HB0870, the “Large Buildings for Tomorrow Act,” updates Maryland’s building energy policy for large new construction projects. Beginning July 1, 2026, counties and municipalities must notify the Maryland Department of the Environment within 10 business days after accepting a permit application for a new building of 35,000 square feet or more (excluding parking garage area), and the notice must include basic project details such as address, permit number, square footage, building type, planned energy sources, and owner contact information.
The bill also directs the Maryland Department of Labor to adopt new energy conservation requirements as part of the Maryland Building Performance Standards for covered buildings—generally large commercial, multifamily residential, or state-owned buildings of 35,000 square feet or more, with exclusions for historic properties, schools, manufacturing buildings, and agricultural buildings. By October 1, 2028, the regulations must establish requirements aimed at predicted annual net direct greenhouse gas emissions of zero and site energy use intensity targets, while also allowing compliance through energy efficiency credits or performance thresholds. The bill further addresses district energy connections, waivers for measures that cannot reasonably be implemented, and coordination with existing-building regulations.
In practical terms, the act expands state oversight of large building permits and strengthens the energy-performance standards that apply to new large buildings in Maryland. It amends the Maryland Building Performance Standards statute and adds a new section requiring more stringent energy conservation rules for covered buildings, while preserving local authority to adopt even stricter requirements. It also provides that if the applicable International Energy Conservation Code becomes more stringent for 2040, those stricter requirements control.
The overall sentiment reflected by the bill’s enactment is favorable toward stronger energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction goals in the building sector. Because there are no recorded committee transcripts or vote tallies in the provided material, there is no documented floor or committee opposition to summarize, but the structure of the bill suggests a policy emphasis on decarbonization, planning transparency, and alignment between state and local permitting and environmental regulation.
The main points of potential contention are likely to be the cost and feasibility of compliance for developers and building owners, especially the requirement to reach zero predicted annual direct greenhouse gas emissions and the treatment of fuel type in performance calculations. The bill anticipates some of these concerns by allowing waivers where measures cannot reasonably be implemented and by permitting local jurisdictions to impose stricter standards, but it also limits how credits and thresholds may be structured so that buildings using different fuel types are not treated more favorably in a way that lowers average efficiency.
HB0870 amends the Environment Article and Public Safety Article to create a new notice requirement for large new building permit applications and to require the Department of Labor to adopt new energy conservation regulations for covered buildings. It affects counties and municipalities that process permit applications, the Department of the Environment, the Department of Labor, and owners/developers of large commercial, multifamily residential, and state-owned buildings. The bill also preserves and interacts with existing Maryland Building Performance Standards and the Department of Environment’s building performance regulations, while allowing local governments to adopt stricter standards.
The bill’s policy direction is generally pro-regulation and pro-climate, with a clear emphasis on energy conservation, greenhouse gas reduction, and coordination of building standards across state and local government. Because no committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, there is no specific evidence of formal support or opposition in the legislative record included here. The enacted status suggests the measure ultimately received sufficient support to become law.
Likely areas of contention include compliance costs, technical feasibility, and the pace of implementation for large building projects. Developers and building owners may object to the zero-emissions and performance-target requirements, while environmental advocates would likely favor the stronger standards. The bill addresses some concerns by allowing waivers when measures cannot reasonably be implemented, by excluding certain building categories, and by permitting local jurisdictions to adopt even stricter standards, but it also restricts how compliance credits and thresholds may be structured across fuel types.