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Planners flag roughly 50% compliance with Vermont's residential energy standard, discuss enforcement options
Summary
CCRPC staff told the Planning Advisory Committee on April 9 that compliance with the Vermont Residential Building Energy Standard is about 50%, and proposed options including more funding for technical assistance, incentives for professional raters, and a state-run certificate clearinghouse.
CCRPC staff briefed the Planning Advisory Committee on April 9 about a CCRPC-led collaboration with Vermont Gas and Energy Futures Group to study compliance with the Vermont Residential Building Energy Standard (RBES).
Ann Janda, Energy Project Manager, told the committee that RBES applies broadly to residential construction (exceptions apply for larger multifamily buildings) and is updated every three years by the Vermont Department of Public Service based on the International Energy Conservation Code. Janda said municipalities are statutorily required to provide RBES information to zoning permit applicants and that an RBES certificate must be recorded in land records before a certificate of occupancy is issued if the municipality requires COs.
"A small survey completed recently noted that there is only about a 50% compliance rate with RBES," Janda said. Taylor Newton, Planning Program Director, added that earlier estimates suggested about 70% compliance and that the decline likely reflects higher, more complicated standards and insufficient enforcement capacity.
Staff described the primary compliance pathways: a package-plus-points checklist, REScheck software for base-code compliance, and HERS/ERI professional ratings for higher standards. They also noted an Owner-Builder Disclosure Statement option that acknowledges work was completed without meeting RBES. Committee members pointed out that many municipalities do not issue certificates of occupancy for single-family homes, which reduces municipal oversight of RBES certificates.
To increase compliance, staff proposed several avenues to the Legislature and partners: more funding for the Energy Code Assistance Center, higher incentives for HERS/ERI raters, and instituting state permit fees that could fund enforcement by the Division of Fire Safety. Newton and Janda noted the state Division of Fire Safety could potentially host a centralized clearinghouse for RBES certificates, but political and funding hurdles remain.
The committee requested that CCRPC staff include these findings in a report to the Legislature and continue outreach to municipal zoning administrators.
