New regional push to reduce gas use

Berkeley passed one of the strictest requirements in 2019, which was struck down in court, a decision finalized by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last year. The decision pushed San Mateo to impose a slightly updated, more legally defensible reach code at the end of last year, however, it’s only in place until January 2026, when the state’s new building code goes into effect.

Now the city must decide what additional decarbonization steps it will take.

During a meeting Nov. 3, the San Mateo City Council supported several building code updates, the first of which would require single-family homes, duplexes, townhomes and commercial buildings to install either a heat pump or higher-efficiency air conditioner at the time the original AC unit needs replacement. The potential reach code would also require the addition of electric infrastructure when certain types of renovations are already underway.

The last piece of the policy, which was not unanimously supported by the council and Sustainability and Infrastructure Commission, would apply to single-family homes, duplexes, and townhomes and require homeowners to choose from several efficiency improvements, each with their own set of “points,” which would have to add up to a certain score. Based on the council’s comments, the requirement would only apply to major renovations — such as plumbing and appliance upgrades — that are 1,000 square feet or larger.

“This is already going to be really complicated to understand, but it’s also an opportunity to really bring our community along because with a number of the other reach codes, there have been real cost issues associated with them, where people thinking the cost was going to be X, and the cost ends up being X plus 50%,” Councilmember Lisa Diaz Nash said. “But I think in this situation we can show that this is a great opportunity, and it is something that is cost effective.”

Many cities, including San Mateo, have had to weigh the financial implications of electrification against climate goals and regional and state-level policies, as residents and city leaders have raised concern over the delta between the average upgrade costs presented by Peninsula Clean Energy — the county’s clean energy provider — and the costs they’ve experienced firsthand. While it approved prioritizing the electrification of all municipal buildings this summer, the City Council decided not to accelerate a version of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s standards, which will prohibit the sale and installation of gas water heaters starting in 2027 and gas furnaces in 2029.

After the city develops an ordinance, it must be filed and approved by the California Energy Commission and Building Standards Commission.

alyse@smdailyjournal.com

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