HONG EXAMINER – January 2026
Monthly Newsletter of Hong Consulting, LLC.
Better Buildings Benchmarking Notifications. The City & County of Honolulu (C&C) has ramped up its efforts to get buildings into compliance with Ordinance 22-17 (Better Buildings Benchmarking Ordinance). Many properties are receiving notifications of non-compliance. If this has happened to you, please reach out to me. I would be happy to help get your building into compliance. I want to thank all the clients who have referred buildings to me over the past few months. It is enormously gratifying to know that you think highly of my work, and it has allowed me to grow my business.
Portland’s Commercial Building Energy Performance Reporting (BEPR) Ordinance. I plan on expanding my benchmarking services to Portland buildings in 2026. Portland’s BEPR Ordinance covers commercial buildings 20,000 square feet or more. This includes buildings used for office, retail, grocery, health care, higher education, and hotel purposes. It does not include multifamily housing. The ordinance requires disclosure of energy usage just like C&C’s ordinance does but does not require the disclosure of water usage. If you are a building owner that has properties in Portland, I would be happy to quote you on my services.
Please note that Portland’s BEPR is separate and distinct from Oregon’s Building Performance Standard (BPS) Program. There are similarities in that they both require benchmarking but the BPS program goes beyond benchmarking by having buildings meet energy use intensity targets. If you would like more information about the BPS program, please reach out to me.
Engagement Letters. My plan is to send out engagement letters in late January for the 1/1/25 – 12/31/25 benchmarking reports. C&C usually sends out their annual notices about compliance in early February. I like to send my engagement letters before then, so you have them in hand when you see the notice to file. Please note that the C&C is committed to a June 30th reporting deadline in 2026. It is unlikely to be deferred like it was this year. That will mean less time for buildings to get into compliance. If you are concerned about complying by the deadline, please reach out to me so we get ahead of any potential issues.
Happy Holidays! I hope each of you have a wonderful holiday season full of good food and family. I am looking forward to working with all of you in 2026!
