U.S. Dept. of Energy rescinds national definition of 'zero emissions' buildings

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) recently rescinded its national definition of a zero emissions building.

The definition, established by the Biden Administration, “established discretionary standards for energy efficiency, on-site emissions from energy use, and consumption from ‘clean’ energy sources,” according to a DOE news release. “These were not regulatory standards, and compliance was purely voluntary.”

“The Department will no longer make use of this definition and recommends that state and local government agencies and standard-setting bodies do the same,” said DOE official Lou Hrkman.

“This action lowers costs and promotes freedom of choice in the buildings sector by relieving developers, investors, and building owners of indirect pressure to account for federal guidelines that never had the force or effect of law,” the release says.

“The Request for Information (RFI) for the development of the National Definition of a Zero Emissions Building suggests that a key impetus for the development of the standard was the Biden-Harris Administration's goal of a, ‘net-zero emissions, economy-wide, by 2050 and a 100% clean energy electricity sector by 2035,’” according to a document posted at the Federal Register.