{"id":1004763546,"date":"2025-07-02T02:56:06","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T10:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/?p=1004763546"},"modified":"2025-07-04T01:29:36","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T09:29:36","slug":"boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/","title":{"rendered":"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Whether Energy Star will still be around next year is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations. This week, the buzz drew a packed house to a panel discussion at BOMA International\u2019s annual conference and expo<\/a> in Boston.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The speakers argued that the disappearance of Energy Star Portfolio Manager would hit the industry hard. \u201cThe reason Energy Star is so important is that it\u2019s free, it\u2019s fair and it\u2019s data that\u2019s been put into a program so you can compare your building to other buildings,\u201d noted David Ray, director of sustainability at NV5.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"At<\/a>
Speakers at BOMA International’s conference discuss the future of Energy Star Portfolio Manager. From left, Rebecca Uusitalo, Urban Renaissance Group, the panel’s moderator; John Boling, BOMA International; Duane Desiderio, The Real Estate Roundtable; Wayne Talbot, JLL; David Ray, NV5. Photo by Paul Rosta<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Focus on the issue intensified in May when the administration released the document informally called the skinny budget, which outlines the annual proposal. The budget would eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s Office of Atmospheric Protection, which administers Energy Star Portfolio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That has prompted real estate organizations and other supporters to step up their outreach to lawmakers. \u201cWe\u2019re doing a lot, we\u2019re doing what we need to do, but we can\u2019t take our foot off the gas,\u201d reported John Boling, BOMA International\u2019s vice president for advocacy and building codes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Energy Star\u2019s impact<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Under a 2009 memorandum of understanding, EPA and the Department of Energy jointly administer the program. DOE oversees appliance rating for the program, while EPA\u2019s responsibilities feature the administration of Portfolio Manager and property rating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since its introduction in 2000, Portfolio Manager has been adopted as the benchmark energy performance program by a wide range of stakeholders. As noted by Wayne Talbot, a Boston-based director of operations with JLL, those include the U.S. Green Building Council, BOMA International, and many local jurisdictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

READ ALSO<\/strong>: Tackling CRE\u2019s No. 1 Challenge<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Among the major cities relying on Portfolio Manager is Boston, host of the current BOMA International event. This year, the city\u2019s Building Energy Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance takes full effect. Portfolio Manager is also used in Canada to assess building performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The potential demise of Energy Star Portfolio is raising concerns among those who rely on it, especially considering the severe cutbacks to many other federal agencies. One worried local official told Talbot, \u201cWe need a single source of truth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chances of survival<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Yet several factors suggest that Portfolio Manager has better-than-even odds of being around in 2026. \u201cThe death of Energy Star is greatly exaggerated,\u201d said Duane Desiderio, senior vice president & counsel at The Real Estate Roundtable, in an echo of Mark Twain\u2019s famous quip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Energy Star isn\u2019t specifically zeroed out in the budget, and according to Desiderio, the latest word from the administration is that no decision has been made about its fate. A major factor in Energy Star\u2019s favor is that the program is established by federal law and is mentioned more than three dozen times in the U.S. code. As a result, \u201cIt can\u2019t just be changed willy-nilly without a change in federal statute,\u201d Desiderio noted. Getting rid of Energy Star would require an act of Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In making the case for Energy Star and Portfolio Manager to Republican lawmakers, advocates are focusing on its economic benefits, rather than on its environmental impact. At a cost of less than $40 million per year, Portfolio Manager yields $40 billion in annual energy savings. \u201cWe think that message is resonating on the Hill,\u201d Desiderio said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another strategy that’s helping build support in Congress, said Desiderio, is being fuel-agnostic and not favoring renewable energy ahead of other sources. As Desiderio put it, that\u2019s because \u201cwe need as much power as we can get as quickly as we can get it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even if Energy Star isn’t zeroed out, EPA could hypothetically redirect its funding to other purposes. In that case, Desiderio said, the challenge would be to ensure that staffing is sufficient to continue the program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Desiderio named four potential outcomes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • The program continues in its present form<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • DOE takes EPA\u2019s part of the program<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Portfolio Manager becomes fee-based<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The program is privatized<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    As a practical measure to cover the bases in an uncertain time, Ray recommended this practical step: \u201cKeep your data while you have the data, and make sure you have access to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    The budget zeroes out the office that administers Portfolio Manager, but advocates say there\u2019s more to the story.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":1004763560,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21808,23891,21742,21785,21786,51037],"tags":[47069,32796,33981],"class_list":["post-1004763546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-national","category-latest","category-property-management","category-sustainability","category-trends","tag-boma-international","tag-jll","tag-the-real-estate-roundtable"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925? - Commercial Property Executive<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Whether Energy Star will still be around in 2026 is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Whether Energy Star will still be around in 2026 is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Commercial Property Executive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CPExecutive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-02T10:56:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-04T09:29:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Paul Rosta\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@cpexecutive\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@cpexecutive\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/\",\"name\":\"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925? - Commercial Property Executive\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-02T10:56:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-04T09:29:36+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ed97e8245f278ce01a7b951f706152af\"},\"description\":\"Whether Energy Star will still be around in 2026 is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"Speakers at BOMA International's conference discuss the future of Energy Star Portfolio. Photo by Paul Rosta\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/\",\"name\":\"Commercial Property Executive\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ed97e8245f278ce01a7b951f706152af\",\"name\":\"Paul Rosta\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9c1c95e152828621b403b03a53198a2cb762882a74877838d5ccb2f54ebd769f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9c1c95e152828621b403b03a53198a2cb762882a74877838d5ccb2f54ebd769f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Paul Rosta\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/author\/paul-rosta-2\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925? - Commercial Property Executive","description":"Whether Energy Star will still be around in 2026 is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925?","og_description":"Whether Energy Star will still be around in 2026 is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/","og_site_name":"Commercial Property Executive","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CPExecutive","article_published_time":"2025-07-02T10:56:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-07-04T09:29:36+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":600,"url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Paul Rosta","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@cpexecutive","twitter_site":"@cpexecutive","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/","url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/","name":"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925? - Commercial Property Executive","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg","datePublished":"2025-07-02T10:56:06+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-04T09:29:36+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ed97e8245f278ce01a7b951f706152af"},"description":"Whether Energy Star will still be around in 2026 is a hot topic for property owners, managers and industry associations.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg","width":800,"height":600,"caption":"Speakers at BOMA International's conference discuss the future of Energy Star Portfolio. Photo by Paul Rosta"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/boma-special-report-will-energy-star-survive-25\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"BOMA Special Report: Will Energy Star Survive \u201925?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/","name":"Commercial Property Executive","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/ed97e8245f278ce01a7b951f706152af","name":"Paul Rosta","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9c1c95e152828621b403b03a53198a2cb762882a74877838d5ccb2f54ebd769f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9c1c95e152828621b403b03a53198a2cb762882a74877838d5ccb2f54ebd769f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Paul Rosta"},"url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/author\/paul-rosta-2\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/46\/2025\/07\/EnergyStar3_800x600.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1004763546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1004763546"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1004763546\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1004763900,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1004763546\/revisions\/1004763900"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1004763560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1004763546"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1004763546"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.commercialsearch.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1004763546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}