# Energy benchmarking software that gets every covered building reported before the deadline

> Energy benchmarking compliance is the annual duty to measure a building's energy and water use, usually in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, and report it to a city or state by a fixed date. The dates and the penalties are local: New York City wants the report by May 1 and fines $500 for missing it, California requires buildings over 50,000 square feet to report by June 1, and Washington phases its first tier in from June 1, 2026. Neurobird holds the portfolio, the meters and the deadline on one record.

- URL: https://neurobird.com/benchmarking/
- Product: Neurobird Energy Benchmarking Compliance Compliance Platform
- Niche: energy benchmarking compliance
- Buyer: building owners and portfolio managers
- Status: in development, open for early access
- Updated: 2026-08-22

## What Neurobird Energy Benchmarking Compliance does

- Keep a covered buildings list that matches the city and state rules each property is actually subject to
- Chase utility and tenant data on a calendar that starts months before the deadline, not weeks
- Record each submission and its confirmation so a violation notice can be answered with a date
- Track the second obligation that follows the report, such as posting a building energy efficiency label

## How it works

1. **List what is covered** Each property is matched to the rules that reach it, with the square footage test, the residential unit test and any local exemption written down rather than assumed.
2. **Assemble the year** Meters, accounts and tenant spaces are tracked against the twelve months the report needs, so a gap is visible in January instead of on the last week of April.
3. **Submit and prove it** The submission, the confirmation and the label posting date sit on the building record, which is what you need when a notice of violation arrives about a report you know you filed.

## From the source material

> Building energy benchmarking refers to measuring a building’s energy use (and in some cases water use) and comparing it to the energy use of similar buildings, its own historical energy use, or a reference performance level.

Source: US EPA benchmarking policy toolkit, https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2021-02/documents/benchmarking_building_performance_standards_section1.pdf

## Industry context

- **50,000 square feet** California threshold. Mandatory reporting applies to buildings above it that either have no residential units or have 17 or more, and the report is due by June 1 each year. (source: California Energy Commission, https://www.energy.ca.gov/programs-and-topics/programs/building-energy-benchmarking-program/building-energy-benchmarking)
- **17 residential units** The California test that pulls a multifamily building into the state program alongside the floor area test, with condominiums treated separately under the statute. (source: California Energy Commission, https://www.energy.ca.gov/programs-and-topics/programs/building-energy-benchmarking-program/building-energy-benchmarking)
- **$500** New York City penalty for failing to file a benchmarking report by May 1, with continued failure charged at $500 per violation at the August 1, November 1 and February 1 quarterly deadlines, up to $2,000 a year. (source: NYC Department of Buildings, https://www.nyc.gov/site/buildings/codes/benchmarking.page)
- **$1,250** Separate New York City fine for failing to display the building energy efficiency rating label, which must be posted near each public entrance within 30 days after October 1 each year. (source: NYC Department of Buildings, https://www.nyc.gov/site/buildings/codes/benchmarking.page)
- **220,000 square feet** First Washington tier one compliance step under the Clean Buildings standard, due June 1, 2026, with buildings over 90,000 square feet following on June 1, 2027. (source: RCW 19.27A.210, https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=19.27A.210)
- **40 percent** EPA puts buildings at nearly 40 percent of the energy consumed in the United States and over 30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, which is the reasoning behind these programs. (source: US EPA benchmarking policy toolkit, https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2021-02/documents/benchmarking_building_performance_standards_section1.pdf)

## Pricing

- Single building: $129 per month
- Portfolio: $589 per month
- Consultant: $1,350 per month

## Questions

### What is energy benchmarking?

It is measuring a building's energy and water use over a full year and comparing it against similar buildings or against its own history, normally in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. EPA describes it as the first step toward improving performance, and dozens of cities and states have made it a legal reporting duty.

### What are the penalties for missing a benchmarking deadline?

They are local. New York City charges $500 for failing to file by May 1 and another $500 per violation at each quarterly deadline after that, up to $2,000 a year, plus a separate $1,250 fine for not displaying the building energy efficiency rating label.

### Does this replace Portfolio Manager?

No. The submission still goes through Portfolio Manager. This is the layer around it: which buildings are covered, which meters are missing, what was submitted and when, and what the next deadline is in each jurisdiction.

### How does it handle a building covered by a city and a state rule?

Both rules sit on the building. California allows buildings reported under a qualifying local program to be exempt from reporting to the state, so the record shows which programs reach the property and which submission satisfies which obligation.

### What happens after the report is filed?

In several places, more work. New York City requires the energy efficiency rating label to be posted near each public entrance within 30 days after October 1, and Washington attaches its reporting dates to a performance standard rather than to disclosure alone.

## Sources

- [NYC Department of Buildings, benchmarking and energy efficiency rating](https://www.nyc.gov/site/buildings/codes/benchmarking.page)
- [California Energy Commission, building energy benchmarking program](https://www.energy.ca.gov/programs-and-topics/programs/building-energy-benchmarking-program/building-energy-benchmarking)
- [RCW 19.27A.210, Washington clean buildings performance standard](https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=19.27A.210)
- [US EPA, benchmarking and building performance standards policy toolkit](https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2021-02/documents/benchmarking_building_performance_standards_section1.pdf)
- [ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager](https://www.energystar.gov/buildings/benchmark)
- [US Department of Energy, federal building energy use benchmarking guidance](https://www.energy.gov/eere/femp/downloads/federal-building-energy-use-benchmarking-guidance-august-2014-update)

## Contact

- office@neurobird.com
- https://neurobird.com/