Support Lowering Building Emissions & Healthier Housing

Climate & Health Standards for Existing Buildings

Did you know that buildings account for more than 50% of Portland’s greenhouse gas emissions? This makes it crucially important to create pathways to lower building emissions, in order to meet city climate goals, while keeping rent and energy rates affordable.

Climate change and record-breaking heat is intensifying every year in Portland, putting residents, buildings, and energy grid infrastructure more and more at risk. At the same time, energy costs continue to rise, making it harder for many households to afford safe and healthy housing. Building emissions continue to push these climate impacts and raise costs, especially as fossil fuel and methane “natural” gas prices skyrocket. We need our communities and buildings to be more resilient, prioritizing those disproportionately affected by climate change, while meeting our climate goals for the future.

Thankfully, Portland is in the process of reducing building emissions and creating healthier housing standards! In the fall of 2026, a new policy called the Climate and Health Standards for Existing Buildings (C&HS) will be proposed. It will apply to large buildings over 20,000 square feet.

After community engagement with groups including 350PDX, Councilor Avalos and her team have been carefully crafting this policy. C&HS will include opportunities to reduce emissions from large commercial and multifamily buildings, while also increasing transparency and protections for tenants.

As this policy is finalized and rolled out over the next few months, the 350PDX community will have several ways to engage and show support.

Groups like NW Natural will bring opposition pressure to this policy, so community engagement will be key! See some of the available action items and learn more about the policy and why it matters below.

C&HS is scheduled for the Housing & Permitting Committee of Portland City Council on October 6 from 2:00–5:00pm. See this testimony toolkit if you would like to begin preparing your statement.

Climate & Health Standards for Existing Buildings (C&HS) Policy Details

Building emissions account for over 50% of Portland’s greenhouse gas emissions. The Climate and Health Standards for Existing Buildings (C&HS) is an upcoming policy that will lower these emissions and energy bills, and support homeowners and tenants better. Here are the key details of this policy:

Sets emissions and pollution reduction goals for large commercial and multifamily buildings (over 20,000 square feet).

Creates clear, accountable building performance standard benchmarks: owners of buildings 20,000 square feet and larger will be required to reduce emissions by 20% every five years, with the goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

• Large buildings must meet clear performance standards and report utility data.
• Penalties will accrue for non-compliance.
• These standards create accountability for reducing emissions while giving building owners the flexibility to meet requirements through cost-effective, achievable improvements over time.

Protects tenants and provides transparent utility and health information: strong tenant and anti-displacement protections are built into the policy (greater than similar policies in other cities).

• Emphasis on supporting those disproportionately harmed by the effects of climate change and rising energy costs.
• Tenants will be provided upfront information on utility costs and health risks before moving into housing.
• Protections for tenants if they have to move out of housing during building upgrades.

Lowers utility costs: by improving energy efficiency, this policy can also help lower utility bills over time, benefiting economically vulnerable households that spend a larger share of their income on energy.

Similar to policies in other cities and in the State of Oregon, with particularly Portland innovations to make the policy more equitable, affordable, and achievable.

• Other cities, such as Seattle, Denver, New York, and Washington, DC, have successfully passed similar policies.
• Oregon adopted a similar but less stringent policy in 2023, which 350PDX advocated for with the Building Resilience coalition.

Advances Portland’s climate goals and leadership: we know there is support in Portland for a policy like this. In 2024, 70% of public comments in Portland supported an ordinance like this.

• A successful pilot program with several multifamily buildings, resulting in positive reviews from building owners.
• We want to see Portland in line with what other cities are already doing, with an opportunity to be a climate leader by prioritizing at least as high of emissions reduction standards and tenant protections as other cities.

The Climate and Health Standards for Existing Buildings will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollution by encouraging cleaner, more efficient buildings and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. This supports Portland’s climate goals while improving indoor air quality, public health, and resilience to extreme heat. As Oregon’s electric grid continues transitioning toward renewable energy, electrifying buildings will deliver even greater emissions reductions over time. Together, these standards represent an opportunity to improve affordability, public health, and climate resilience while positioning Portland as a leader in building decarbonization.

Additional Context on Portland Energy and Utilities

• Methane “natural” gas usage in buildings accounted for 21% of Multnomah County’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2023, second only to emissions from electricity generation and gasoline cars.
• Residential energy rates at all of the electric and gas utilities serving Portland residents (PGE, Pacific Power, and NW Natural) have all increased by 50% or more since 2020.
• Outdoor pollution costs Oregon nearly $88 million in health costs each year, stemming from fossil-fueled building equipment. By curbing climate pollution, we open the door to profound cost savings and a healthier future.

What We Want

We want to aim high with this policy to make sure building owners are responsible for lowering emissions! This means pushing for penalties and fees that encourage sustainable behavior and tenant protections that prevent displacement and higher costs.

We anticipate that opposing interest groups like NW Natural will put up a fight, so we need to show up in numbers so the City and these groups see how important it is to lower building emissions and provide safer, healthier, and more affordable housing and energy.

Action Items

Find ways you can make your voice heard and support this policy’s success. We will update this guide as the policy progresses.

See this toolkit for writing public comments. It will be updated with links to submit comments once the opportunity is available.

See our Take Action page for current ways to speak up.

The Climate & Health Standards for Existing Buildings policy is still being drafted and should be proposed in late summer 2026. Check here for updates on this policy and action items! Learn more on the City website.