House floor debate on Senate Bill 5722 (greenhouse gas emissions in buildings) | March 3, 2022

Senate Bill 5722 would:

• Authorize Department of Commerce to regulate the energy use of commercial buildings between 20,000 and 50,000 square feet and multifamily residential buildings 50,000 square feet or larger by December 1, 2023.

• Direct Department of Commerce to adopt energy management and benchmarking requirements for these buildings. The owners would have ongoing reporting obligations on their energy use. This data would be used to set progressively strict performance standards that would require less carbon intensity in the energy used by the building – essentially forcing the conversion from natural gas furnaces and water heaters to electricity.

House Republicans believe this bill would burden residents of apartments and commercial building tenants with higher costs, create duplicative regulatory requirements, and put unnecessary regulatory pressure on natural gas – an affordable source of energy that Washington residents and businesses rely on.