Commercial buildings, self storage among them, consumed roughly 20 percent of all energy in the U.S. economy last year, said President Obama during his Jan. 25th State of the Union address. In an effort to curb this energy-draining trend, Obama laid out this week a clean-energy agenda that includes investing in innovative clean energy technologies and doubling the share of electricity from clean energy sources by 2035. Part of this push is the “Better Buildings Initiative” that gives energy-saving, retrofitting incentives for commercial developers, builders and owners.
The ambitious initiative is part of his overall plan to ensure that America is out-innovating, out-educating, and out-building the world's competition. It aims to reduce the energy bills of companies across America by about $40 billion a year and looks to see a 20 percent improvement in the energy efficiency of all commercial buildings by 2020. This will be achieved through energy-efficient upgrades to systems like lighting, heating, cooling and major technological appliances.
Obama calls for aggressively reforming the existing tax and lending incentives for commercial-building retrofitting. Among these incentives, Congress would increase tax credits to businesses for retrofitting. The White House said this would lead to a ten-fold increase in commercial retrofits. The president also proposes a Dept. of Energy loan program for efficiency upgrades and offers grants to states or local governments to encourage them to streamline codes and standards for commercial energy efficiency.
“It is major steps like these that are necessary to address the challenges facing our environment. We know that green buildings can and should be front and center of any credible jobs creation program. The jobs supported by the green building industry can't be outsourced, and they are jobs that frequently can build on skills learned in the manufacturing sector. With the incentives the President has outlined, we are confident that these organizations are ready to take green building to unprecedented scale,” said Rick Fedrizzi, CEO and Founding Chair of the U.S. Green Building Council.
President Clinton, champion of energy innovation and Jeff Immelt, CEO of General Electric has been asked to head the private sector initiative, dubbed “Better Buildings Challenge.” The administration hasn't yet outlined how the initiative will be funded, but higher taxes on oil and gas companies has been reported as a possibility.
“These steps are precisely targeted to unlock the tremendous energy savings available in commercial buildings throughout the country – from office buildings to fast-food restaurants. Our Rebuilding America initiative has brought together building owners, contractors, and trade unions around just this kind of ambitious agenda,” said Reid Detchon, executive director of the Energy Future Coalition.
Sources Used:
“Obama Launches "Better Buildings Initiative‟.” Environmental Leader. Feb. 3, 2011.
“Better Buildings Initiative to Create Opportunities and Incentives for Commercial Building Owners and Stakeholders.” Association of Corporate Council. Feb. 4, 2011.
“Early Momentum for the President's "Better Buildings Initiative‟.” The White House Blog. Feb. 3, 2011.
“Obama's Better Building Initiative Could Spur Self-Storage Green Retrofitting.” Inside Self-Storage. Feb. 9, 2011.