CITY OF SAN MATEO
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CITY OF SAN MATEO
Agenda Report
City Hall
330 W. 20th Avenue
San Mateo CA 94403
www.cityofsanmateo.org
Agenda Number: 28 Section Name: {{section.name}} Account Number: 10-1311 File ID: {{item.tracking_number}} TO: City Council
FROM: Alex Khojikian, City Manager
PREPARED BY: City Manager's Office
MEETING DATE: July 28, 2025
SUBJECT:
Electrify San Mateo Sustainable Building Strategy – Adoption RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt a Resolution to adopt the Electrify San Mateo Sustainable Building Strategy establishing policy direction for decarbonizing existing buildings in San Mateo.
BACKGROUND:
Building energy use represents 38 percent of communitywide greenhouse gas emissions in San Mateo. Building electrification refers to the transition from gas equipment to electric equipment for space and water heating, clothes drying, cooking, and more. While natural gas is a fossil fuel, Peninsula Clean Energy (PCE) provides carbon-free electricity communitywide. Electrifying existing buildings is critical to reducing communitywide greenhouse gas emissions and is a key strategy in attaining the objectives contained in the City’s adopted Climate Action Plan. To continue to advance existing building electrification to meet the City Council decarbonization priority, City staff began working with Rincon Consultants to develop the Electrify San Mateo: Sustainability Building Strategy. The project team completed a building inventory and market segmentation analysis that was presented at the September 13, 2023, Sustainability and Infrastructure Commission meeting. After completing Phase I of community engagement, the project culminated in the identification of five potential policy pathways that were presented at the January 16, 2024 City Council meeting. City Council directed the project team to conduct community engagement on all five policy pathways to determine overall feasibility and support from the community.
On June 16, 2025, the project team presented community feedback and other information on the five policy pathways and City Council directed which of them to include in the final Electrify San Mateo Sustainable Building Strategy. City Council directed staff to continue a “business as usual” approach which includes new construction reach codes and a continued emphasis on incentives and outreach. City Council also directed development of a municipal electric first policy with exception language for public safety and life cycle costs. City Council also requested more evaluation, data analysis, and community engagement for reach codes for renovations and building performance standards for commercial buildings.
City Council did not recommend proceeding with Zero Nox standards ahead of the Bay Area Air District.
On June 30, 2025, California Assembly Bill (AB) 130 was signed into law restricting local governments from amending residential state building codes between October 1, 2025 through June 1, 2031. This bill does not appear to impact the City’s currently adopted reach codes requiring energy performance margins for new construction. The final language in the bill includes some exceptions that allow for the adoption of reach codes after October 1, 2025. Staff is in the process of evaluating reach code approaches while ensuring compliance with AB 130.
Staff recommends adoption of the proposed resolution to adopt the Electrify San Mateo Sustainable Building Strategy to formalize the June 16, 2025 City Council direction on how to advance decarbonization policy efforts for existing buildings.
CITY OF SAN MATEO
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This action would complete City Council Priority #1: Establish policies to decarbonize existing buildings and infrastructure and eliminate methane gas use by 2030.
BUDGET IMPACT:
The development of the Electrify San Mateo Sustainable Building Strategy was funded by an appropriation from the available fund balance in the Advance Planning Fund (Fund 225) and had no impact on the City’s General Fund.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION:
This plan adoption is not a project subject to CEQA, because it is an organizational or administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment. (CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(5).)
NOTICE PROVIDED
All meeting noticing requirements were met.
ATTACHMENTS
Att 1 - Proposed Resolution
Att 2 - Electrify San Mateo Sustainable Building Strategy
STAFF CONTACT
Andrea Chow, Sustainability Analyst
[email protected]
(650) 522-7007