Solving the Climate Crisis: Cleaner, Stronger Buildings
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SOLVING THE CLIMATE CRISIS: CLEANER, STRONGER BUILDINGS HEARING BEFORE THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE CLIMATE CRISIS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED SIXTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION HEARING HELD OCTOBER 17, 2019 Serial No. 116–11 ( www.govinfo.gov Printed for the use of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 38–974 WASHINGTON : 2020 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:40 Feb 18, 2020 Jkt 038974 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 E:\HR\OC\A974.XXX A974 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with HEARING SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE CLIMATE CRISIS ONE HUNDRED SIXTEENTH CONGRESS KATHY CASTOR, Florida, Chair BEN RAY LUJA´ N, New Mexico GARRET GRAVES, Louisiana, SUZANNE BONAMICI, Oregon Ranking Member JULIA BROWNLEY, California MORGAN GRIFFITH, Virginia JARED HUFFMAN, California GARY PALMER, Alabama A. DONALD MCEACHIN, Virginia BUDDY CARTER, Georgia MIKE LEVIN, California CAROL MILLER, West Virginia SEAN CASTEN, Illinois KELLY ARMSTRONG, North Dakota JOE NEGUSE, Colorado ANA UNRUH COHEN, Majority Staff Director MARTY HALL, Minority Staff Director climatecrisis.house.gov (II) VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:40 Feb 18, 2020 Jkt 038974 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 E:\HR\OC\A974.XXX A974 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with HEARING C O N T E N T S STATEMENTS OF MEMBERS OF CONGRESS Page Hon. Kathy Castor, a Representative in Congress from the State of Florida, and Chair, Select Committee on the Climate Crisis: Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 1 Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 3 Hon. Garret Graves, a Representative in Congress from the State of Lou- isiana, and Ranking Member, Select Committee on the Climate Crisis: Opening Statement ........................................................................................... 4 WITNESSES Anica Landreneau, Senior Principal, Director of Sustainable Design, HOK Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 6 Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 8 Kara Saul Rinaldi, Vice President of Government Affairs, Policy, and Pro- grams, Building Performance Association Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 38 Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 40 James Rutland, President, Lowder Homes, on behalf of National Association of Home Builders Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 48 Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 50 Khalil Shahyd, Senior Policy Advocate, Healthy People/Thriving Commu- nities, Natural Resources Defense Council Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 59 Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 61 Roy Wright, President, Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety Oral Statement ................................................................................................. 68 Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 69 SUBMISSIONS FOR THE RECORD Report, Energy Efficiency Jobs in America, submitted for the record by Ms. Castor .................................................................................................................... 93 Report, Implementing an Outcome-Based Compliance Path in Energy Codes: Guidance for Cities, submitted for the record by Ms. Castor ........................... 93 Report, Understanding Code Change Proposal CE264–19: Zero Code Renew- able Energy Appendix, submitted for the record by Ms. Castor ....................... 93 Letter from PG&E, submitted for the record by Ms. Castor ................................ 93 APPENDIX Questions for the Record from Hon. Kathy Castor to Anica Landreneau .......... 96 Question for the Record from Hon. Garret Graves to Anica Landreneau ........... 104 Questions for the Record from Hon. Kathy Castor to Kara Saul Rinaldi ........... 113 Questions for the Record from Hon. Garret Graves to James Rutland .............. 120 Questions for the Record from Hon. Kathy Castor to Khalil Shahyd ................. 123 Questions for the Record from Hon. Kathy Castor to Roy Wright ...................... 127 Question for the Record from Hon. Garret Graves to Roy Wright ...................... 129 (III) VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:40 Feb 18, 2020 Jkt 038974 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 E:\HR\OC\A974.XXX A974 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with HEARING VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:40 Feb 18, 2020 Jkt 038974 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 E:\HR\OC\A974.XXX A974 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with HEARING SOLVING THE CLIMATE CRISIS: CLEANER, STRONGER BUILDINGS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2019 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE CLIMATE CRISIS, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to call, at 9:03 a.m., in Room 2020, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Kathy Castor [chairwoman of the committee] presiding. Present: Representatives Castor, Bonamici, Brownley, Huffman, Casten, Graves, Griffith, Palmer, Carter, and Miller. Ms. CASTOR. The committee will come to order. The chair is authorized to declare a recess at any time of this committee, without objection. I would like to start off the committee hearing this morning with a moment of silence for one of our colleagues. We have very heavy hearts this morning due to the passing of our colleague, Congress- man Elijah Cummings of Maryland. He was a champion for the people, an outspoken advocate for fairness, equality. He was a true hero to his district in the Balti- more area, and everyone can take a page out of his life. So would you join me at this time in a moment of silence for this great American champion? [Moment of silence.] Ms. CASTOR. Thank you. Well, good morning, everyone. This year, our committee has discussed ways to reduce emissions in the transportation sector, the power sector, the industrial sector. And, today, we are looking at the building sector. Whether it is houses or apartment complexes or office buildings, the places where we live and work use a lot of energy, and they are responsible for a significant share of carbon pollution. In fact, just last year, residential and commercial buildings were the source of more than one-fourth of all carbon dioxide emissions in the United States. When Americans think of pollution, they usually think of smoke- stacks, but the reality is more complicated. About three-fourths of electricity sold in the United States is used in building, and nat- ural gas, oil, and propane are used to heat up showers or keep homes and offices warm. Even the manufacturing, transportation, and construction of building materials are contributing to carbon pollution. The climate crisis also leaves us with a resiliency problem. Many existing homes, businesses, and hospitals were not built to with- (1) VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:40 Feb 18, 2020 Jkt 038974 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 E:\HR\OC\A974.XXX A974 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with HEARING 2 stand the sorts of extreme events made worse by climate change, including extreme heat, flooding, storms, and wildfires. Over the last decade, extreme weather events have caused more than $750 billion in damage, with many of these losses occurring to buildings. We have a big challenge before us. In the United States, most of the homes and commercial buildings that we have right now will remain standing in 2050. They have already been built. By that year, scientists say we need to have hit zero net emissions to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis. We need nothing short of an ambitious national plan to make sure new buildings are net- zero energy—that is, that they produce as much energy as they use. We also need to help property owners and business owners make existing buildings more energy-efficient, helping them rely more and more on clean energy rather than on fossil fuels. Of course, we must also work to make sure our homes and build- ings don’t end up as storm debris, and that starts by making them resilient to the physical impacts of climate change. In Florida, we saw the importance of strong building design codes and standards in the devastating aftermath of Category 5 Hurricane Michael that hit the Florida panhandle. The storm leveled many homes, but some were able to withstand the strong winds and the flooding be- cause they incorporated more resilient building techniques. There is also an economic incentive to act. More resilient and ef- ficient buildings not only pollute less, they also cost less to operate and to insure. That is more money in the pockets of homeowners and business owners across America. When we talk about con- structing new buildings and retrofitting old ones, that means con- struction jobs—lots of well-paying, often unionized jobs. Many inno- vations already have been developed by businesses large and small, entrepreneurs, and our academic research centers and more, and we need to scale them up. Buildings are the foundation of our communities, so it is not sur- prising that State and local governments have taken the lead in de- veloping a climate smart-building policy. In May,