by Shane Henson — June 29, 2012—The Better Buildings Challenge, an initiative led by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to support commercial and industrial building owners by providing technical assistance and proven solutions to advance energy efficiency, recently gained even more momentum as 36 new states, local governments, and school districts announced their participation in the program.
The Challenge is part of the Better Buildings Initiative launched in February 2011 by President Barack Obama to support job creation by catalyzing private sector investment in commercial and industrial building energy upgrades. The initiative is spearheaded by former President Clinton and the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, with the goal of making America’s buildings 20% more efficient over the next decade, which is expected to help reduce energy costs for American businesses by nearly $40 billion. Last year, commercial buildings consumed roughly 20% of all the energy used by the U.S. economy, says the DOE. The first 14 Challenge partners were announced at the Clinton Global Initiative’s CGI America meeting last June.
According to the DOE, these new commitments total nearly 300 million square feet in job-creating building-energy upgrades, equivalent to more than 130 Empire State Buildings. The following states, communities and school districts have now joined the Better Buildings Challenge:
- States: Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina
- Counties: Hall County, GA; Kitsap County, WA; New Castle County, DE; Placer County, CA; Sonoma County, CA; Thurston County, WA; Will County, IL
- Cities and Towns: Arvada, CO; Beaverton, OR; Cleveland, OH; Columbia, MO; East Hartford, CT; City of El Paso, TX; City of Fort Worth, TX; Town of Huntington, NY; City of Knoxville, TN; City of Medford, MA; Town of North Smithfield, RI; City of Omaha, NE; City of Pittsburgh, PA; City of Roanoke, VA; City of Rochester, NY; City of Santa Fe, NM; City of Toledo, Ohio with Toledo Port Authority; City of West Palm Beach, FL; City of Worcester, MA
- School Districts: Camas County, Washington School District; District of Columbia Public Schools, Washington, DC; Dysart, Arizona Public Schools; Fort Atkinson School District, Jefferson County, Wisconsin; Mesa County Schools, Colorado; Portland, Oregon Public Schools
- Counties: Hall County, GA; Kitsap County, WA; New Castle County, DE; Placer County, CA; Sonoma County, CA; Thurston County, WA; Will County, IL
