Washington State Mandates Building Electrification
Washington State has become the first U.S. state to require building electrification mandates in statewide energy codes, according to the website spglobal.com. The Washington State Building Code Council (SBCC) voted 11-3 to include the mandates in an update to the state’s commercial energy code, the article reports.
Beginning in 2023, the state will require electric heat pumps for space and water heating in new commercial buildings.
Some healthcare facilities, including detoxification facilities, hospitals, nursing homes, and psychiatric hospitals, are exempt due to requirements for back-up power that would likely require the use of fossil fuel, according to the Washington State Department of Enterprise Services (Olympia, Wash.).
According to the article, several other states including California and New York are considering building code updates to drive electrification.