H.R. 2126, the “Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014"

Rep. David McKinley (R-WV) and Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) introduced H.R. 2126, the Better Buildings Act of 2014, on May 23, 2013.  As introduced, this bill includes provisions to improve the efficiency of federal buildings, develop a voluntary Tenant Star program to promote energy efficiency in spaces leased by tenants in commercial buildings, and identify best practices for the design and construction of new tenant spaces in commercial buildings. This version of the bill passed the Committee on Energy and Commerce on January 28, 2014.

In March 2014, the bill was renamed the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2014 and amended to include a compilation of four energy efficiency bills with broad stakeholder support:

Title I:  H.R. 2126, the Better Buildings Act, as reported by the Energy and Commerce Committee;

Title II:  H.R. 4066, the Grid-Enabled Water Heaters Act, as introduced by Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY);

Title III:  H.R. 540, the Energy Efficient Government Technology Act, as introduced by Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI); and

Title IV:  H.R. 3820, a bill to encourage benchmarking and disclosure of energy information for commercial buildings, as introduced by Rep. Kathy Castor (D-FL)

The House passed H.R. 2126, as amended, on March 5, 2014.