Participating building owners can enter energy use data into a free online program. The program is called Energy Star Portfolio Manager. Owners will enter data before reporting to the city.
Building owners have access to step-by-step guidance to help make this process easier. Guidance documents and instructional videos are included.
Building owners can:
- Get their unique building ID for this program
- Enter their building data into the online Energy Star Portfolio Manager
- Report their data to the city by June 1 each year
The Efficient Buildings Collaborative provides free technical support to help building owners set up and automate energy tracking required for reporting. Compliance with benchmarking ordinances does not require the purchase of any software or services.
Trainings
There are a number of training sessions offered based on where your building is located. Each training session will cover the basics of the city’s ordinance, how to benchmark using ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, and how to submit a benchmarking report to the city.
2023 training sessions
There are currently no additional training sessions scheduled for 2023.
Compliance checklist for Efficient Buildings Collaborative
Building owners can use this checklist to comply with the Efficient Buildings Collaborative using ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager.
Step 1: Create an account in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager and add your building(s)
Affected building owners must complete this prior to entering annual energy data:
1) Create a Portfolio Manager account.
2) Add building(s) to your account. In “My Portfolio,” click “Add a Property” and follow the instructions on how to add a building. You can also watch a video for instructions on creating an account and adding your buildings (YouTube).
3) If your building has a parking area or parking garage, find more information on how to set those up on the EnergyStar Portfolio website.
Step 2: Find and attach your MN Efficient Buildings Collaborative ID
Each building that must report energy and/or water performance has a unique ID called the MN Efficient Buildings Collaborative ID. Adding this ID to your building ensures the data you report connects to the correct building during compliance checks.
Affected building owners must find and attach their ID prior to entering annual energy data.
To see if your building is required to comply with the Efficient Building Collaborative view the covered buildings list. You can sort the data by city and search for your building by address. There you’ll find your building’s EBC ID and assessor reported square footage. View the covered buildings list.
Add the ID to your building’s profile in Portfolio Manager under ‘Details’ > ‘Unique Identifiers’ > ‘Standard IDs’ > ‘MN Efficient Buildings Collaborative ID (EBC)’.
Watch an video for instructions on adding the ID to your building's profile (YouTube).
Step 3: Enter your whole-building energy data (not including water)
Building owners must annually report whole-building energy data by June 1. The report must cover the previous calendar year (January 1 – December 31). This includes whole-building energy consumption of electricity, natural gas, solar, district steam, district chilled water, etc.
For the fuels that Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy provide, you may set-up automatic upload of aggregated whole-building energy data directly into Portfolio Manager, using their tools.
Instructions on how to set-up automatic upload:
Manual entry is required for all other energy sources but may be used for Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy. Watch a video for instructions on this process (YouTube).
Step 4: Enter your whole-building water data
Depending on your city’s requirements, you may also need to report whole-building water data by June 1 for the previous calendar year (January 1 – December 31).
Step 5: Run the data quality checker
Complete this step only after all energy (and possibly water) data for the entire calendar year is in Portfolio Manager.
Step 6: Submit your data to the city
Submit your data by June 1:
Exemption requests
Buildings may be exempt from submitting their benchmarking data.
Exemption criteria may vary by city but can include:
- The building is experiencing financial distress/hardship*
- The building is under 50% occupied
- The property does not have a certificate of occupancy or temporary certificate of occupancy for all twelve (12) months of the calendar year for which benchmarking is required
*There is specific criteria that needs to be met in order for this exemption to apply. Please see the exemption form or ordinance language for more detail
Depending on the exemption request supporting documentation and written explanation may be required.
Exemptions are only valid for one reporting year and must be resubmitted each year.
Watch a video on filing an exemption (YouTube).
File an exemption request.
Additional user guides
ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Resources:
Recorded virtual training sessions:
Contacts
Efficient Buildings Collaborative Help Desk