Energy Savings and Energy Costs: The Impacts of Maryland's Adoption of the 2009 IECC
October 1 was big day in terms of effective dates for new laws impacting the building industry. In addition to the No Net Loss of Forest Policy -Forest Conservation Act (see this prior post for details), October 1 also saw the effective date for SB 625, codified at Md. Code Ann. Public Safety Article §12–501, 12–503, 12–504(a), and 12–505(a)(1). The changes implemented by this law require the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development to adopt the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) as part of the Maryland Building Performance Standards. In turn, local governments must adopt and enforce the most current Maryland Building Performance Standards within six months of the State’s adoption of these Standards.
- According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the 2009 IECC may produce approximately 15% in energy efficiency gains compared to the other most recent edition of the IECC.
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These gains may be realized in the form of reduced energy costs to homeowners and commercial building owners, however, these energy savings will also likely come at a cost. As identified in the Fiscal and Policy Note prepared by the Department of Legislative Services, enforcing the 2009 IECC may result in increased construction costs. Specifically, the Note acknowledges that, based on 2005 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 88.9% of construction firms in Maryland had fewer than 20 employees and 98.1% had fewer than 100 employees. Implementing the requirements of the 2009 IECC may specifically have an impact on these smaller businesses by forcing them to change their commercial and residential construction practices - thereby increasing the cost of doing business. If this increased cost of “doing business” is passed on the residential consumer this will, in turn, impact the affordability of Maryland’s housing stock.
So we're left with several important questions:
- Are consumers willing to pay more up front for a reduced energy bill in the long run?
- And, most importantly, how well do energy efficiency gains translate into energy savings, and are these savings really worth the up front cost?
