Property Size

Commercial and multifamily buildings within Atlanta city limits over 25,000 Sq. Ft.

Annual benchmarking reporting requires 12 calendar months of whole-building energy, water, and building use data. For example, in 2025, building owners must report 12 months of 2024 data.

June 1, annually. Benchmarking reports must be submitted on an annual basis using the previous year’s data via ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager®. This is the EPA’s benchmarking tool that is used for compliance reporting in most ordinances across the country.

Building Performance Standards (BPS) are often considered Phase II of these building energy use ordinances. After reporting your benchmarking data, many ordinances require you to make changes to the building’s operations or equipment to lower energy use over time.

Atlanta CBEEO requires covered properties to perform an audit on the base building systems. Buildings may be exempt from an audit if any of the following applies:

• The building received an ENERGY STAR certification in 2 of the 3 years preceding the audit deadline
• The building is unable to receive an ENERGY STAR score and a registered design professional certifies that the building performs 25 percentage points better than the average for its building type in 2 of the 3 years preceding the audit deadline
• The building improved its ENERGY STAR score by 15 points within the 5 years preceding the audit deadline
• The building reduced its weather-normalized source EUI by 15% within the 5 years preceding the audit deadline
• The building achieved or maintained the most recent LEED for Existing Buildings: O+M for 2 of the 3 years preceding the audit deadline

Audit Due Dates

Audits are due December 31, every 10 years when the last digit of the property’s Atlanta building ID matches the last number of the year.

Third-party data verification requires owners/managers of covered buildings to hire a third-party expert who will independently review and verify the building’s benchmarking data.

Atlanta CBEEO does not require data verification at this time.

Failure to comply with Atlanta Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Ordinance will result in a written violation, followed by a $1,000 fine. Each year of non-compliance will result in another $1,000 fine.

CONTACT US HERE to learn more and get started with compliance.

Atlanta Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Ordinance compliance can be confusing and hard to navigate. Bringing on a consultant like VCA Green streamlines the entire process while ensuring accurate reporting. We also offer free consultations with our benchmarking clients to review the reports and identify inefficiencies to improve.

Ordinances such as the Atlanta Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Ordinance are already in effect across the country, and deadlines are rapidly approaching. Retrieving historical building data will take time, especially when coordinating with property managers and utilities.

Waiting until the last minute risks missing compliance windows resulting in fines and enforcement penalties. VCA Green takes every measure to ensure complete and accurate data collection. The sooner you reach out, the sooner you will reach compliance.