​​​​​GHG-05

 INCREASE ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND ELECTRIFICATION OF NEW COMMERCIAL/NONRESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS OR FACILITIES

Measure

The County will develop a reach code requiring new commercial and nonresidential buildings obtaining building permits to meet the following requirements:

  • building permit applications filed on or after January 1, 2023, or 6 months after the availability of a cost-effectiveness study prepared by the Statewide Reach Codes Team, whichever is later, for newly constructed buildings that are three stories or less to be all-electric buildings;

  • building permit applications filed on or after January 1, 2026, or 6 months after the availability of a cost-effectiveness study prepared by the Statewide Reach Codes Team, whichever is later, for newly constructed buildings that are four stories or more to be all-electric buildings; and

  • limited exemptions for specific uses, available only for building permits filed on or before December 31, 2025, provided that the associated GHG emissions are offset through an accredited local carbon offset program:

    • a limited exemption for food establishments for cooking equipment only;

    • a limited exemption for manufacturing process loads within a manufacturing or industrial facility;

    • a limited exemption for essential medical facilities, such as hospitals that may require natural gas;

    • a limited exemption for regulated affordable housing when virtual net energy metering is not available, for water heating only; and

    • if the technology to require construction of an all-electric building for ground floor food service establishments, manufacturing or industrial facilities, essential medical facilities, or regulated affordable housing is not feasible and available by July 1, 2025, the Board of Supervisors may consider extending the limited exemption until the technology is feasible and available.​


​​​​​​Started

The efforts for this measure have started. ​

Implementation

Prepare an ordinance for review by the Board of Supervisors. The cost-effectiveness studies and feasibility analyses should include at a minimum consideration of supply chain availability of parts, prices of component parts, and projects for which natural gas lines have already been constructed onsite or approved in improvement plans. The County will periodically re-assess and update reach codes in response to updates to the building code.

Timeframe: Near term. Adopt an ordinance no later than December 2022, or 6 months after the availability of a cost-effectiveness study prepared by the Statewide Reach Codes Team, whichever is later.

GHG Reduction Potential: 3,936 MT CO2e per year by 2030

Co-benefit

This measure supports adaptation measures Temp-07 and Temp-08. It provides an additional co-benefit for air quality related to reductions in oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter, and ozone precursors as a result of reductions in natural gas combustion.

Sector: Energy - Commercial

Target Indicator: Adoption of ordinance and enforcement on commercial buildings obtaining permits thereafter. Target set for 230,000 therms of natural gas and 20,000 MWh of electricity consumption to be avoided by 2026 and 470,000 therms and 40,000 MWh of electricity to be avoided by 2030.​

Status oImplementation​

Measures GHG-4 through -7 deal with the electrification of buildings in the community and are categorized by residential vs. non-residential and existing vs. new construction.

Due to legal precedent established by the California Restaurant Association v. City of Berkeley, where the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit blocked the City of Berkeley from enacting a natural gas piping ban, the County is not pursuing electrification ordinances and instead is planning to develop reach code energy efficiency ordinances. These reach codes will not specifically ban gas and instead will require the maximum level of building energy efficiency that is still cost effective.

Through the Sacramento County Building Electrification Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), the County is working with the cities of Sacramento and Elk Grove as well as SMUD to coordinate the reach code effort with the goal to have adoption concurrent with the State 2025 triennial code cycle to be effective January 1, 2026. 

Currently, the partners are focused on applying for a Department of Energy grant to support this coordinated effort and meet every two weeks to support making a full application later this summer.

​Updated 9/10/2024.