Governments across the country increasingly understand that to address climate change, they must decarbonize buildings.
For more than 25 years, IMT has worked hand-in-hand with policymakers to create and deploy building-focused legislation and codes that create momentum for greater building efficiency and performance. We specialize in policy approaches that raise performance expectations while providing flexible paths forward, reflect the needs of all community stakeholders, support inclusive economic opportunity, and increase resiliency and health. Policies that IMT has helped design or implement now touch more than 10 billion square feet of commercial and multifamily space across the United States.
How We Partner to Transform Policy
IMT advocates for policymaking processes that prioritize community accessibility and engagement from the beginning to identify priorities and co-design solutions. We work to give lived experience a greater seat at the table, acknowledge past harm and identify solutions to address systemic inequities, and are committed to increasing knowledge of community-wide impacts of energy-related policymaking.
Building performance standards are the most powerful policy tool available to drive better, more efficient, less carbon-intensive buildings.
Learn how we advise local leaders on building performance policy design and adoption.
IMT helps local governments move from policy passage through to implementation and results. We help bridge policymakers with stakeholders to navigate business, community, and government needs and work through the details that make or break legislative efforts.
Read about our policy implementation and compliance support.
IMT works to build effective coalitions to ensure that the knowledge, lived experience, and feedback of community members, building owners, operators, and tenants, and associated real estate and energy service providers informs and produces public policy and associated market support programs to create higher-performing, efficient, healthy buildings. Examples include our work on the Building Innovation Hub, the City Energy Project, the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code, and Community Climate Shift.
Why Partner with IMT?
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We support effective building performance policies. We support local, state, and federal government leaders in establishing pioneering building performance regulations. Thanks in part to our work, benchmarking and transparency ordinances in the U.S. now collect valuable performance data on more than 10 billion square feet of U.S. commercial space to inform building-related decisions, and more than 5 billion square feet of U.S. commercial space conducts annual energy audits and tune-ups. |
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We make it easier for buildings to implement change. We bridge policy intent with market support structures that make it easier to take action. For example, we created the Building Innovation Hub in Washington DC, to support the local real estate community in meeting the District’s building performance standards. This Hub also serves as a key industry and community support model for cities exploring building performance regulations nationwide. |
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We advocate for more efficient energy codes. We previously managed the Energy-Efficient Codes Coalition, which helped develop model code language and promote code adoption to drive building performance, decarbonization, and building-grid interaction. In 2019, the coalition rallied supporters to make the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code the most efficient in nearly a decade. Read more about our codes work. |
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We work to increase community representation in policymaking. We recognize that building solutions must center equity and are committed to producing solutions that increase community representation in policy design and implementation, reduce past harm and projected future harm, and build wealth via economic opportunity. Learn more on our commitments here. |
What Are Your Community’s Building Performance Policies?
Dive into key information at a glance about which U.S. jurisdictions have passed building-focused relationships around tracking and reducing energy use, water use, and carbon emissions.
Join IMT’s Corporate Engagement Opportunities (CEO) Program
Are you a building owner or service provider? Prepare yourself and your clients for building performance policies, avoid non compliance fees and risk from policy exposure, save time on self-education, and stay competitive in your offerings with resources from IMT’s Corporate Engagement Opportunities program.
