The Landscape of Building Performance Standard Pathway Alternatives: Review of Existing Alternative Compliance Pathways and Resources to Support Standardization
Most building performance standards (BPS) provide flexibility by offering one or more alternative compliance pathways (ACP) for buildings that cannot meet shorter-term BPS targets, while still driving energy reductions and improvements. However, current ACPs offered vary widely in structure, terminology, eligibility, enforceability, and effectiveness across jurisdictions. This creates confusion, limits replicability, and increases administrative burden. For BPS to be successful—especially for both under-resourced buildings and very complex buildings—ACP standardization is essential. With federal funding support, the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) and a team of partners launched the BPS Pathway Alternatives and Training Hubs (BPS PATH) project to meet this challenge.
This report is the first major output of the BPS PATH project. The report provides a landscape assessment of existing BPS compliance and ACPs offered across the nation using a common taxonomy, and identifies key challenges. To support future efforts to standardize and simplify the ACPs, the report then reviewed existing standards and decarbonization planning frameworks that point in a common direction. Appendices detail each of the planning frameworks, the latest BPS compliance data, and all ACPs available across 10 jurisdictions.
Over the remainder of 2025, the team will convene a working group and develop a new model regulatory framework for alternative BPS pathways, along with training resources and data tools. The draft framework is expected to published for peer review in early 2026.
