PA Environment Digest Blog: Pittsburgh, Philadelphia Join White House Building Energy Performance Standards Coalition

On January 21, the White House announced the Biden Administration is teaming up with states, cities, labor, and industry to launch the Building Performance Standards Coalition, a first-of-its-kind partnership between 33 state and local governments dedicated to delivering cleaner, healthier, and more affordable buildings.

Both Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are part of the Coalition which includes nearly 20 percent of the nation’s building footprint in their jurisdictions and 22 percent of the country’s population.

The partnership facilitates new commitments to design and implement building performance standards at the state and local level, create good-paying, union jobs, lower energy bills for consumers, keep residents and workers safe from harmful pollution, and cut emissions from the building sector.

Energy efficiency improvements and electrification in multifamily buildings improve indoor air quality, eliminate drafts, and protect residents from extreme heat– delivering health benefits and lower health care costs.

For businesses, high-performing buildings are not only good for the world, they are good for the bottom line – attracting higher occupancy rates and generating more revenue.

The Coalition and related actions build on the $3.5 billion investment for home weatherization in President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – which will make 700,000 homes more energy efficient and lower consumers’ electricity bills – and will make $1.8 billion available to state and local governments through the Department of Energy to expand building retrofits and policy implementation at the state and local level.

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