💼Professional Briefing - April 15, 2026

The BPS landscape continues to expand nationally, with over 40 cities expected to have standards in place by end of 2026. Key compliance deadlines hitting now:

• Washington State: Buildings over 220,000 sq ft must meet Clean Buildings Performance Standard EUI targets by mid-2026. Next year, the threshold drops to 90,000 sq ft - this is the biggest near-term compliance event in the PNW.
• Oregon: The BPS program (from HB 3409) is in active implementation. Tier 1 buildings - hotels and commercial buildings 35,000 sq ft and above - face compliance deadlines starting in 2028, with penalties up to $40,000/year. The Oregon Department of Energy just awarded ~$834,000 in Early Compliance Action grants to 50 building owners for benchmarking and energy audits. If you're advising Oregon building owners, the planning window is now.
• Colorado: Building Performance Colorado targets a 7% emissions reduction from commercial buildings by 2026 - that deadline is this year.
• NYC: Local Law 97 penalties ($268/metric ton CO2) remain the biggest financial stick in the country for buildings over 25,000 sq ft.
• Idaho: No state-level BPS. Idaho remains on the 2018 IECC with amendments. The building code board is reviewing the 2024 IECC for potential adoption, but any update needs legislative approval - don't hold your breath.

The national trend is clear: BPS is moving from policy to practice. Washington's mid-2026 deadline for large buildings is the one to watch in this region.

Avista filed for a 7.4% electric rate increase (~$25.2 million) with the Idaho PUC, proposed effective May 1, 2026. Residential customers would see bills rise about $8.90/month (from $115.54 to $124.44 for average 939 kWh usage). The increase is driven largely by energy efficiency program costs that exceeded budgets - specifically, the small business lighting direct-install program saw unprecedented participation. Avista is also accepting public comment on its 2026 wildfire mitigation plan for northern Idaho, and the Lolo-Oxbow transmission line rebuild with Idaho Power ($85M federal grant) is set to begin this year.

Idaho Power implemented new rates effective January 1, 2026 - an average 7.48% increase for Idaho customers following a general rate review. A settlement proposal is under debate, with growing concern about data center load and who bears the cost of infrastructure buildout to serve them. This is becoming a major policy issue statewide.

NEEA is deep into Year 2 of its 2025-2029 business cycle. Key 2026 initiatives include field demonstrations of dual-fuel water heating systems (potential 22% savings), field testing of a new integrated gas-electric residential water heater product due later this year, and the Hot Water Innovation Prize for compact heat pump water heaters (winners announced late 2026/early 2027, $175K each). NEEA also published Q1 2026 market progress reports covering agricultural pumps, fan manufacturers, codes, and Idaho commercial code compliance.

Big week for Idaho energy news:

• Nuclear push: Governor Little pitched Idaho to lead the federal Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campus, expected to launch in 2027 and centered on Idaho National Laboratory. This is part of Trump's "Nuclear Renaissance" initiative. Little formed the Advanced Nuclear Energy Task Force to position Idaho for nuclear investment. Critics worry about waste management liability. The workforce challenge is enormous - DOE estimates the sector needs 184,000 additional nuclear workers plus 250,000 construction workers to hit 400 GW by 2050.
• Fast-track permitting: Idaho signed an MOU with the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, committing to the FAST-41 process to align state and federal environmental review timelines for energy, mining, and infrastructure projects.
• Plug-in solar: Lawmakers are advancing a bill (modeled after Utah's HB 360) to allow plug-in solar generators for residential use. Current Idaho regulations require all home electricity to be permitted, which blocks sales of these $1K-$6K products. The bill would require UL certification and provide liability protection for utilities. Power companies are on board.
• Solar zoning: Ada County tightened zoning rules, blocking solar development on USDA-classified prime farmland and farmland of statewide/local importance.

• ASHRAE Annual Conference - June 27-July 1, 2026, JW Marriott Austin, TX. Technical program covering AI in buildings, decarbonization, and building system innovations. Registration open.
• ASHRAE Idaho Chapter - No upcoming chapter meeting details found for April. Check idahoashrae.starchapter.com for updates.