Energy Audits for Performance Requirements

Energy Audits are not required for all buildings under the performance requirements, but if you hope to use your audit as part of a Timeline Adjustment application, it must meet the minimum requirements, outlined below:

Individual Buildings

For energy audits conducted on a single building, the audit must:

• Follow ANSI/ASHRAE/ACCA Standard 211-2018 Level 2
• Be created through the online Denver Audit Template tool and downloaded through the “City PDF” option 
• Include an inventory of all existing equipment
• List all energy efficiency measures or solutions needed to reach 2030 target
• Use calendar year 2019 as the baseline for energy calculations
• Use Weather-normalized Site EUI as the baseline EUI
• Include cost and site EUI savings at the individual measure and total project cost levels in the investment analysis

Audits completed since January 1, 2020 will be accepted. Check the technical guidance for more information on accepting older audits. . 

The auditor who completes the audit for your building must have one of the following credentials:

• Professional Engineer (licensed in the United States)
• Certified Energy Auditor (AEE)
• Certified Energy Manager (AEE)
• Building Energy Assessment Professional (ASHRAE)
• High-Performance Building Design Professional (ASHRAE)
• Multifamily Building Analyst (BPI)
• Energy Management Professional (EMA)

The auditor must be a third-party individual or company and not be employed by the organization that owns or operates the building. 

Campuses 

Campus energy audits must cover the requirements listed above but the audit does not have to contain detailed information on each individual building over 25,000 square feet. Campuses should note that compliance with EUI targets will be evaluated on an individual building basis based on how the buildings on campus are benchmarked.  

Using the Audit Template Tool 

We use the Audit Template Tool provided by the Department of Energy as a standardized method to collect the audit information from building owners. Follow these steps to create and submit your report:

1. Register to create an account
2. Select “Audit Template”
3. Click the “Add Building Report” dropdown and select “Denver Report”
4. Enter your building information or use the "Import Building" tool to upload your building information
5. Submit your audit once all of your information is entered correctly
6. Download your submission as a PDF 
7. Upload the PDF with your timeline submission 

You can find more information on the steps to create a report here. 

When adding a building in the Audit Template Tool, it must be submitted through the Denver Energy Audit Report. You can add the report in two different ways:

• Manually add each field through the website
• Utilize the import feature to upload your building audit.

You can utilize the import spreadsheet, which highlights the required fields needed in order to submit your report. It is the auditor's responsibility to review and ensure all fields are added and correct prior to submitting the report.