HONG EXAMINER – August 2025
Monthly Newsletter of Hong Consulting, LLC.
Benchmarking Reports Due. With little more than six weeks to go before the reporting deadline of September 30th, it is important to submit your benchmarking reports as soon as possible. The closer we get to the deadline, the more backed up the City & County of Honolulu (C&C), utilities, and third-party service providers will be. Only 22.56% of buildings have filed benchmarking reports so far this year leaving over 1,000 buildings that have yet to file.
That is a lot of buildings requesting utilities bills, asking the county questions on compliance, and reaching out to me to prepare and submit their benchmarking reports. I have seen a dramatic uptick in business as we close in on the deadline. I appreciate your patience and request that clients respond to my information requests as soon as possible with as complete information as possible to make the process go as quickly and smoothly as possible. Should you have any questions about where your benchmarking report is in the process, please reach out to me.
Tips & Tricks. For those buildings that are self-filing, the following is a list of tips and tricks for complying with the ordinance based on Hong Consulting’s experience assisting properties in submitting their benchmarking reports:
1. Start the process as soon as possible. There are over 800 properties in this final phase of the ordinance. That is more than any other phase. That means utilities, service providers, and the C&C are going to be inundated with requests. The sooner you get your report done, the faster the process will go. The following link will take you to the Covered Buildings List (which shows which buildings must report): https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AMMnII9Iep5fZHdjbU88dP78_0xmMO5Q/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=111313744336110941684&rtpof=true&sd=true.
2. Use the following website to create a document with a list of the data you need to collect in order to file: https://portfoliomanager.energystar.gov/pm/dataCollectionWorksheet. The website also has links to definitions of important terms such as “gross floor area.” Condominium associations should select multifamily housing as their property type. Please note water usage is required to be reported in addition to energy usage.
3. Do not have any gaps in your monthly electricity, water, or gas usage. EnergyStar Portfolio Manager, the system the C&C uses to collect the data and issue the reports, does not allow for any gaps in usage. If you can’t find one of your monthly utility bills, then your building will have to request the usage from the utilities themselves.
4. Your electricity, water, and gas usage must cover from January 1st to December 31st. If your utility bills start after the beginning of the year or cuts off before the end of the year, then you will need the previous month’s bill or next month's bill to get all the required usage. EnergyStar Portfolio Manager will spit out an error if the usage for a particular meter does not cover every day of the calendar year being reported on. It is okay if the previous month’s bill or the next month's bill covers periods outside of the calendar year as long as every day in the calendar year is covered.
5. The benchmarking report covers the whole property, including tenants. If you have tenants such as gyms, restaurants, and salons on your property, you must include their usage in the benchmarking report in addition to your own. You will also need to allocate the gross floor area of your property to the different property types that exist on your property (ex. multifamily housing and restaurant/bar).
6. Gross floor area of your building can usually be found in the condo association documents, blueprints, or insurance documents. If you cannot find the gross floor area in your documents, you can ask your insurance agent. They should have your square footage as that is how they calculate your premiums.
For more information about Ordinance 22-17, please click on the following link: https://www.resilientoahu.org/benchmarking. It will take you to C&C’s website about the ordinance and its benchmarking program. Hong Consulting has also created a Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) page on the ordinance. The following link will take you to it: https://www.hongconsultingllc.com/faqs-better-buildings-benchmarking.
