Corvallis could mandate home energy scores | Govt-and-politics | democratherald.com – Albany Democrat-Herald

That’s where a home energy score comes in handy, using an assessment of energy-related assets that make comparisons easier across the housing market.

Corvallis officials are expected to decide on a mandatory home energy score program at the City Council meeting Tuesday, June 21. A home energy rating program is included as a strategy in the Corvallis Climate Action Plan, which was adopted in 2016.

A proposed home energy score program was presented to the City Council at a January work session. Councilors asked staff to move ahead with the project and bring back an ordinance modeled after the cities of Milwaukie and Hillsboro and a plan for implementation and administration.

Research shows mandatory energy efficiency disclosures increase the likelihood home sellers or buyers will make related upgrades to their homes, according to a city document.

From 2017 to 2021, the Energy Action Team of the Corvallis Sustainability Coalition developed a home energy score proposal, meeting with the sustainable building nonprofit Earth Advantage, the Rocky Mountain Institute and the U.S. Department of Energy, engaging policy experts and gathering feedback, the document states.

Through the spring and summer of 2021, the Climate Action Policy Advisory Board worked with city staff to further develop the proposal, according to the document, as staff also worked to learn more about home energy performance and ordinances being enacted across the state.

A typical home energy assessment costs from $150 to $200 and is conducted by a certified home assessor, with a score that’s good for eight years, according to the document, which states the city’s program would aim to educate homeowners on future energy costs and facilitate targeted energy-saving improvements.

The city hasn’t identified revenue sources to fund the program but staff would run it in a time-efficient manner, the document states, also noting that the program would be complaint-driven. That means the city would take action on complaints regarding real estate listings that lack a home energy score.

The city would also notify the property’s listing agent of the violation.

Certain listings would be exempt from including a home energy report, the document states. Exemption reasons include sales classified as a transfer of title pursuant to inheritance, involuntary transfer of title resulting from default on an obligation secured by real property, a change of title pursuant to marriage or divorce, etc.

Enforcement would begin with a written warning notice giving the violator 15 days to comply, according to a draft of the ordinance. Violations could bring a penalty of up to $500, and another up to $500 for each subsequent 90-day violation period.

To allow time for energy assessors to get certified and for public education, the program would take effect April 1, 2023. 

The Corvallis City Council meets at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 21, in the upstairs area of the downtown fire station, 400 NW Harrison Blvd.