The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is considering ways to encourage states to adopt energy efficiency standards for residential and commercial buildings in the private sector. Such standards are now mandatory for federal buildings, and for private buildings in 34 states; in the remaining 16 states, the standards serve as guidelines for voluntary compliance. In this study for DOE, Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL)(a) assessed the process by which energy codes for commercial buildings were

more »

... ed and implemented in Arizona and New Mexico. Information was gathered primarily through a series of interviews with state officials, city building officials, architects and engineers, builders, and staff from utilities in the two states.