The federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005) extended and expanded several previous goals and standards to reduce energy use in existing and new federal buildings. Section 203 of EPAct 2005 required that, to the extent it is economically feasible and technically practicable, the total amount of renewable electric energy consumed by the federal government during 2013 and thereafter shall not be less than 7.5%. That target was updated and expanded by a Presidential Memorandum on December 5, 2013, and again by an Executive Order on March 19, 2015. This order states that, where life-cycle cost-effective, the following percentages of the total amount of electric energy consumed by each agency during any fiscal year shall come from renewable energy:

• 10% in fiscal years 2016 and 2017
• 15% in fiscal years 2018 and 2019
• 20% in fiscal years 2020 and 2021
• 25% in fiscal years 2022 and 2023
• 30% in fiscal year 2025 and thereafter

The order also states that, where life-cycle cost-effective, the following percentages of the total combined amount of electric and thermal energy consumed by each agency during any fiscal year shall come from renewable electric energy and alternative energy:

• 10% in fiscal years 2016 and 2017
• 13% in fiscal years 2018 and 2019
• 16% in fiscal years 2020 and 2021
• 20% in fiscal years 2022 and 2023
• 25% in fiscal year 2025 and thereafter

Agencies can meet the electric energy portion of the targets through the following means, which are listed in order of priority:

1. Installing agency-funded renewable energy on-site at federal facilities and retaining renewable energy certificates (RECs) or obtaining equal value replacement RECs
2. Contracting for energy that includes the installation of a renewable energy project on-site at a federal facility or off-site from a federal facility and the retention of RECs or obtaining equal value replacement RECs for the term of the contract
3. Purchasing electricity and corresponding RECs or obtaining equal value replacement RECs
4. Purchasing RECs

Agencies can meet the alternative energy portion of the target through the following means, which are listed in order of priority:

1. Installing thermal renewable on-site at federal facilities and retaining the renewable attributes or obtaining equal value replacement RECs
2. Installing combined heat and power processes on-site at federal facilities
3. Installing fuel cell energy systems on-site at federal facilities
4. Utilizing energy from a new project that includes the capture and storage of carbon dioxide emissions from the energy generation
5. Implementing other alternative energy approaches that are are consistent with the Executive Order and advance the policy set forth in it
6. For the Department of Defense, including fulfillment of other DOD energy goals in their alternative energy accounting

Renewable electrical energy technologies are defined as solar, wind, biomass, landfill gas, ocean (including tidal, wave, current, and thermal), geothermal, geothermal heat pumps, microturbines, municipal solid waste, and new hydroelectric generation capacity achieved from increased efficiency or additions of new capacity at an existing hydroelectric project. Alternative energy technologies are defined as biomass, solar thermal, geothermal, waste heat, combined heat and power, small modular nuclear reactor technologies, fuel cell energy systems, and energy generation that includes verified capture and storage of carbon dioxide emissions associated with that generation.

The Executive Order also reestablishes the Federal Environmental Executive as the Federal Chief Sustainability Officer. This officer will monitor progress and advise the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on the clean energy goals set forth in the order.

Within 45 days of this order, the Chair of CEQ and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will establish a Federal Interagency Sustainability Steering Committee to advise on the progress of agencies toward meeting the goals set forth in the order. The Chair of CEQ and Director of OMB will also prepare metrics to evaluate each agency's progress toward meeting these goals, in addition to other tasks aimed at ensuring these goals are met.