The following is a press release from AIA commending the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s proposed Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act (H.R. 4447).

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) commends the House Committee on Energy and Commerce’s newly released energy package promoting a host of climate action initiatives.

The Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act (H.R. 4447)—proposed this week—includes input from the AIA to the committee over the last year, including testimony from architect Julie Hiromoto, AIA.

“Energy efficiency and energy sourcing are not a replacement for one another. We must address both,” said Hiromoto—who is a principal and director at HKS Architects—during her testimony to the committee. “It is of paramount importance that buildings be built and renovated to consume less energy, and wherever possible, buildings should produce clean energy to put back into the energy grid. This is a mathematical necessity if this Committee is going to achieve its announced goal of a zero-carbon economy by 2050, but it is also more possible than ever before.”

AIA energy priorities supported by the legislation include:

  • Establishing building training and assessment centers to provide support for architects and other professions in the building industry to learn new energy efficient design and technological best practices.
  • Amending Section 304 of the Energy Conservation and Production Act (ECPA) to require the secretary of energy to encourage and support the adoption of building codes by states and municipalities, and again provide training and technical assistance support for impacted building industry professions.
  • Re-establishing the energy efficiency targets of the ECPA with an updated baseline year. Specifically, the legislation proposes requiring new federal buildings, “be designed to achieve energy consumption levels that are not less than 30 percent below the levels established in the most recently published version of the International Energy Conservation Code or the ASHRAE Standard, as of the date of enactment of the Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act.”
  • Maintaining the current requirement for federal buildings to phase out the use of fossil fuels by 2030.

Complete details of the proposed legislation can be reviewed online. Visit AIA’s website to learn more about its advocacy efforts.