Energy-Efficient Building Standards for State Facilities

Via Executive Order 27, Maine requires the construction or renovation of state buildings to incorporate "green building" standards that would achieve significant energy efficiency and environmental sustainability, provided that the costs of doing so are cost-effective over the life of the building.  All branches of state government are to cooperate with the Maine Department of Administrative and Financial Services (Bureau of General Services) to meet these requirements. School administrative districts and municipalities are not required to comply with these standards. Maine originally designated Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards be incorporated into the design, construction, operation, and maintenance of new/renovated state buildings in November 2003 (via Executive Order 8 FY04/05), but the current policy no longer requires LEED.

Maine Statutes Title 5, Section 1764-A also requires that plans and designs for the construction of new or substantially renovated buildings owned or leased by the state include: (1) the consideration of energy efficiency, (2) an energy use target that exceeds standards for commercial and institutional buildings by at least 20%, and (3) a life-cycle cost analysis over a minimum of 30 years that explicitly addresses the costs and benefits of efficiency improvements. The state agency responsible for approving  the new construction or renovation may not grant approval until the entity proposing the construction has shown that it has duly considered the most energy-efficient and environmentally efficient designs that are suitable.

History

Legislation in 2009 created the Task Force to Advance Energy Efficiency, Conservation, and Independence at State Facilities; the Task Force issued its recommendations in January 2010.

Further back, in March 2005, the governor of Maine announced that the state would join the federal "Energy Star Challenge." As part of this partnership, the state committed to encouraging building owners and operators throughout Maine to improve energy efficiency by 10% or more using performance contracting and other mechanisms. The state also agreed to track energy use and greenhouse gas emissions from government buildings and identify the best ways to improve energy efficiency in those buildings.