Alternative Compliance Pathway for Net Direct Emissions Standards. In lieu of meeting the net direct emissions standards in COMAR 26.28.03, the building owner shall come into compliance with the net direct emissions standards by paying an alternative compliance fee for the greenhouse gas emissions in excess of the net direct emissions standards. An alternative compliance fee shall be paid for every metric ton of net direct emissions in excess of the net direct emissions standard in a given calendar year. The fee shall be: $230 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2030; $234 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2031; $238 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2032; $242 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2033; $246 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2034; $250 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2035; $254 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2036; $258 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2037; $262 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2038; $266 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2039; $270 per metric ton of excess CO2e in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, for 2040; and The fee rate increases by $4 per metric ton of CO2e per calendar year in 2020 dollars, adjusted for inflation, in each calendar year following 2040. The annual fee rate set forth in this chapter shall be increased each calendar year by the percentage, if any, by which the Consumer Price Index-U (All Urban Consumers) for the most recent calendar year exceeds the Consumer Price Index-U (All Urban Consumers) for the previous calendar year. Other Provisions. If covered building ownership changes in 2030 or any calendar year thereafter, then the owner of the building on December 31st is responsible for compliance with this regulation and paying alternative compliance fees or penalties for the calendar year ending on December 31st and every calendar year thereafter until that person is no longer the owner of the covered building. Exemptions from Benchmarking and Performance Standard Requirements. A building owner may apply for an exemption from the requirements of this regulation for one calendar year when the building owner can provide documentation showing that one of the following conditions are met: Financial distress; The covered building was not occupied for the entirety of the calendar year being reported; or The covered building was demolished during the calendar year for which benchmarking is required. Exemption from Establishing Baseline Performance. The Department may, in its sole discretion, grant an exemption from the requirement to establish baseline performance when, during the baseline year, less than 50 percent of the floor area of the covered building was occupied for at least 180 days and where the building owner applies for such exemption. A covered building may not receive an exemption from the requirement to establish baseline performance for more than 3 years. Exemptions for Affordable Housing Providers. The Department may grant the application of reduced alternative compliance fees to an affordable housing provider when the building owner submits in writing such request by June 1st of each calendar year, beginning in 2031 which demonstrates to the Department that it has made a good faith effort, as demonstrated under §C(2) of this regulation. A good faith effort may be demonstrated to the Department by submitting a copy of the application to a federal or Maryland administered program that would make the building or buildings more energy efficient and/or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The submission shall also include the benchmark report, intended scope of work, and estimated greenhouse gas reductions expected from the intended scope of work to achieve at least the applicable interim or final standard. An alternative compliance fee granted by the Department under §C(1) of this regulation is good for one calendar year. A project that has applied to a program under §C(2) of this regulation but has not yet completed the improvements, can submit a confirmation received from the program administrator to the Department, verifying the project's active participation status to satisfy the good faith effort for another year. An alternative compliance fee granted by the Department under §C(1) of this regulation does not exempt the owner from complying with the benchmarking and reporting requirements in COMAR 26.28.02. An affordable housing provider may apply for the alternative compliance fee annually. The owner of a covered building may choose to meet net direct emissions standards, as specified under this regulation, at the campus level instead of the individual building level when two or more covered buildings are: Connected to a district energy system; Served by the same electric or gas meter; or Served by the same heating or cooling system or systems, which is not a district energy system. Campus-level reporting shall include energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions for all buildings and stationary equipment located on the campus, including all central plants, except as provided in §B(1) of this regulation. Campus-level reporting does not include energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from activities/sources that are excluded from the benchmarking report requirements in COMAR 26.28.02. The owner of a campus shall report to the Department annually by June 1st: Any permits to build new buildings or change the footprint or usage of existing buildings on the campus; and Any buildings that have received new certificates of occupancy. The Department shall, in consultation with the principal owner of a campus, determine whether the affected buildings will be included in campus-level compliance following the rules established in this chapter and whether and how to adjust the campus’ interim and final performance standards. Performance Standards for Campus-Level Compliance. For a campus that consists of one property type, the interim and final net direct emissions standards are those that correspond with that property type. For a campus that consists of more than one property type, the interim and final net direct emissions standards are based on area-weighted standards as specified in the Department’s TM 24-01 “Technical Guidance and Calculation Methodologies to Comply with Building Energy Performance Standards”, which is incorporated by reference in COMAR 26.28.01.03. Reserved. Achieving and Maintaining the Standards. Campus-level energy use shall not exceed the net direct emissions standards for 2030—2034 in each calendar year including 2030, 2031, 2032, 2033, and 2034, as determined on a yearly basis. Campus-level energy use shall not exceed the net direct emissions standards for 2035—2039 in each calendar year including 2035, 2036, 2037, 2038, and 2039, as determined on a yearly basis. Campus-level energy use shall not exceed the final net direct emissions standards in calendar year 2040 and each calendar year thereafter, as determined on a yearly basis. Environment Article, §§1-404, 2-301, 2-302, 2-1205, 2-1602, Annotated Code of Maryland Effective date: December 23, 2024 (51:25 Md. R. 1142)