REPORTING OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND WATER USE

Definitions 1. In this Regulation, “distributor” has the same meaning as in subsection 25.35.6 (1) of the Act; (“distributeur”) “gross floor area” means, in respect of a prescribed property, the gross floor area determined for the property in accordance with section 4; (“surface hors oeuvre brute”) “Guide” means the document titled “Guide to Energy and Water Reporting”, as it may be amended from time to time, published by the Ministry and available on a website of the Government of Ontario; (“Guide”) “Portfolio Manager” means the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager electronic reporting system developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, as adapted for use in Canada and administered by Natural Resources Canada, and available on the Internet; (“Portfolio Manager”) “prescribed property” means a building or structure prescribed under section 3. (“bien prescrit”) Requirement to report 2. (1) For the purposes of section 25.35.3 of the Act, every person, other than a public agency, who is the owner of a prescribed property shall accurately report to the Ministry the information specified in section 8 of this Regulation in respect of the property in accordance with this Regulation. (2) If there is more than one owner of a prescribed property, they are jointly responsible for reporting in respect of the prescribed property. (3) For the purposes of this section, an owner includes a corporation created or continued under the Condominium Act, 1998. Prescribed property 3. A building or structure is a prescribed property for the purposes of section 25.35.3 of the Act if it meets the following criteria: 1. Any part of the building or structure is situated on a property classified by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation by way of a code listed in the Guide. 2. Electricity or gas is consumed at the building or structure. 3. Electricity or gas consumption information for the building or structure is available from a distributor. 4. The building or structure at which electricity or gas is consumed has a gross floor area of at least 50,000 square feet. 5. In the case of a multi-unit residential building, it contains more than 10 units. Gross floor area 4. The gross floor area of a single building or structure is the total number of square feet measured between the principal exterior surfaces of the enclosed fixed walls of the building or structure, including all areas inside the building or structure’s supporting areas such as any common areas, but excluding any exterior, unroofed or open air spaces such as a parking area. Ongoing exemption from reporting 5. (1) Subject to subsection (2), an owner of a prescribed property is exempt from reporting under section 25.35.3 of the Act in respect of the property in the following circumstances: 1. The owner is a corporation that meets the following criteria: i. It is established under an Act. ii. It is accountable to the Government of Ontario. iii. The majority of its governing body is appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, a minister of a ministry of the Government of Ontario or both. iv. A power, function or duty of a minister of a ministry of the Government of Ontario under an Act has been assigned or delegated to it. v. It is authorized or required, under an Act, to perform a public function or to offer a public service. 2. At least 50 per cent of the property’s gross floor area is occupied by a public agency. 3. At least 10 per cent of the property’s gross floor area functions as a data centre, television studio or trading floor. 4. At least 10 per cent of the property’s gross floor area is used for manufacturing processing, commercial processing, agricultural processing or industrial processing, if the environmental conditions within the property are governed mainly by the operations or processes within the building. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 5 (1). (2) An exemption under paragraph 2, 3 or 4 of subsection (1) applies only if the owner of the prescribed property gives to the Ministry written notice, in the form provided by the Ministry and available on the website of the Government of Ontario Central Forms Repository, that the owner is eligible for an exemption under that paragraph. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 5 (2); O. Reg. 347/23, s. 1. Exemption from reporting for a calendar year 6. (1) An owner of a prescribed property is exempt from reporting under section 25.35.3 of the Act in respect of the property for a calendar year if, (a) one or more of the criteria for exemption set out in subsection (2) are met; and (b) at least 60 days before the deadline for reporting for the calendar year, the owner gives to the Ministry written notice, in the form provided by the Ministry and available on the website of the Government of Ontario Central Forms Repository, that the owner is eligible for the exemption and under which of the criteria. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 6 (1); O. Reg. 347/23, s. 2 (1). (2) The following are the criteria for an exemption from reporting in respect of a prescribed property for a calendar year: 1. At any time during that year, any owner of the property is an insolvent person, as defined in the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (Canada). 2. At any time during that year, the property is subject to, i. a tax arrears certificate that has been registered against the property, ii. a power of sale or foreclosure under a mortgage, or iii. a writ of execution. 3. The property is newly constructed, and a certificate for the occupancy of the property is issued in that year. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 6 (2). (3) If the prescribed property consists of two or more buildings or structures, the criteria listed in paragraphs 2 and 3 of subsection (2) with respect to the property must apply to all of the buildings and structures taken together. