Climate Commitment Act at work in communities:
Commerce awards nearly $8 million to help assess, aid local governments in addressing clean buildings requirements
Grants to Association of Washington Cities and Washington State Association of Counties to pay for energy audits, collect cost data on government buildings
OLYMPIA, WA – The Washington State Department of Commerce today announced grants of $3.88 million each to the Association of Washington Cities (AWC) and Washington Association of Counties (WSAC) to pay for energy audits and collect data on the costs of compliance with the Washington Clean Buildings Performance Standard for city and county-owned buildings.
The associations will provide outreach to their members, including guidance on energy auditor selection and contracting, and provide grants to cities for energy audits. They will also collect cost data and other metrics for reports due to the Washington Legislature in December 2025.
“We are pleased to partner with AWC and WSAC in this program funded through Washington’s Climate Commitment Act,” said Commerce Director Michael Fong. “Their work will be key to helping cities and counties advance our collective efforts to realize the full potential of clean buildings to increase energy efficiency, cost savings and environmental benefits in communities statewide.”
“The grant provides much-needed funding for cities as they work to meet Washington’s decarbonization goals,” said AWC Government Relations Director Candace Bock. “In addition, the results of the audits will help increase understanding of the extent of the costs for cities across Washington to comply with the state’s Clean Buildings Performance Standard.”
AWC’s Energy Audit Grant program will launch on Sept. 13 and remain open through Jan. 31, 2025. Cities that own qualifying buildings are eligible to apply for assistance. Visit the AWC grant program webpage or contact [email protected] for more information.
“WSAC appreciates the opportunity to partner with the state in distributing these funds to our 39 member counties,” said Curtis Steinhauer. WSAC policy analyst and grant program manager. “Meeting the performance standard of the Washington State Clean Buildings Act will be a challenge for counties and WSAC is working to advocate for our members and connect them with needed resources. We look forward to this and future opportunities to partner with the state in this important work.”
WSAC’s grant program is available now. Any county can apply for funds by submitting an inventory of county-owned qualifying buildings. Interested counties can find information on WSAC’s grant program webpage or reach out to Curtis Steinhauer at [email protected].
Greening the built environment
Buildings are the most rapidly growing source of greenhouse gas emissions in Washington. The buildings sector is the state’s second-biggest carbon polluter behind transportation, accounting for more than a quarter of statewide emissions. Investment in building energy efficiency is the most cost-efficient way to achieve significant reductions in these greenhouse gas emissions.
The objective of Washington’s Clean Buildings law is to lower costs and pollution from fossil fuel consumption in existing covered buildings, multifamily buildings, and campus district energy systems. Under the law, buildings of 20,000 square feet or more have specific reporting requirements and deadlines to comply with the Clean Buildings Performance Standard beginning in June 2026.
Commerce has technical and other assistance, including early adopter financial incentives, available to building owners. For more information on incentives, visit Commerce’s website.
This grant funding to assist cities and counties comes from Washington’s Climate Commitment Act (CCA). The CCA supports Washington’s climate action efforts by putting cap-and-invest dollars to work reducing climate pollution, creating jobs, and improving public health. Information about the CCA is available at www.climate.wa.gov.
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