In Evanston, 80% of greenhouse gas emissions come from existing buildings. In order for Evanston to meet the goals outlined in the Climate Action and Resilience Plan (CARP) existing buildings need to make significant reductions in their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In December, 2016 the Evanston City Council voted to approve the energy and water benchmarking ordinance which requires large buildings in Evanston to track and report their annual energy and water usage. 

Benchmarking Compliance

The ordinance requires that covered buildings report their data to the City on an annual basis, by June 30 of each year. The next deadline is June 30, 2020.

Report Your Data

Ordinance Information

Full Ordinance Text

Workshops and Office Hours (coming soon)

Supporting materials for the Evanston Benchmarking compliance process, ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, and ComEd Energy Usage Data System. Find information about workshops and training sessions.

Compliance Process

1. Step 1 - Benchmark Your Property
2. Step 2 - Verify Your Data
3. Step 3 - Report Your Data

Resources and Guidance

• Evanston Benchmarking Guide - Step-by-step guide on how to comply with the ordinance
• Compliance Checklist - Two page document covering high-level compliance steps
• ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Login Page
• ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager Account Sign up Page
• Request Form - Online form to submit a request for an exemption, Evanston Building ID, building reclassification and pro-bono data verification.
• Data Verification Professionals - Online database of professional organizations with the ability to conduct data verification 
• Covered Buildings

Ordinance Background

Learn more about the community engagement and political process involved in developing the ordinance that took place in 2015 and 2016.

Ordinance Background