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Archives: Green Building

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Selling the Sun: Sale of a House with Solar Panels is Fraught with Peril

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Environmental, ESG, Green Building, Solar Panel
  There are more than 3 Million houses in the U.S. with solar panels installed on the roof.  The Inflation Protection Act of 2022 extended the 30% federal tax credit for residential solar panels through 2034 which is predicted to more than triple that number of solar installations. And as those houses are each year … Continue Reading

ESG is an Opportunity for Commercial Landlords

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, ESG, Green Building, Green Globes, LEED
At first blush the California Climate Corporate Accountability Act requires only a small number of the nation’s biggest corporations generating more than $1 Billion in annual revenue to report their greenhouse gas emissions, but a thoughtful consideration makes clear that if enacted SB 260 will require carbon reporting by thousands if not tens of thousands … Continue Reading

Green Buildings are Subsidizing Conventional Buildings Stymying Climate Progress

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Green Building, LEED
Green building bonds, which are higher rated and could provide cheaper capital for green building projects, can correct the current market that prices mortgages, green building or nongreen, the same, stimulating the economy and repairing the planet. The financial value of green buildings is well documented, from commanding higher rents, greater occupancy rates, and increased … Continue Reading

45L Energy Efficient Home Tax Credit Extended for 2021 by Covid Relief Bill

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Energy, Federal, Green Building, Green Globes, IgCC, LEED
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, H.R. 133, signed into law by President Trump on December 27th, extended the 45L energy efficient home $2,000 tax credit, which had been scheduled to expire last year, to cover qualified new energy efficient homes sold or leased through 2021. And yes, regular readers of this blog will notice that … Continue Reading

179D Tax Deduction Made Permanent by Covid Relief Bill

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Federal, Green Building, Green Globes, LEED
On page 4,872 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, H.R. 133, which passed both houses of Congress on December 21st and was signed into law by President Trump on December 27th, the 179D energy efficient commercial buildings federal tax deduction, which had been scheduled to expire at year end, was instead made permanent. At a … Continue Reading

New Green Building Tax Credit is a Progressive Effort

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Green Building, LEED
At a time when the building industry is principally concerned with the impact of COVID-19 and the luster is off green building, the Montgomery County Council last Tuesday unanimously approved legislation “to accelerate the construction of highly energy efficient buildings and green retrofitting of existing buildings.” Bill 10-20 dramatically upgrades the Maryland county’s existing green … Continue Reading

2018 IgCC Poised to be Adopted for the First Time

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Green Building, IgCC, LEED, Local Government
Montgomery County, Maryland is on the cusp of being the first to adopt the 2018 International Green Construction Code. The proposed Executive Regulation 12-20 appeared in the Montgomery County Register on August 1. A public hearing will be held on proposed regulation on September 3. And written comments may be submitted until October 5. Montgomery … Continue Reading

More Than Green Buildings, Green Roads

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Green Building, LEED
If green building is going to repair the planet it will have to include green roads. Over 65% of the impervious surfaces in the U.S. are related to transportation (e.g., roads, parking lots, sidewalks, and driveways), with the vast majority being roads. There are 4,180,817 miles of roads in the U.S. Roads are the largest … Continue Reading

New BREEAM In Use Version in a Changing World

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Green Building, LEED
Last week BRE Global announced that the “BREEAM USA In-Use Version 6 for Commercial and Residential” green building rating system has launched. In addition to improvements to the prior commercial building rating system BREEAM In-Use now includes residential for the first time (accepting that existing multi-family building is a very much underserved sector). An update … Continue Reading

COVID-19 and the Risk from Recirculated Air in Buildings

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Environmental, Green Building, State
The Federation of European Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Associations (REHVA) has in recent days issued guidance on how to occupy commercial and public buildings, from offices to schools, “in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.” As Americans begin to end coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdowns, which were of course intended to keep … Continue Reading

179D Tax Deduction Allocated from Government Buildings

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Energy, Environmental, Green Building
On December 20, 2019, the President signed legislation reviving the Section 179D energy efficient commercial building tax deduction and while much has been written about the much needed boost to green building, little has been said about the enormous benefits available from government owned buildings. The § 179D federal tax deduction was brought back from … Continue Reading
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