VHFA News

By: Mia Watson

The Vermont Department of Public Service (PSD) will soon begin updating Vermont's building energy codes, with the target effective date of Fall or Winter 2023. The code update process will include multiple opportunities for stakeholders to provide input and feedback.

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Vermont's Building Energy Standards set minimum efficiency requirements for new and renovated buildings. The standards are designed to reduce energy use and emissions over the life of a building, saving money in the long term and helping Vermont meet its climate goals. Vermont's building energy codes include its Residential Building Energy Standards (RBES) and Commercial Building Energy Standards (CBES). 

There will be two RBES public stakeholder meetings and two CBES public stakeholder meetings, coordinated with the Energy Futures Group. The first set of meetings will present the proposed changes and gather input from the public for the development of the draft 2023 RBES and CBES. The second set of meetings will present the final draft of the proposed 2023 RBES and CBES codes and solicit feedback. These meetings will take place in April and late May and will be held remotely. 

The first set of public stakeholder meetings will take place the week of April 4:

RBES Public Stakeholder Meeting: Wednesday, April 6 from 1-3pm (Register here)
CBES Public Stakeholder Meeting: Friday, April 8 from 10am-12pm (Register here)

The agenda for the public stakeholder meetings is the following:
1. Code update process overview and timeframe
2. Goals and Energy Use Intensity, or EUI, targets
3. Code update summary
4. Walk through each code update recommendation
5. Other recommendations to add

Contact Liz Bourguet at the Energy Futures Group ([email protected]) with any questions.