MARYLAND BEPS + MONTGOMERY COUNTY DEP
Expert Compliance Strategies for Maryland Buildings
Maryland BEPS Compliance & GHG Emissions Benchmarking — State BEPS and Montgomery County DEP Verification
You benchmarked.
Now find out if you clear 2030.
Maryland's BEPS caps direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions with fixed standards that tighten every five years to net zero by 2040. Your verified data already tells you whether you're on track. The 2030 Readiness Assessment quantifies the gap — and the capital path to close it.
Benchmarking was step one. It was never the finish line.
Maryland's first statewide benchmarking cycle has closed. If you reported, you've done the hard part of measuring.
But BEPS doesn't reward measurement — it rewards performance. Maryland's standards cap direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and tighten every five years until net-zero direct emissions in 2040.
Here's what most owners haven't connected yet: your verified baseline already tells you whether you're on track. The targets are fixed. Your number is known. The only questions are the distance between them — and what it costs to close it.
2030 is a capital-planning deadline — not a 2029 problem.
Fuel switching, electrification of heating and hot water, and major HVAC replacement run on multi-year capital cycles. Equipment turns over once or twice a decade, on budgets planned years ahead. Owners who map the spend now phase it across normal replacement cycles and rebate windows. Owners who wait face a forced, all-at-once capital event under a deadline.
The 2030 Readiness Assessment
A fixed-fee engineering analysis that turns your verified benchmark into a decision-ready compliance roadmap.
- → Project your verified data against every standard — 2030, 2035, and the 2040 target
- → Quantify your gap in plain terms: on track, or how far over, on what trajectory
- → Identify the highest-leverage measures, sequenced across capital cycles
- → Map rough-order capital ranges and the rebate windows worth targeting
What you get
A written Readiness Report you can take to ownership, a board, or a lender — showing exactly where the building stands against each standard and the path to compliance. Not a sales pitch for a retrofit. An engineer's assessment of your options.
Navigate compliance for State and County regulations.
As of 2025, Maryland's energy regulations have shifted. A new statewide Building Energy Performance Standard (MD BEPS) — which caps direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions — now works alongside, and often overlaps with, the local benchmarking ordinance in Montgomery County (administered by the Montgomery County DEP). Sheehan Engineering simplifies this complexity. We provide turnkey energy benchmarking and PE/CEM verification that satisfies both jurisdictional requirements in a single, unified process.
Starting in 2026, self-reported data is no longer sufficient. Energy data must be verified by a credentialed third party (PE or CEM) before submission.
Sheehan Engineering is a licensed Professional Engineering firm qualified to perform these verifications for both the state and county programs.
Annual Energy Benchmarking
Regardless of your jurisdiction, all covered buildings must submit an annual benchmarking report via ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. This establishes your energy baseline and determines your future BEPS targets.
County Ordinance
- Enforcement: $500/day fines actively issued for non-compliance.
- Verification: Required starting with CY2025 reports.
- Platform: MoCo Benchmarking Portal
Group 1–4 Deadlines
Targets are based on your Historical Baseline. Failure to meet targets requires a Building Performance Improvement Plan (BPIP).
- Group 1: Commercial >250k sf
- Group 2: Commercial 50k–250k sf
- Group 3: Commercial 25k–50k sf
- Group 4: Multifamily >250k sf & Others
Statewide MD BEPS
- Enforcement: Civil penalties apply for failure to report.
- Verification: Required for CY2025 data (2026).
- Platform: MD BEPS Portal
The Path to Net Zero
State targets are fixed standards that increase in stringency every 5 years until resolving at a final performance standard (net zero) in 2040.
Fees for standard commercial buildings.
2030 Readiness Assessment
Full Compliance Bundle
Third-Party Verification Only
Standard Benchmarking
One firm. National expertise.
Navigating the overlap between Maryland's statewide BEPS and Montgomery County's ordinance takes precision — and the 2030 standard raises the stakes from reporting to real capital decisions.
As national experts in energy compliance, Sheehan Engineering turns regulatory burdens into asset-value decisions. We don't just measure your building's performance — we help you plan the path that protects its value through 2040. A licensed Professional Engineering firm, qualified to benchmark and verify for both jurisdictions. One vendor. Total compliance.
Frequently asked questions
How is the Readiness Assessment different from benchmarking?
Do I have to report to both Montgomery County AND the State?
What are your fees for Benchmarking & Verification?
My building is 30,000 sq ft. Who do I report to?
Can I get an exemption or waiver?
Is the deadline different for the State vs. the County?
Contact us.
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