Madison Reporter

The City of Madison has initiated the second year of its Building Energy Savings Program (BESP), which was adopted by the Common Council in 2023. The program mandates large commercial buildings to annually benchmark their energy use and conduct building tune-ups every four years. This initiative is being gradually implemented from 2024 to 2027, with commercial properties over 100,000 square feet already involved.

In 2025, owners of commercial buildings exceeding 50,000 square feet are required to benchmark their energy consumption by June 30. The list of covered buildings for this year specifies those obligated to participate in benchmarking. A Building Owner Portal is available to assist owners with the benchmarking and reporting procedures, offering step-by-step guidance and a help desk for support.

Additionally, the City has extended the compliance deadline for building tune-ups. These tune-ups involve checking and adjusting systems like lighting and HVAC controls to ensure they operate efficiently without wasting resources. Buildings over 100,000 square feet must complete a tune-up by October 30, 2026, while those between 50,000 and 99,999 square feet have until October 30, 2027. This extension allows owners more time to plan tune-ups, find specialists or train staff as needed, explore alternative compliance options, and collect necessary data.

To accommodate different needs, the City offers early bird tune-up submissions in 2025 for any building required to complete a tune-up. Owners can either finish a tune-up or apply for an Alternative Compliance Pathway by October 30 if they demonstrate high efficiency or recent improvements in their building's performance.

Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway stated: “The Building Energy Savings Program is making a real impact by reducing energy waste and improving efficiency across Madison.” She added that with more buildings joining in 2025, the program aids owners in reducing energy costs and carbon emissions.

Benchmarking and energy tune-ups are effective methods for minimizing energy waste and emissions while saving money. Regular benchmarking can cut annual energy use by up to 10%, whereas tune-ups average a reduction of about 12%. Commercial buildings contribute approximately 45% of Madison’s greenhouse gas emissions; BESP aims to lower these emissions by over 91,000 tons of CO₂ each year—comparable to removing nearly 18,000 cars from circulation.

To assist building owners further, the City will conduct virtual training sessions over four months covering the benchmarking and reporting process comprehensively.