Cambridge has committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2050 or sooner. A major first step in accomplishing this goal has been to first measure, then over time eliminate net carbon emissions from the city’s large and medium-sized non-residential buildings. Small businesses and residential buildings are not covered by emission reduction requirements.

Cambridge’s Building Energy Use Disclosure Ordinance (BEUDO) Amendments passed in June 2023. These amendments set a rigorous set of steps and deadlines for reaching carbon neutrality by 2035 for non-residential buildings 100,000 square feet or larger and by 2050 for non-residential buildings 25,000 square feet or larger.  

The City is creating detailed regulations in multiple phases for how to comply with BEUDO. The first set of regulations relate to how building owners must calculate their carbon emissions (“emissions factors”). Draft regulatory language is now posted on the BEUDO website. October 23, 2024 marks the beginning of a 30-day comment period. During this comment period, the City invites feedback from all stakeholders regarding the policies in the regulations. To submit feedback, visit the official comment submission page.