Impact Report
2025 | Touchstone IQ for Governments
An Intro from the CEO
“As we close out 2025, it’s hard to ignore the uncertainty that has shaped the broader climate landscape. Yet when we look back on the year, what stands out most is progress. Local and state governments across North America continued to move from ambition to implementation, advancing practical, durable solutions that are already driving measurable decarbonization.
This year reinforced a clear truth: effective climate action is built through partnership and persistence. Jurisdictions strengthened benchmarking and building performance policies, improved compliance through smarter processes and clearer guidance, and invested in the tools and support that make it easier for building owners to take action. Just as importantly, more programs are embedding equity into how decarbonization is delivered, ensuring that under-resourced buildings and communities can participate fully and share in the benefits.
At Touchstone, we are proud to support this work through a combination of high-touch service delivery and continual innovation of our software products. Whether it’s streamlining reporting, improving data quality, or helping programs scale support where it is needed most, our focus remains the same: reduce friction, build confidence, and help clients accelerate climate and decarbonization efforts.
The momentum is real, and it is growing. In 2026, we expect more jurisdictions to raise the bar, expand programs, and invest further in the systems to scale impact. We are excited to keep building alongside the public leaders making this progress possible.”
Jon Dierking,
CEO and Founder of Touchstone IQ
Client Spotlight
Scaling Programs
Across the country, cities are scaling and strengthening benchmarking and building performance programs by expanding coverage to more buildings each year. As jurisdictions add new building types and lower size thresholds, participation grows, data becomes more representative, and programs can deliver larger energy and emissions impacts.
MIAMI: BE305 EXPANSION
20,000 SQ FT
Phased Rollout: In 2025, Miami expanded to commercial buildings over this threshold, more than doubling program participation.
Energy Savings
Several Touchstone IQ clients are now seeing substantial, measurable energy savings as their programs mature and participation grows.
FORT COLLINS
2.4% - 4%
Benchmarking is driving estimated year-over-year energy savings.
DENVER
12.46%
Estimated savings delivered via Energize Denver since 2019. Energy Equivalent: 65,000 Homes.
International Recognition
Boston’s work on the Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO) and the Equitable Emissions Investment Fund was recognized by Bloomberg Philanthropies at the COP30 Local Leaders Forum in Rio de Janeiro.
COP30 LOCAL LEADERS FORUM • RIO DE JANEIRO
2025 WINNER
Climate Award: The energy transition and smarter buildings initiative was recognized as the only winner from North America at the Bloomberg Local Leaders Forum.
Key Trends
Across North America, building decarbonization is moving quickly from early programs to full-scale implementation, and 2025 made that shift unmistakable. Touchstone supported jurisdictions at every stage, tailoring each program to local goals, building stock, and stakeholder needs, while helping turn policy into durable, on-the-ground results. At the same time, a consistent set of market trends continued to accelerate: deeper equity-focused support, more rigorous and data-driven compliance, expanded software capabilities that reduce reporting friction, and high-touch service models that improve both satisfaction and outcomes.
Equitable Building Decarbonization
Frontline Priority
Serving low-income residents and affordable housing.
Hands-on Support
No-cost audits, benchmarking, and financing help.
Community Health
Reducing energy burdens and improving comfort.
Equitable building decarbonization ensures that buildings serving low-income residents, affordable housing, community nonprofits, and other frontline groups can meet climate and energy requirements without being left behind.
In Denver, the Compliance Assistance Program pairs Energize Denver’s requirements with long-term, no-cost, hands-on support, helping owners benchmark, complete audits, navigate compliance options, and access incentives and financing to implement upgrades. This approach reduces energy burdens, improves comfort and health, and directs investment to the communities most impacted by rising costs and climate risk.
Looking ahead, we expect local jurisdictions to embed equity-specific support into benchmarking and building performance standards so compliance and benefits scale together.
COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
An equity-focused pathway that helps under-resourced buildings move from requirements to real action.
ONBOARDING
Eligibility confirmation and program entry for the full journey.
DATA CLEANUP
Benchmarking and data refinement to ensure accuracy before analysis.
VIRTUAL ASSESSMENT
Initial remote assessment to clarify energy saving opportunities.
ASHRAE LEVEL 2 AUDIT
Onsite audit providing detailed technical recommendations.
POST-AUDIT PLANNING
Translating audit results into actionable, cost-effective next steps.
Removing barriers to help Equity Priority Buildings comply and benefit.
Compliance
In 2025, cities, counties, and states continued to prioritize high compliance because benchmarking and building performance standards only drive emissions reductions when reporting is complete, accurate, and verified. Touchstone helped jurisdictions reach and sustain strong results by reducing friction for building owners, strengthening data quality through automated checks and verification workflows, and pairing clear requirements with responsive, hands-on support. High compliance improves baseline accuracy, strengthens accountability, and creates the market signal needed to unlock investment in upgrades.
As these policies scale, compliance strategies are becoming more standardized, data-driven, and support-focused, with a growing emphasis on accuracy and a smoother owner experience. Many Touchstone clients saw significant gains this year, including California, which increased compliance by 9% year over year, and Honolulu, which increased compliance by 15% from 2024. At the same time, several long-running programs supported by Touchstone continued to sustain 90%+ compliance.
Boulder
Benchmarking Compliance
Vancouver
Benchmarking Compliance
Montgomery County
Benchmarking Compliance
Fort Collins
Benchmarking Compliance
Brisbane, CA
Benchmarking Compliance
“Fort Collins continues to be proud of the extensive resources we provide to support our buildings through the benchmarking process, and recognize the hard work of the Touchstone-staffed Help Center was instrumental in reaching 98% compliance two years in a row.”
