Administrative Regulations Process
The Building Energy Benchmarking and Building Performance Standards Ordinance outlines the high-level structure of the BPS policy. However, many of the details composing the policy would be captured in the future “rulemaking” process, where administrative regulations governing the BPS ordinance would be drafted.
Administrative regulations encompass a wide range of rules and guidelines governing various sections of the Santa Monica Municipal Code and would be established to implement and clarify key details of the BPS ordinance.
The rulemaking process would include ongoing engagement with technical stakeholders, building owners and the City Attorney’s Office to develop additional rules including BPS compliance, targets, enforcement, Building Performance Action Plans and exemptions. The rulemaking process would be led in part by a “technical committee” composed of owners of covered buildings, experts in areas related to sustainable design and green building, architects, engineers, utility representatives, individuals representing trade groups such as builders, contractors, electricians, HVAC technicians and others. The formation and facilitation of the technical committee would be performed by a qualified vendor selected through a formal request for proposals process.
The City’s BPS rulemaking process is anticipated to take approximately nine months, until the ordinance’s effective date of June 1st, 2026. The City is following similar processes to other jurisdictions such as Washington D.C., Denver, CO, Chula Vista, CA, Seattle, WA, City of West Hollywood and others that have implemented rules and regulations following adoption of local BPS ordinances to allow for increased flexibility.
Community Accountability Working Group
Following Council adoption of the ordinance, staff would establish a Community Accountability Working group composed of representatives of covered property owners, disinvested communities, experts in areas related to racial and social inequity, affordable housing owners/providers, and representatives from neighborhood groups or Community-Based Organizations. The community accountability working group would function as an informal oversight committee and undertake responsibilities such as:
guiding the development of sufficient administrative regulations to equitably implement the BPS policy, developing plans for management of the BPS fund (see section below on BPS fund), reviewing impacts of the BPS policy on disinvested communities and advising the BPAP process to ensure equitable outcomes for covered property owners.