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What's new this month:
- We Need Your Input: SPEER HVAC Survey
- This Month: HOMES/HEAR Contractor and Workforce Development Virtual Topic Meeting
- Upcoming Webinars/Events
- Noteworthy
- SPEER Resources & Webinar Archive
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What We're Reading: Where Are We Headed? by Randy Plumlee
| | | We Need Your Input: SPEER HVAC Survey | | |
How often are you evaluating, repairing, or replacing ductwork in existing single-family homes? SPEER wants to hear from the people actually doing the work.
We’re conducting a survey about the tools, skills, equipment, and practical challenges involved in evaluating, repairing, and replacing residential ductwork. We’re especially interested in work you’ve performed within the past two years. Your experience can help educators and energy efficiency programs better understand what contractors need to get the job done effectively in the real world, from the right tools and equipment to the hands-on skills required. This is research only.
If you work in HVAC, please take a few minutes to share what you’ve seen in the field. Your expertise can help shape better training and energy efficiency programs. Take the survey here.
| | This Month: HOMES/HEAR Contractor and Workforce Development Virtual Topic Meeting | | |
September 22 @ 12:00 pm
Help shape the future of Texas’ HOMES and HEAR programs by joining a conversation on building a qualified, accessible and prepared contractor workforce. This meeting will explore existing contractor readiness and capabilities to deliver residential weatherization, HVAC and other home upgrade services, and the training, resources and support necessary to enable Texas contractors to expand and scale their services. This meeting will focus on the Rio Grande Valley, Coastal Bend, South Texas Plains, San Antonio, and Austin areas.
Who should attend? Texas HVAC, weatherization and other residential contractors, professionals with experience in similar energy efficiency programs and subject matter experts.
Register today to contribute to solutions that benefit Texas contractors and ensure Texans have access to energy-saving improvements.
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Beyond the Data Center: Building the Community around Data Centers
September 22 @ 10:30 am
Data centers are among the most efficient buildings ever constructed, yet they are frequently located in rural communities with limited resources for energy code enforcement, plan review, inspections, and workforce development. As these facilities attract rapid residential and commercial growth, hundreds of surrounding buildings, including homes, apartments, schools, hotels, restaurants, warehouses, and public facilities, may be constructed without the same focus on energy performance.
This session explores how expanding the sustainability conversation beyond the data center creates lasting environmental, economic, and community benefits.
Key Takeaways
- Recognize the hidden energy impacts of development surrounding large data centers
- Identify practical strategies for strengthening local capacity through training, plan review, inspections, and public-private investment
- Explore how coordinated community development supports long-term energy efficiency, resilient infrastructure, and sustainable economic growth
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USGBC Webinar: Community Leadership About Data Centers in Texas
September 24 @ 10:30 - 11:30 am
Speakers:
- Jonathan Kraatz, Executive Director, USGBC Texas Chapter
- Jim Broughton, Chair, Data Center Working Group, USGBC Texas Chapter
Data centers are coming to Texas — all across the state. And constituents and citizens are asking tough questions. This webinar will focus on the top community concerns Texans expressed in five separate surveys conducted across our state.
Register here. (Registration Code: TXDC)
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Powering the Transition: Building Texas' Clean Energy Workforce
September 30 @ 11:30 am - 1:30 pm
A trained and educated workforce is vital to the growing needs of Texas' new energy standard. Join CleanTX and SPEER on September 30th for a Lunch and Learn in Dallas as we discuss how Texas can meet the demands of energy workforce development, close gaps in training and education, and set a standard that industry believes in.
This session brings together educators, contractors, and industry to talk candidly about how we’re building the talent pipeline: the training and credentialing programs preparing workers today, the apprenticeship and labor standards attached to federally supported projects, and the gaps that still need closing. We’re keeping the format conversational and the panel practical, with plenty of room for audience discussion.
Sponsored by: Bradley
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SPEER HappEE Hour
October 5 @ 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Calling all energy nerds, policy wonks, grid geeks & friends! SPEER is hosting a "HappEE Hour" at Scholz Garten in Austin on October 5th from 4-6 PM to celebrate energy awareness month and Energy Efficiency Day.
