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Provo council backs continued participation in voluntary stretch energy code pilot
Summary
Utah Clean Energy briefed the council on a DOE-funded project to design voluntary, incentive-based stretch energy codes; after questions about costs, utility assumptions and RDA roles, the council voted unanimously to provide a letter showing continued participation for the remaining 18 months of the pilot.
Utah Clean Energy representatives on Wednesday asked the Provo Municipal Council to reaffirm municipal participation in a U.S. Department of Energy cooperative pilot that would help design voluntary stretch energy codes and incentives for low- and zero-emission buildings.
Kevin Emerson, director of building efficiency and decarbonization, said the project—funded through a three-year DOE cooperative agreement—has spent the first 18 months developing two tiers of above-code standards: a zero-emission tier with no on-site combustion and electric equipment, and a low-emission tier that may include limited on-site gas or dual-fuel heat pumps. The team has worked with local staff and industry and proposed incentive tools that include rebates and green financing, technical assistance and training, streamlined permitting, zoning bonuses and low-cost certification pathways.
Emerson and Allison Burggoni, Utah Clean Energy's clean energy associate, said the project team includes the New Buildings Institute, Southwest Energy Efficiency Project and the International Code Council. They said the pilot will test pathways that preserve affordability by reducing energy costs over a home's lifetime; Utah Clean Energy highlighted a 2024 showcase home the presenters said reached a positive payback in about 1.4 years.
Council members asked for clarity on the model assumptions, including whether the payback numbers used Rocky Mountain Power rates or Provo Power rates; Emerson said the modeled example used Rocky Mountain Power rates and the team could update projections for Provo if requested. Members also pressed on staff time and potential costs to the city: presenters said the current request is only for a statement of continued participation that would not bind the city to adopt any program and that DOE cooperative-agreement seed funds could pay for some pilot technical assistance or streamlined permitting work.
Councillors also asked whether incentives would be limited to affordable housing. Emerson said many federal programs focus on affordable housing, but this voluntary local incentive package is being designed to apply to market-rate projects as well, to close an incentive gap outside of affordable housing programs.
After questions, a council member moved to provide written support for continued participation and a second was offered. The motion carried by unanimous voice vote; council members present recorded their votes in support.
The next step staff described is to continue collaborative stakeholder work and return to the council with any recommendations for a formal program only after further analysis and local vetting. The letter of continued participation covers the remaining 18 months of the DOE cooperative agreement and does not itself enact any incentives or code changes.