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 6 (3). (4) Revoked: O. Reg. 347/23, s. 2 (2). Manner of reporting, Portfolio Manager 7. (1) Information required to be reported in respect of a prescribed property under this Regulation shall be reported to the Ministry through the use of Portfolio Manager. (2) Consumption information required to be reported may be aggregated for a prescribed property or pro-rated among prescribed properties according to the configuration of the existing metering infrastructure in accordance with the Guide. Information to be reported 8. (1) The following information is required to be reported in respect of a prescribed property: 1. The gross floor area of the property. 2. The information respecting the property, including identifying information and information respecting energy consumption, water use, performance metrics in respect of energy consumption and water use in respect of the property, as set out in the Guide. (2) For the purposes of setting out the information described in paragraph 1 of subsection (1) in the French version of Portfolio Manager, “surface hors oeuvre brute” and “superficie brute” have the same meaning. Annual reporting 9. (1) The information required to be reported in respect of a prescribed property shall be reported annually, for each calendar year, no later than July 1 in the following year. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 9 (1). (2) The first year in which the requirement to report applies is, (a) 2018 (information for the 2017 calendar year), if the gross floor area for the prescribed property is at least 250,000 square feet, unless any part of the property is classified as multi-unit residential, as set out in the Guide; (b) 2019 (information for the 2018 calendar year), if the gross floor area for the prescribed property is at least 100,000 square feet and the property is not subject to a requirement to report in 2018 under clause (a); (c) 2023 (information for the 2022 calendar year), if the gross floor area for the prescribed property is at least 50,000 square feet but less than 100,000 square feet. O. Reg. 506/18, s. 9 (2); O. Reg. 268/20, s. 1. Verification 10. (1) An owner who is required to report information in respect of a prescribed property shall undertake verification of the information, in accordance with this section, before it is reported, if the property has a gross floor area of at least 100,000 square feet and, (a) it is the first year in which the report is required to be made; (b) it is the fifth year after a year in which information in respect of the property was required to be verified under this section; or (c) if the owner was exempt from the requirement to report information in respect of the property in a year in which verification would otherwise have been required, it is the first year in which the report is again required to be made. (2) The Minister may request that an owner who is required to report information in respect of a prescribed property undertake verification of the information. (3) An owner who is required to undertake verification under this section shall ensure that the information required to be reported in respect of the prescribed property is verified by a person who holds an accreditation or certification from an accrediting body recognized in Canada or the United States that qualifies the person to perform data verification with respect to the information required to be reported under this Regulation, such as a certified energy manager, building operator, measurement and verification professional or commissioning agent. (4) The person referred to in subsection (3) may be employed by the owner. (5) The owner shall notify the Minister that the information was verified in accordance with this section by confirming the verification in Portfolio Manager when reporting the information. Sharing of information 11. The following persons and entities are prescribed for the purposes of clause 25.35.5 (1) (b) of the Act: 1. Public agencies. 2. Corporations to which the exemption set out in paragraph 1 of subsection 5 (1) applies. 3. Entities other than corporations that meet the criteria listed in subparagraphs 1 i to v of subsection 5 (1). 4. Consultants, as defined in the Broader Public Sector Accountability Act, 2010, acting on behalf of a person or entity listed in paragraphs 1 to 3. Requirement for distributors to provide information 12. (1) For the purposes of section 25.35.6 of the Act, any distributor that receives a request from an owner of a prescribed property who is required to report under section 25.35.3 of the Act in respect of the property for a calendar year shall provide to the owner such aggregated information as to how much electricity, natural gas or water, as the case may be, was consumed or used at the prescribed property during that year as is available through the existing metering infrastructure, and may make available to the owner information respecting consumption or use before that year. (2) Information provided by the distributor under subsection (1) shall be provided to the owner, within a reasonable time after the request is made, by making it available to, (a) the owner, the owner’s agent or the operator of the prescribed property directly; or (b) the owner’s account in Portfolio Manager for the prescribed property. (3) Information provided under subsection (1) shall be broken down by month, subject to subsection (4). (4) If a distributor does not collect information as to electricity, natural gas or water consumption or usage on a monthly basis, the distributor shall break down the information by the next shortest period possible in the circumstances. (5) This section applies even if the information to be provided is with respect to a period during which the owner did not own the prescribed property. 13. Omitted (provides for coming into force of provisions of this Regulation).