APARTMENT ADVOCATE
NATIONAL APARTMENT ASSOCIATION /
NATIONAL MULTIFAMILY HOUSING COUNCIL
Budget Agreement Extends Energy Efficiency
Tax Incentives
A
s part of the budget
agreement reached on
February 7 to keep the
government open, two tax
incentives that support energy efficiency
investments in apartments, which expired
in 2016, were renewed through 2017.
The Energy Efficient Commercial
Buildings Deduction allows owners of
buildings with four or more stories to
deduct between $0.60 and $1.80 per
square foot when they install certain
energy efficient systems, including HVAC,
lighting, and building envelope.
The New Energy Efficient Home Credit
enables developers of new low-rise rental
housing properties (three stories or less)
to claim a $2,000 per-unit tax credit if
those residences achieve a 50 percent
energy savings for heating and cooling
over the 2006 International Energy
Conservation Code.
NMHC/NAA believe that
lawmakers should not only permanently
extend both of these tax incentives,
but they should also enact reforms to
make the Energy Efficient Commercial
Buildings Deduction more effective.
Specifically, the terms of the Deduction
should be expanded so property owners
can qualify by achieving significant,
demonstrated improvements in energy
performance relative to a building’s own
baseline performance data rather than
compared to a specific energy code.
The future prospects for these
deductions are unclear. The House Ways
and Means Committee has indicated it
will be holding hearings regarding tax
extenders, including energy provisions.
Meanwhile, the Trump Administration
released a Statement of Administration
Policy that said, “The Administration
is concerned with future extensions of
Return on Energy Awards
The Return on Energy awards online nomination form is available.
This is a great opportunity for recognition for your team’s
successes in operational efficiency and sustainability at your
apartment communities.
The deadline is March 23rd . There are four categories this year:
•
•
• Engage and Educate - rewards innovation,
• Water Reduction - recognizes communities who achieve water
Energy Retrofit - rewards smart, innovative solutions that
successfully reduced energy in a quantifiable way by showing
estimated ROI.
Energy Reduction - are based solely on overall energy reduction
quantitatively and require the use of EPA’s ENERGY STAR
Portfolio Manager® as the measurement tool. This award is
divided into two categories: Whole Building Data and Common Area
Data .
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42 | TRENDS •
• MARCH
FEBRUARY
2018
2018
creativity in staff and/or resident engagement
and overall community awareness on energy
efficiency issues. Applicants should submit programs for
consideration that show “commitment to conservation for the
good of the community.” Winners will be awarded based on
the accomplishments at a particular apartment community.
reduction and utility savings using Portfolio Manager’s new
water score which debuted in 2017.
Winners are recognized at the Apartmentalize Conference in San
Diego, CA this June. They are also featured in the June issue of
units Magazine. Previous winners include Bozzuto Management,
EDR, WinnProperties and Specialized Realty Company.
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