While some critics the Governors plan zero in on the carbon-emission cap and trade agenda, two aspects of his plan will directly impact builders. According to an article in the Portland Business Journal, Gov. Kulongoski is proposing:

- Creation of "energy performance certificates" on homes and buildings. Similar to miles-per-gallon ratings on autos, the certificates would show potential home buyers the energy performance of a building prior to purchase. This is similar to a new initiative by the US Department of Energy's new Builders Challenge initiative, and something long needed in residential construction. A well-designed and comprehensive energy performance scale can help consumers make an "apples to apples" comparison of the performance of a new or existing home.

- Establishing a goal of net-zero emissions homes and buildings by 2030. The first step would be to increase energy efficiency to 30 percent for commercial building codes and 15 percent for residential. For too long building code has been off-limits in terms of true energy performance. By using the building code to address carbon emissions, the Governor has leveraged an existing system to more his state into an energy smart future.

This sort of aggressive approach to greening their energy use could put Oregon in the lead when it comes to states being pro-active about their economy, sustainability, and energy independence.

An interesting tidbit in the plan is to roll back tax incentives on hybrid cars and replace them with a whopping $5000 incentive for plug-in electric cars. I wonder, will the public plug-in stations also be full-serve only?