What Can Policy Makers Do To Get Started?
Establish Local Government Environmental Commitment
- Adopt United States Conference of Mayors' Resolutions for local usage.
- Write or rewrite mission statement to include the local government's commitment to the environment.
- Incorporate a mission statement into the local government's comprehensive plan.
Real World Examples:
Albuquerque, NM
Columbus, OH
Columbus, OH--"Get Green" Press Release
Dedicate Personnel To Green City Process
Create a designated office of sustainability, sustainability coordinator, or sustainability task force that consists of representatives from multiple departments to aid in fulfilling the environmental mission of the local government. These offices/positions can be strengthened with an ordinance/resolution.
Real World Examples: Austin, TX Boulder, CO Chicago, IL Cleveland, OH Portland, OR San Francisco, CA--Green Building Monitoring San Jose, CA
Serve As A Model
Green your own venues, operations, and maintenance.
Monitor And Track Green Building Within The City
Approach
Require electronic submission of energy code calculations or manually enter them into a database. The data acquired can be useful to determine effectiveness of any incentives or promotions taking place towards the creation of green buildings.
Monitor and track local government energy use in buildings through bill collection or other means and use this as a performance indicator. Utilize this information to develop and institute a plan to reduce energy consumption by __% over __ years.
Real World Examples:
Boston, MA
Portland, OR
Establish City Green Building Program With Incentives
Approach
Incorporate by resolution, ordinance, or otherwise a green building standard to promote resource conservation and to act as a proactive step to reduce future capital expenditures for resource extraction. Offer incentives to foster participation. Examples include reduced permit, inspection, or impact fees; fast-track permitting; green building tax incentive programs; added density or height bonuses for certified buildings; or formal promotion/publicity activities.
Real World Examples:
Executive Orders
Salt Lake City, UT
San Francisco, CA
Government Buildings
Kansas City, MO
New York, NY
Sample Legislative Language
Energy-Efficient Building Codes--Illinois
Energy Savings Performance Contracts
Green Building Tax Credit
Sample Incentive Programs
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy Tax Credit Fact Sheet
Green Building Tax Incentive Programs Overview
Sample Municipal and State Tax Incentive Programs
Chicago, IL, Green Permitting Program
Miami-Dade Ordinance on Expedited Permitting
San Francisco Expedited Permitting Program
Comprehensive Commercial Retrofit Program Overview
Seattle, WA--Commercial Incentive Programs
Green Building Ordinances
Atlanta, GA (Chapter 75--Sustainable Development)
Gainesville, FL (Chapter 6, Article I.5)
Long Beach, CA
New York City Green Building Ordinance
Portland, OR
Santa Monica, CA
Green Building Ordinance
Ideas to Overcome Potential Obstacles
Financing Public Sector Energy-Efficiency Projects – California Specific
Breaking Down the Barriers: Challenges and Solutions to Code Approval of Green Building
