ACEEE Study on Federal Home Efficiency Requirements

In May 2022, ACEEE released a report analyzing the impacts of updating federally efficiency requirements for new homes receiving federally-backed mortgages or qualifying for federal programs. Congress directed federal agencies to periodically update efficiency criteria for new homes purchased with the support of federally backed mortgages and federal housing programs. But the regulators have not updated the criteria for most of the homes since 2015. Modelers estimate that requiring that new homes receiving federal support meet the latest model building energy codes could:

• Yield $5,700 in lifetime net savings for the average household and $27 billion in total net savings (present value)
• Create 838,000 jobs (net added job-years)
• Avoid 275 million tons of CO2 emissions, equivalent to the carbon from 59 million cars and light trucks for a year
• Slightly reduce the number of households with high housing cost burdens
• Requiring that homes meet new ENERGY STAR® efficiency levels would almost double the savings.