💼Professional Briefing - April 29, 2026

The compliance calendar continues to compress. No new state or major-city BPS adoptions have been announced this week - the news is all in the existing deadlines.

• Washington CBPS Tier 1 - June 1, 2026 (33 days out). Commercial buildings over 220,000 sq ft must meet EUI targets. Tier 2 (20,000–50,000 sq ft) reporting is July 1, 2027 but the O&M plan and EMP must be in place by July 1, 2026. Documentation that's still in draft this week is going to be very hard to clean up by month-end - push owners for sign-off this week, not next.
• Oregon ODOE - portal migration starts Friday, May 1. ODOE's Property Inventory List (the current home for building owner data) closes May 1 while data is moved to the new compliance platform. The new platform - and the first version of the actual compliance/exemption forms - is targeted for July 1, 2026. Practical effect: any data you still need to view or export from the old inventory should be pulled this week. CY2025 reports were already due April 22 (Early Compliance Action incentive closed April 10).
• Colorado - June 1 reporting deadline (33 days out). Interim performance requirement waived this cycle; reporting still required. Penalties this cycle can run up to $577 for a first violation.
• Philadelphia Tier 1 - June 1, 2026 (33 days out). First compliance year for buildings over 220,000 sq ft. Out-of-region but worth flagging if you advise multi-market owners.
• New Orleans - first compliance year began January 1, 2026 for buildings 50,000+ sq ft; ongoing reporting deadline is May 31 annually. Niche, but on the radar for any Gulf-region work.
• Idaho - Still on 2020 IECC with amendments. No state BPS. The 2026 legislative session adjourned April 2 without advancing the 2024 IECC package.

Washington 2024 code adoption - still delayed to August 21, 2026 (effective May 3, 2027), per the State Building Code Council's January 23 vote. No movement this week. WA jurisdictions can plan to current code through Q1 2027.

Penalty exposure across the nine jurisdictions with BPS laws in effect still ranges from $100/day to $577 first-violation civil penalty (Colorado) to $268/ton CO₂ (NYC).

Avista 7.4% electric rate increase - May 1 effective date (2 days out). Energy efficiency rider increase (~$25.2M, ~$8.90/month residential). No reconsideration filings have moved the May 1 date. North-Idaho clients on net-30 utility billing will see the bump in their May invoice.

Avista / Ford Hydro PPA - IPUC modified-procedure review (Order No. 37009). Three-year PPA replaces the agreement expiring June 30, 2026; if approved, the new term runs July 1, 2026 – June 30, 2029. Public comment window closes around May 11 (21 days from the April 20 service date); reply comments due around May 18. Low-drama small-hydro deal, but worth tracking if you follow Avista's resource portfolio.

Idaho Power PCA - June 1 effective date (33 days out). 3.02% average increase, driven by low snowpack and reduced hydro forecast. Combined with the Fixed Cost Adjustment, IPUC's reported impact on a typical residential customer (900 kWh/month) is about $3.64/month, or 3.15%. This stacks on top of the 7.48% general rate increase that took effect January 1. Cumulative 2026 pressure on commercial operators in Idaho Power territory is real - flag to clients tracking energy budgets.

Idaho Power wildfire mitigation plan - approved April 14 (IPUC order). Avista's parallel plan finished its comment window April 16. Both utilities are on the record for fire-season hardening this summer; relevant for portfolios in high-fire-risk corridors.

NEEA - Quiet week. Q1 Emerging Technology Newsletter is still the active content - dual-fuel residential water heater field testing scheduled for later in 2026, LLLC-to-HVAC integration field sites continuing.

HB 911 (Electricity, New Large Loads) - now law. Sponsored by Reps. Mickelsen and Veile. Establishes a PUC approval process for any new electrical load of 50 MW or more at a single service entrance. Requires utility service contracts to include a "no harm test" for existing customers, plus cost allocation, financial security, and dispute resolution terms. Direct response to Micron- and data-center-scale demand on the Treasure Valley. If you're advising on a project that crosses 50 MW, the approval path is now formalized - start the regulatory clock earlier than you used to.

Ada County solar ordinance - still awaiting Board of Commissioners decision. No P&Z final write-up has been published online since the Friday, April 24 hearing. Final decision still expected in May. The amended language going into the hearing softened the prime-farmland prohibition to "strongly discourages" solar on prime farmland, farmland of statewide importance, and farmland of local importance - the difference between a hard ban and a planning hurdle. Watch the County's staff report once it posts.

Idaho net-metering - Reminder: the IPUC's September 30, 2025 order cut Idaho Power's residential solar export rates by 31%, and the next formal opportunity to comment is April 2028, after Idaho Power's next required update. Anyone weighing residential PV economics for a 2026–2027 client should have this in hand.

Nuclear Innovation Campus - Federal competition still open. Idaho's application went in March 31; award target 2027. No movement this week.

• ASHRAE Idaho Tech Conference - Friday, May 1 (2 days out), 8:00 AM–5:00 PM, Boise Centre on the Grove (850 W Front St). Doors at 7:30 AM, breakfast at 8:00. Two keynotes, three breakouts, vendor exhibits. The chapter recommends downloading the ASHRAE Regions App for the program. Register through the event-page link, not the StarChapter "Register Now" button.
• ULI Spring Meeting (national) - May 5–7, Nashville.
• ASHRAE Presidential Visit - May 18, 10:30 AM, Esther Simplot Park Pavilion. Lecture + Hawaiian BBQ.
• ASHRAE Idaho Golf Tournament - June 5, Eagle Hills Golf Course.
• ASHRAE Annual Conference - June 27–July 1, JW Marriott Austin, TX. AI-in-buildings and decarbonization tracks.

The chapter calendar past the April YEA Geothermal Walking Tour is currently sparse on the public site beyond the Tech Conference and Presidential Visit - the May 18 presidential visit appears to be the next standing chapter event after Friday.