Property Size

Privately owned commercial and industrial buildings that are 20,000 Sq. Ft. or larger.

City-owned buildings that are 5,000 Sq. Ft. or larger.

Newly built commercial and industrial buildings that are 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger. New buildings are defined as buildings whose initial building permit was issued on or after January 31, 2014 under Boulder BPO.

Rating and Reporting, also known as benchmarking, requires 12 calendar months of whole-building energy and building use data. For example, in 2025, building owners must report 12 months of 2024 data.

June 1, annually. Rating and Reporting 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.

Boulder BPO requires affected buildings to complete energy assessments every ten years. Affected buildings that are less than 50,000 Sq. Ft. must complete ASHRAE Level I assessments and affected buildings that are 50,000 Sq. Ft. or larger must complete ASHRAE Level II assessments.

All assessments must be completed by a Qualified Service Provider.

Energy assessments are required every ten years and following the timeline below:

• City buildings 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – May 1, 2019
• Existing buildings 50,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – June 1, 2019
• New buildings 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – June 1, 2019
• Existing buildings 30,000 Sq. Ft. or larger but less than 50,000 Sq. Ft. – December 31, 2021
• Existing buildings 20,000 Sq. Ft. or larger but less than 30,000 Sq. Ft. – June 1, 2023

Boulder BPO requires affected buildings to complete a one-time lighting upgrade. These upgrades must reach compliance with the City of Boulder Energy Conservation Codes (COBECC) according to the list below:

• Occupancy Sensor Controls must meet the 2017 COBECC section C405.2.2.2
• Time-switch Controls must meet the 2017 COBECC section C405.2.2.1
• Exterior Lighting Controls must meet the 2017 COBECC section C405.2.4
• Interior Lighting – Power must meet 2017 COBECC section C405.5
• Exterior Lighting – Power must meet 2012 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) section C405.6

One-time lighting upgrades were due according to the following timeline:

• City buildings 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – May 1, 2022
• Existing buildings 50,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – June 1, 2022
• New buildings 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – June 1, 2022
• Existing buildings 30,000 Sq. Ft. or larger but less than 50,000 Sq. Ft. – June 1, 2023
• Existing buildings 20,000 Sq. Ft. or larger but less than 30,000 Sq. Ft. – June 1, 2025

Boulder BPO requires affected buildings to conduct retro-commissioning (RCx) studies and implement all measures with a payback period of two years or less. RCx studies must be completed by a qualified service provider.

Retro-commissioning studies must be completed according to the timeline below. All RCx measures must be implemented within two years of the study.

• City buildings 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – May 1, 2022
• Existing buildings 50,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – June 1, 2022
• New buildings 10,000 Sq. Ft. or larger – June 1, 2022
• Existing buildings 30,000 Sq. Ft. or larger but less than 50,000 Sq. Ft. – June 1, 2023
• Existing buildings 20,000 Sq. Ft. or larger but less than 30,000 Sq. Ft. – June 1, 2025

Boulder Building Performance Ordinance requires affected buildings to rate and report building energy data and complete efficiency actions by their respective deadlines.

Failure to meet a deadline can result in fines of $0.0025 per Sq. Ft. up to $1,000 per day of non-compliance.

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

Boulder Building Performance 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 Boulder BPO 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.