Just as important, state and local programs are most effective when they are designed to fit together. Without coordination, differences in coverage, timelines, and reporting requirements can create confusion and add burden for building owners and administrators. When aligned, these programs expand overall coverage, streamline reporting, improve data quality, and create a clearer pathway from benchmarking to performance and emissions reductions. Touchstone supports both state and local governments in building cohesive, connected programs, using Touchstone IQ and high-touch implementation support to align requirements, integrate data flows, and deliver a more seamless experience for stakeholders.
MINNESOTA: Launch & Alignment
In 2025, Minnesota reached a major milestone with the launch of the state’s Building Performance Standard. Touchstone supported the rollout through close coordination with local jurisdictions, stakeholder-facing communications, and implementation of a new software hub to manage reporting and program administration.
- Local Complement: Supported the City of Edina to adjust its benchmarking program, maintaining coverage for smaller buildings not captured at the state level.
- Data Visibility: Preserved critical energy data across Edina’s commercial and multifamily sectors through coordinated state and local design.
CALIFORNIA: Growth & Impact
Touchstone continues to provide the software platform for California’s statewide Building Energy Benchmarking Program as it matures and expands. Recent refinements delivered measurable results, including a 9% year-over-year increase in compliance.
- 98% Compliance: Brisbane’s Building Efficiency Program achieved its 4th consecutive year of high performance in 2025.
- San José Transparency: Advancing data goals with the 2025 launch of a new Touchstone-designed interactive map for the City’s Building Performance Ordinance.
Software Innovation
In 2025, Touchstone IQ continued to accelerate software innovation that makes building benchmarking and Building Performance Standard (BPS) compliance easier for everyone involved. Drawing on day-to-day work with governments, building owners, and utilities, Touchstone translates real user needs into platform improvements, including modernizing owner-facing portals into unified hubs that simplify reporting, guidance, and next steps in one place. Automated workflows, built-in data quality checks, and clear progress tracking reduce administrative burden for program teams while giving owners more confidence and clarity. Increasingly, cities are also leveraging Touchstone’s Utilities product to enable auto-uploads and other data-sharing workflows that remove manual steps, streamline submissions, and support higher-quality reporting at scale.
Tailored Support
Touchstone is partnering with Seattle on several in-progress software enhancements that will debut in summer 2026. This work includes new functionality for jurisdictions using the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager web services API to import “preliminary” benchmarking submissions for early data quality review and compliance readiness forecasting. We are also expanding the building owner portal’s capabilities with a secure claim code system for building claims, an upgraded support ticketing system with robust notifications, help desk performance metrics, and category-based auto-assignment, and new document tools, including global document storage, controlled portal visibility, and a document builder that generates official documents and mailers with auto-inserted building and contact data.
Transition to the Hub
Touchstone supported Boston to launch the new BERDO Reporting and Emissions Compliance Portal, enhancing the reporter experience with a secure, centralized platform for building owners to manage properties, contacts, and compliance activities. The portal enables users to claim buildings, complete required reporting forms, and oversee compliance obligations in one integrated system. The new portal significantly improves collaboration by allowing users to invite others, such as property managers, consultants, and third-party verifiers as account members, enabling secure sharing of building profiles and compliance details.
Utility Upload
The City of Columbus continues to make strong progress in implementing its Energy and Water Benchmarking Ordinance by collaborating with Touchstone IQ to enhance automated data upload services. Upcoming platform enhancements will improve program efficiency, increase compliance, and reduce the reporting burden for building owners.
Building Performance Forecasting Calculators
Touchstone developed customized Building Performance Forecasting Calculators for several leading jurisdictions, including Denver, Boston, and Vancouver, turning complex requirements into clear, actionable plans for building owners. Built to align with each city’s targets and methodologies, the calculators pull in a building’s reported benchmarking and BEPS history, display key details (address, floor area, baseline and most recent performance), and generate forward-looking EUI or emissions projections. Owners can model efficiency upgrades and on-site renewables, instantly see the projected performance impact, and compare multiple pathways to compliance through clear visualizations and scenario-based fine estimates. Deployed within secure owner portals or made publicly accessible, these tools reduce uncertainty, improve planning, and support sustained, year-over-year progress toward compliance.
“In 2025, we were able to make our data transparency dreams a reality in collaboration with Touchstone IQ. We are very excited to have developed an interactive map that showcases Building Performance Ordinance data on San José buildings. We look forward to the public and building representatives interacting with this informative tool for many years to come.”
Excellence in Service Delivery
High-touch, customized engagement is what enables high-quality program delivery. Over the past year, Touchstone IQ supported jurisdictions in delivering consistent, owner-centered support by pairing a purpose-built CRM for benchmarking and BPS programs with experienced in-house help desk services. Our CRM helps teams engage at scale without losing personalization: segmenting buildings and owners, tailoring communications by audience, tracking case status and interactions, routing issues for review, and prompting timely follow-up tied to key deadlines and milestones. In parallel, our support staff work directly with building owners to resolve data gaps and utility access challenges, navigate alternative compliance pathways and extensions, interpret requirements, and translate planned projects into practical compliance strategies.
Together, these capabilities help programs deliver a coordinated, high-quality experience, reduce rework, and keep more buildings on track.
Office Hour Support
Hands-on assistance for under-resourced buildings to ensure compliance and cost-effective energy savings.
Dedicated Guidance
Staff guide owners through documentation, data, and planning.
Local Access
Virtual and in-person sessions at libraries and community centers.
Reduced Barriers
Building confidence so more owners participate and benefit.
Excellence in service delivery starts with knowledgeable, dedicated support teams
MINNESOTA
VANCOUVER
DENVER
FORT COLLINS
HONOLULU
MIAMI
“We strive to lead the way in customer support, and are excited to be rolling out a building owner portal to further streamline and simplify the process.”
Looking Forward to 2026
