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How Much Energy Do Building Energy Codes Really Save? Evidence from California

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  • Arik Levinson

Abstract

Construction codes that regulate the energy efficiency of new buildings have been a centerpiece of US environmental policy for 40 years. California enacted the nation’s first energy building codes in 1978, and they were projected to reduce residential energy use—and associated pollution—by 80 percent. How effective have the building codes been? I take three approaches to answering that question. First, I compare current electricity use by California homes of different vintages constructed under different standards, controlling for home size, local weather, and tenant characteristics. Second, I examine how electricity in California homes varies with outdoor temperatures for buildings of different vintages. And third, I compare electricity use for buildings of different vintages in California, which has stringent building energy codes, to electricity use for buildings of different vintages in other states. All three approaches yield the same answer: there is no evidence that homes constructed since California instituted its building energy codes use less electricity today than homes built before the codes came into effect.

Suggested Citation

  • Arik Levinson, 2014. "How Much Energy Do Building Energy Codes Really Save? Evidence from California," NBER Working Papers 20797, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
  • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:20797
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Matthew J. Kotchen, 2015. "Do Building Energy Codes Have a Lasting Effect on Energy Consumption? New Evidence From Residential Billing Data in Florida," NBER Working Papers 21398, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Shahzeen Z. Attari & Gautam Gowrisankaran & Troy Simpson & Sabine M. Marx, 2014. "Does Information Feedback from In-Home Devices Reduce Electricity Use? Evidence from a Field Experiment," NBER Working Papers 20809, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Daniel C. Matisoff & Douglas S. Noonan & Mallory E. Flowers, 2016. "Policy Monitor—Green Buildings: Economics and Policies," Review of Environmental Economics and Policy, Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 10(2), pages 329-346.
    4. Guerra, Sergio, 2016. "Energy efficiency policies in the Caribbean: a manual to guide the discussion," Sede Subregional de la CEPAL para el Caribe (Estudios e Investigaciones) 40459, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).
    5. Berry, Stephen & Davidson, Kathryn, 2016. "Improving the economics of building energy code change: A review of the inputs and assumptions of economic models," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 157-166.
    6. Ramos, A. & Gago, A. & Labandeira, X. & Linares, P., 2015. "The role of information for energy efficiency in the residential sector," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(S1), pages 17-29.
    7. Dalia Streimikiene & Tomas Balezentis & Irena Alebaite, 2020. "Climate Change Mitigation in Households between Market Failures and Psychological Barriers," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-21, June.
    8. Arthur Grimes, Nicholas Preval, Chris Young, Richard Arnold, Tim Denne, Philippa Howden-Chapman, and Lucy Telfar-Barnard, 2016. "Does Retrofitted Insulation Reduce Household Energy Use? Theory and Practice," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 4).

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    JEL classification:

    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy

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