Compliance Options

Alternative Compliance Pathway

Required Documentation

Certified ENERGY STAR score of ≥75 for the compliance year

For Early Bird Submissions – ENERGY STAR certifications achieved in 2024 through Oct 31, 2025 will be accepted

For all years going forward – ENERGY STAR certifications achieved within a year of the tune-up compliance date will be accepted

(1) ENERGY STAR Certification (ENERGY STAR Certificate or proof of inclusion on ENERGY STAR's Buildings Registry), and

(2) A Statement of Energy Performance (Example) from ENERGY STAR

LEED Gold or Platinum (O+M) within last 3 years

Certificate (Example) from the USGBC dated within the last 3 years

Complete full commissioning or retro-commissioning within last 3 years

(1) A completed, signed copy of this form, and

(2) A copy of a retro-commissioning report dated within the last 3 years

Net Zero Energy Certification within last 3 years

A certificate (Example) or an email confirmation from Living Future for Net Zero Energy Certification dated within the last 3 years 

Passive House Certification within the last 3 years

A certificate issued by the PHIUS for Passive House Certification (Example) dated within the last 3 years

+10% improvement in energy efficiency over the last 4 years, as measured by the Weather Normalized Site EUI (calculated in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager)

(1) A screenshot from ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager demonstrating a 10% reduction in Weather Normalized Site EUI at two time periods within the last 4 years and

(2) Data export from MGE or Alliant showing the monthly usage from the two time periods that demonstrate a 10% energy reduction. This is referred to as a "MyMeter Download" for MGE or can be found in the Cost/Revenue report from Alliant.

Completing ASHRAE Level II audit and implemented recommendations with a simple payback of <2 years within last 2 years

(1) A completed, signed copy of this form, and

(2) A report that meets the minimum criteria for a ‘Level II’ energy audit as defined by ASHRAE, with a cover page that notes all recommendations with less than a 2 year pay-back have been implemented. 

Demonstrate building has energy use intensity (EUI) of 20 kBTU/sq. ft. for at least 2 of the last 3 years

(1) A completed, signed copy of this form, and

(2) A copy of the Statement of Energy Performance (Example) for each of the two January to December calendar years with weather-normalized site EUIs equal to or below 20 kBTU/SF

Received any of the following awards within the last 3 years:

• Dane County Climate Champion recognition in the category of Building Energy Use

• Better Buildings Goal Achievers recognition from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Challenge

• BOMA 360 designation and received +6 points for Energy Star Benchmarking, Building Energy Management, and Energy Audit and System Commissioning

• BOMA TOBY award in the Office or Earth categories with +5 or +6 points, respectively, for Benchmarking & Performance Rating

Proof of award within the last three years