Luke Miller
Username
Luke Miller
Proposer First Name
Luke
Proposer Email
lmiller@neep.org
Proposer Last Name
Miller
Proposer Company/Organization
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships
Proposer Job Title
Senior Associate, Policy and Programs
Boston 2023 Areas of Focus
Proposed Session Description
Despite comprising over 30% of US housing stock, multifamily buildings are often unable to tap into energy efficiency programs or comply with building decarbonization policies. States should push utilities to ensure access to necessary data. We aim to highlight how states and utilities can collaborate as part of IRA rebate programs to leverage energy data for multifamily buildings, thereby implementing equitable decarbonization programs and enhancing energy efficiency outcomes.
Diversity and Inclusiveness
We will focus on multifamily buildings and the low- to moderate-income customer base, which has historically had disproportionately lower access to energy efficiency programs relative to customers in single-family homes. We aim to address how policies can be designed to alleviate the high energy burden that LMI customers face, eventually resulting in substantial financial savings for these customers. Reducing energy burden in this underserved population segment would be a significant equity victory.
Learning Objectives
Evaluate interactions between various decarbonization policies, like building energy performance standards, benchmarking, et cetera, and how they can lead to compounded energy efficiency improvements when implemented together- and why data is a key part of this implementation.
Explain how improved access to and use of energy usage data will improve energy burden and related equity outcomes for residents of multifamily buildings.
Describe why lacking access to the full picture of energy usage data puts multifamily buildings at a disadvantage relative to single-family homes.
Understand why achieving comprehensive energy data access across all building types is a necessary challenge to address to achieve a decarbonized building sector.
Has this session been presented before?
No
Additional Comments
Submitted the same concept, but different format of deliverable, for another upcoming conference.
Target Audiences Level of Expertise
Level 2 - Some prior knowledge helpful.
Session Format
Interview or structured conversation among panelists
Recommended Length
60-minute session
Strongest Content Connection - Boston 2023
Comments about your speaker roster
We may additionally be able to invite a speaker from one of the utilities to talk about existing programs that relate to our presentation.
Reviewer 1
Howard, Meg
Proposal #
147
Committee Decision
Rejected
Presenters
Full Description
It is a problem that multifamily buildings are often unable to tap into energy efficiency programs or comply with building decarbonization policies like Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS). A lack of access to building level energy data is a significant barrier for this market. Residents and building owners of multifamily buildings are at a comparative disadvantage, unable to readily participate readily in a variety of programs. Ensuring access to utility provided whole-building data and leveraging it across initiatives allows for better planning and implementation of energy efficiency programs. This data is also vital to implementing other building decarbonization policies such as BEPS and clean heat standards (CHS).
Few states have been able to deliver on accessing and sharing the data necessary to implement these programs, and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)’s mandate means states must now work with utilities to collect and share the energy data necessary to make programs accessible and tailored to multifamily buildings. State agencies must work with utilities to unlock this data.
This paper will highlight how states and utilities can work together to deliver and leverage energy data for multifamily buildings, implementing equitable building decarbonization programs by connecting data from building focused energy policies to energy efficiency program implementation. We will provide on the ground examples from the Northeast, including a deep dive into how New Jersey is building on data gathered and analyzed by their benchmarking program today to design and deploy their IRA programs for tomorrow.
This proposal relates to the conference theme of climate resilience because building decarbonization policies are a key element in reducing GHG emissions from the building sector. Such policies present ample opportunities for reductions in such climate-altering emissions, helping us meet our worldwide climate goals and limit future warming. By using existing utility data in innovative ways, we can spur change in energy markets that leads to transformational long-term impacts.