In August, 2011, the California Energy Commission set forth a draft of proposed regulations that will affect nonresidential property owners in California. The draft regulations were developed for several reasons including promoting energy efficiency in the state of California. The proposed regulations will require benchmarking of a building’s energy use, prior to certain financial transactions, to be disclosed to lenders, buyers and lessees who are looking to finance, buy or lease a nonresidential property. These regulations will also require the disclosure of the prior 12 months of energy use by the utilities that provide services to the building.

The California Energy Commission will set forth a schedule of implementation that is based on the square footage of the building. There will also be a list of disclosures that building owners will have to provide; these include the Statement of Energy Performance, Data Checklist, Disclosure Summary Sheet and the Facility Summary. Building owners will also be required to open an account through the EPA’s ENERGY STAR® program Portfolio Manager website