No PowerPoints, no panels, just drinks, snacks, good people, and conversations about the energy stuff we all somehow manage to talk about (even when we’re supposed to be off the clock). We hope you’ll come for "one" drink but stay because you’re having too much fun!
Registration is only $15 for SPEER members, $25 for non-members, and if you’re feeling generous there is an option for a joule-tonic sponsorship. Head here for sponsor and registration info. Hope to see you there!
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Texas Energy Summit 2026
October 26-28
SPEER is proud to be a promotional partner of the 23rd Annual Texas Energy Summit, taking place from October 26 - 28, 2026, at the Texas Capitol in Austin!
This dynamic event spotlights the intersection of air quality and energy systems, uniting individuals and groups from government, industry, academia, and non-profit organizations to explore and address pressing energy and air quality issues. Sessions include discussions of energy policies & the future, air quality, Texas energy leadership, and more.
You can learn more about the Summit, explore the agenda, and secure your spot here.
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Oklahoma Moves to the 2024 Building Codes
The Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission (OUBCC) has adopted the 2024 editions of several International Codes, including the 2024 International Residential Code (IRC), with Oklahoma-specific amendments. The new codes become effective statewide on September 14, 2026, replacing the currently adopted 2018 editions.
For energy code professionals, another important development is underway. The OUBCC is reviewing the commercial provisions of both the 2021 and 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) through its Commercial Energy Conservation Technical Code Review Committee.
Building officials, contractors, designers, and energy professionals working in Oklahoma should begin familiarizing themselves with the new requirements and Oklahoma amendments.
Visit the Oklahoma Uniform Building Code Commission for adopted codes, amendments, and updates.
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Call For Speakers!
SPEER is looking for others with a passion for our Energy Conservation Code and is open to hosting a webinar for you.
| | SPEER Resources & Webinar Archive | | | |
In Case You Missed It!
Did you miss our recent webinar, Understanding Code-Driven Energy Metering in Commercial Buildings?
Join us as we host Kira Schmidt, from AccuEnergy. Her presentation explains how modern energy codes—such as the International Energy Conservation Code and ASHRAE 90.1—are shifting from design-based compliance to performance-based accountability through required energy metering. It outlines why metering exists, how compliance paths dictate requirements, and how codes mandate end-use monitoring, data logging, storage, and reporting.
The presentation also connects these requirements to real-world design decisions, highlighting how metering must be integrated early into electrical and system layouts to ensure compliance and long-term operational success.
| | Check out all the resources we have on our website, including a link to our YouTube page with hours of video training content! | | |
Where Are We Headed? by Randy Plumlee
Texas is growing fast.
New homes. New businesses. New manufacturing. And increasingly, new data centers with enormous electricity demands. Yet Texas’ statewide minimum energy code is still based on the 2015 IECC. Now, Texas has an opportunity to move forward with the 2024 IECC. This conversation needs to be about more than insulation levels, window U-factors, blower door testing, or construction costs. It needs to be about where Texas is headed over the next 10, 20, and 30 years.
Because one thing seems pretty clear: The price of a kilowatt-hour isn’t likely to go down as our demand for electricity continues to grow. Texas is quickly becoming a leader in new data center development. Add those loads to population growth, new housing, manufacturing, and commercial development, and the demand placed on our electrical grid will continue to increase. That makes energy efficiency even more important. Every kilowatt-hour we can avoid using in a home or building is a kilowatt-hour that doesn't have to be generated, transmitted, and purchased.
So, what happens if Texas stays on the 2015 IECC? Some cities will move forward with newer codes. Others will stay at the statewide minimum. The gap between jurisdictions will continue to grow, and we could find ourselves building some of the newest communities and technology infrastructure in America while relying on a statewide energy code developed more than a decade ago.
And then there is the next Texas legislative session. Could legislation be introduced that changes the direction of energy-code adoption or limits the ability to move forward? It's possible. And that's why now is the time to have this conversation. Yes, construction costs matter, but so do decades of utility bills. Energy efficiency isn't about stopping growth. It's about making growth more sustainable, affordable, and resilient.
Texas has always been an energy leader. As our demand for electricity grows, energy conservation needs to be part of that leadership. Where are we headed? Hopefully, forward.
Read the full write-up on SPEER's Blog Page.
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