking 4
153	153	purposes. 5
154	154
155	155	(e) In calculating the statewide standards developed by the Department under 6
156	156	this section, an owner of a covered building may not consider greenhouse gas emissions or 7
157	157	energy use by a commercial tenant of the covered building that: 8
158	158
159	159	(1) Is a food service facility as defined in COMAR 10.15.03.02; and 9
160	160
161	161	(2) Engages in commercial cooking and water heating. 10
162	162
163	163	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 11
164	164	1, 2025. 12