This commentary is by Richard Faesy, of Starksboro. He is a principal and co-founder of the Energy Futures Group.
Building more affordable houses for Vermonters is in everyone’s interest. However, making sure that homes are energy efficient, healthy, durable and resilient so that they remain affordable over their lifetime is equally as important. Instead of only looking at the first cost, considering the year-over-year energy operating costs would also provide the best indication of true home ownership costs. Financing a little more upfront for an energy efficient home can pay for itself with energy savings that more than offset any increase in monthly mortgage payments.
Vermont energy codes are developed with just this approach in mind; only those measures that more than pay for themselves in energy cost savings are included. Reverting back to the 2020 Residential Building Energy Standards (RBES) energy code actually makes housing less affordable than building to the more cost-effective 2024 RBES. This energy code rollback, ordered by Gov. Phil Scott on Sept. 17, not only makes housing less affordable but also means that the state will need to find other potentially more costly ways to meet our climate goals.
However, while Scott’s executive order is a setback, it could also provide an opportunity to level an uneven playing field for all builders and new construction.
If Vermont is serious about providing affordable housing, we need to ensure that all homes are at least built to the 2020 RBES energy code. Past market assessment surveys conducted by the Vermont Department of Public Service have shown declining RBES compliance rates over the time; the most recent study, looking at homes built between 2017 and 2021, shows that only about half of new homes were built to the 2015 RBES, two code cycles behind today’s standards. This is a disservice to homeowners who are paying too much in energy costs and is unfair to those law-abiding builders who choose to build to the current energy codes.
Vermont’s lack of an “authority having jurisdiction” over all energy codes means there is no state agency enforcing the energy codes, resulting in our abysmal energy code compliance rates. Besides home buyers paying higher energy bills, builders can compete on home prices by building sub-standard homes and undercutting their legally compliant competition.
Naming a state agency such as the Division of Fire Safety to oversee both energy and building codes for all buildings in Vermont — and not just “public buildings” as is currently the case — while establishing a code enforcement system would provide consumer protection. It would also make sure all builders are playing by the same rules, make gains towards our climate goals and ensure that all of the homes our state needs to build are truly “affordable.”
