EBEWE · OWNER GUIDES
EBEWE Annual Benchmarking & ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager
Good energy benchmarking starts with a complete building record. Annual reporting is separate from an energy audit, but the same utility records can help your team understand energy efficiency, water efficiency and the evidence available for EBEWE exemption screening.
Who is covered by EBEWE energy benchmarking?
The ordinance covers privately owned Los Angeles buildings of 20,000 square feet or more and City-owned buildings of 7,500 square feet or more, subject to its scope and exclusions. It also covers buildings of 20,000 square feet or more owned by a local agency of the state that must comply with the City’s building ordinances. Do not confuse benchmarking coverage with the 15,000-square-foot A/RCx threshold for City-owned buildings.
Covered properties can include apartment buildings, office buildings, retail properties and mixed-use buildings. Building use and floor area should be checked against the actual records, not assumed from an address or a marketing listing. LADBS’s ordinance guidance clarifies that the private-building threshold includes buildings of exactly 20,000 square feet. If a notice appears inconsistent with your records, ask LADBS to review it.
Plan around the annual EBEWE benchmarking deadline
LADBS requires covered buildings to benchmark by June 1 each year for the preceding calendar year. The reporting period is January through December, not a rolling year chosen to match an audit visit. Keep that annual reporting calendar separate from the building’s recurring A/RCx compliance year. Check your notice and current LADBS alerts for building-specific instructions.
Gather whole-building data for Portfolio Manager
LADBS requires whole-building utility usage for the entire calendar year: electricity, indoor and outdoor water, natural gas if the building has a gas meter, and energy generated by solar panels that is not part of an electrical bill. Prepare the property address, gross floor area, property use information and LA City Building ID. Review the meter inventory so a common-area account is not mistaken for the whole building.
Tenant-paid utilities do not remove the benchmarking obligation. LADBS explains that owners can request the necessary information from utility companies. Shared meters, several buildings at one site or records from a previous manager deserve careful review. Follow utility data-access procedures; do not assume that you can directly obtain every tenant’s individual account information.
Use ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager and confirm the filing
ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager is the EPA’s online tool used for EBEWE benchmarking and reporting. LADBS’s annual instructions call for registering the building, paying the annual registration fee and submitting the report through Portfolio Manager. Add the Los Angeles Building ID to the property details, use the appropriate reporting-year submission link, and run the Data Quality Checker to resolve missing or incorrect energy and water meter information.
Keep the submission receipt, then confirm the City’s record. LADBS warns that a Portfolio Manager receipt alone does not establish compliance. The Building ID and ZIP code must match the notice, and the registration, payment and reporting steps must address the correct year. Review the official compliance status and follow up with LADBS if the records do not agree.
Connect benchmarking to your EBEWE energy audit or exemption review
Annual benchmarking measures and reports usage; an energy audit examines equipment and systems. Completing one does not automatically complete the other. LADBS also states that a benchmarking exemption does not automatically provide an A/RCx exemption, or vice versa. For an energy exemption relying on ENERGY STAR certification, Portfolio Manager records can be important evidence, but a submitted benchmark report is not itself a certification.
EBEWE questions owners ask
When is annual EBEWE benchmarking due?
Covered buildings must benchmark by June 1 every year for the preceding January-through-December calendar year, according to LADBS. Check the notice and current City alerts for specific instructions.
What size buildings must benchmark?
Subject to ordinance scope and exclusions, privately owned buildings of 20,000 sq ft or more and City-owned buildings of 7,500 sq ft or more are covered. Certain local-agency buildings of 20,000 sq ft or more are also covered.
Is benchmarking an energy audit?
No. Benchmarking reports annual usage in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. A/RCx is a separate EBEWE requirement addressing audits and retro-commissioning or applicable exemptions.
Do tenant-paid utilities need to be included?
Yes. LADBS says tenant-paid utilities do not remove the need to benchmark the building. Follow the utility companies’ procedures to obtain whole-building data.
Does a submission receipt prove compliance?
Not by itself. LADBS requires registration, payment of the annual fee and the correct benchmark report. Verify the City’s record as well as keeping the Portfolio Manager receipt.
START WITH YOUR BUILDING
Plan your next EBEWE compliance step.
Send the address, Building ID and available records. We’ll review what needs attention and explain the appropriate scope. Check your A/RCx schedule while you gather the details.