Agencies Foster Green Building in the Nonfederal Sector through More Than 90 Initiatives, Primarily for Energy Conservation or Efficiency

We identified 94 federal initiatives that foster green building in the  nonfederal sector; these initiatives, implemented by 11 agencies, vary in  how they foster green building, including which elements of green building  they foster, whether fostering green building is a primary purpose of the  initiative, what types of assistance they provide, and what groups are  expected to benefit. We examined the 94 initiatives by (1) the type of green building elements  they foster, (2) whether they foster green building directly or indirectly as  part of a broader effort, (3) the type of assistance they provide, and (4)  the recipients expected to directly benefit from the assistance. According to our analysis of questionnaire responses, about three- quarters of the 94 initiatives foster green building through more than one  element, including 21 initiatives across seven agencies that foster green  building through all six green building elements. The Overall Results of Federal Green Building Initiatives in the Nonfederal Sector Are Unknown

About one-third of the federal initiatives we identified have green building  goals and performance measures; therefore, the overall results of most  initiatives and their related investments are unknown. Agency officials  provided several reasons for not having performance information on the  results of most green building initiatives for the nonfederal sector. Agencies Have Begun to Collaborate to Assess Results for Some Initiatives, but without Apparent Governmentwide Collaboration to Assess Overall Results

We identified some instances in which agencies are collaborating on  specific initiatives, including establishing compatible procedures and  adopting common performance measures for assessing results. Agencies and programs working  collaboratively can often achieve more public value than when they work  in isolation. According to these  officials, HUD has collaborated with EPA on the adoption of the Energy  Star standard in HUD programs. Without such an effort, agencies may be  missing opportunities to, among other things, reach agreement on  governmentwide goals and measures for assessing the overall progress  of their efforts to foster green building in the nonfederal sector. Recommendation for Executive Action

To help assess the results of investments in individual federal initiatives to  foster green building in the nonfederal sector, as well as their combined  results, we recommend that the Secretaries of Energy and of Housing  and Urban Development work with the Administrator of EPA in leading an  effort with other agencies that are implementing green building initiatives  to collaborate on identifying performance information, such as shared  goals and common performance measures, for green building initiatives  for the nonfederal sector. USDA also provided technical  clarifications, which we incorporated into the report as appropriate. Appendix I: Scope and Methodology

Our objectives were to (1) identify current initiatives by federal agencies  to foster green building in the nonfederal sector and (2) determine what is  known about the results of these initiatives on fostering green building in  the nonfederal sector. For the purposes of this review, the nonfederal  sector includes private, state, local, and tribal entities. We identified at least one initiative at each of the following 11  agencies: the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Education, Energy  (DOE), Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development  (HUD), Transportation (DOT), and the Treasury (Treasury); the  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); the National Institute of  Standards and Technology; and the Small Business Administration. b)  Executive Order? i)  Technical assistance?............................... .............................................. b)
Individual property owners or renters?.... ......................... f)  State governments?
Why GAO Did This Study

Economic, environmental, and health concerns have spurred interest in "green building"--construction and maintenance practices designed to make efficient use of resources, reduce environmental problems, and provide long-term financial and health benefits. Federal laws and executive orders direct agencies to meet green building standards in federal buildings and to foster green building in the nonfederal sector; the latter includes private, state, local, and tribal entities and accounts for the majority of the nation's buildings. GAO was asked to (1) identify current initiatives by federal agencies to foster green building in the nonfederal sector and (2) determine what is known about the results of these initiatives. As part of the review, GAO sent questionnaires to the 11 agencies implementing the initiatives identified, including the Departments of Energy (DOE) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); examined agency documents; and spoke with agency officials. GAO did not report funding data because officials stated that agencies do not track many green building funds separately.

What GAO Found

GAO identified 94 federal initiatives--implemented by 11 agencies--that foster green building in the nonfederal sector. About two-thirds of these initiatives are implemented by HUD (29 initiatives), EPA (18), and DOE (17). According to GAO's analysis of agency questionnaire responses, the initiatives vary in how they foster green building in the following ways: (1) Elements fostered. All initiatives foster at least one of six green building elements GAO identified. Three-quarters foster more than one element, and 21 initiatives across 7 agencies foster all six elements. (2) Direct or indirect fostering. Over two-thirds (64) of the initiatives foster green building directly, and the rest foster green building as part of a broader effort that is focused not primarily on green building but on other purposes, such as expanding the supply of affordable housing for low-income elderly. (3) Type of assistance. The initiatives provide multiple types of assistance, mostly through grants (47 initiatives) and technical assistance (45). (4) Recipients expected to benefit. The direct beneficiaries identified by agencies range from individual property owners and renters to state governments. About one-third of the initiatives have green building goals and performance measures; however, the overall results of most initiatives and their related investments are unknown. For example, according to HUD officials, to measure the results of the Green Retrofit Program for Multifamily Housing, HUD analyzes energy consumption data before and after retrofitting properties. Other agency officials reported various reasons for not having goals and measures, such as challenges in gathering reliable performance data. GAO identified some instances in which agencies have begun to collaborate to assess results but did not identify governmentwide collaboration on initiatives for the nonfederal sector. As GAO has reported, agencies and programs working collaboratively can often achieve more public value than when they work in isolation. Agencies with green building initiatives for the nonfederal sector may be missing opportunities to, among other things, reach agreement on governmentwide goals and measures for assessing the overall progress of their green building efforts.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that DOE, HUD, and EPA lead an effort to collaborate with other agencies on assessing the results of federal green building initiatives for the nonfederal sector. DOE, HUD, and EPA generally agreed with the recommendation, and HUD and other agencies provided technical clarifications, which GAO incorporated into the report as appropriate.