STAND. COM. REP. NO.  417-20

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2020

 

RE:   H.B. No. 1520

      H.D. 2

 

 

 

 

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirtieth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2020

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred H.B. No. 1520, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO ENERGY EFFICIENCY,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose of this measure is to accelerate the State's progress toward energy efficiency by:

 

     (1)  Requiring electric and gas utilities to benchmark energy consumption for all nonresidential buildings, including commercial buildings; and

 

     (2)  Requiring owners and operators of a nonresidential building to disclose benchmarking data to prospective buyers, lessees, or lenders.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii State Energy Office, Office of Climate Change, Sustainability and Resiliency of the City and County of Honolulu, County of Maui Office of Economic Development, County of Kauai Office of Economic Development, 350Hawaii.org, Blue Planet Foundation, and five individuals.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Public Utilities Commission and Hawaii Gas.

 

     Your Committee finds that improving energy efficiency is the cheapest, quickest, and cleanest way to accelerate Hawaii's transition to one hundred percent renewable energy.  Hawaii's buildings and facilities offer enormous opportunities for energy savings, yet the potential for savings is not readily apparent through current disclosure and information sharing requirements.  Benchmarking data helps to fill an information gap for commercial real estate firms and investors, providing everyone with access to the same information.  For tenants, benchmarking and disclosure provide valuable data to better understand energy use and make informed decisions.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

 

     (1)  Amending the date after which electric and gas utilities must maintain benchmarking data and provide aggregated energy consumption data for use in the portfolio management tool, to December 31, 2020;

 

     (2)  Amending the deadlines for disclosure of nonpublic nonresidential benchmarking to January 1, 2022, for buildings greater than 50,000 square feet and January 1, 2023, for buildings greater than 10,000 square feet; and

 

     (3)  Making a technical, nonsubstantive amendment for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1520, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1520, H.D. 2.


 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce,

 

 

 

 

____________________________

ROY M. TAKUMI, Chair