WASHINGTON, DC-The US General ServicesAdministration is currently evaluating several buildingrating systems as required by the Energy Independence and SecurityAct of 2007 and BOMA International, along with the RealEstate Roundtable and several other industry associationsand groups, is weighing in. It is asking the agency to allow achoice of rating systems to be used by federal buildings.Currently, the de facto choice of the government has been USGBC’sLEED rating system.

There are a number of reasons why GSA should expand its outlookin this area, BOMA Chair Joseph W.Markling, who is also managing director of StrategicAccounts at CBRE, tells GlobeSt.com, starting with the obvious “onesize just can’t fit all.” Other standards might be more appropriatedepending on the building’s age, finances, size, market orsubmarket location, property type and tenant mix of the building,he says. Also, Markling continues, by opting for just one standardthe federal government is acting like a market-maker. “That is notappropriate for the government to do, especially considering thatreal estate is certainly not homogenous.” Let the market decide bygiving GSA flexibility, is the message Markling and BOMA want toimpart.

BOMA notes in its letter that a range of non-regulatory,voluntary systems have entered the marketplace in recent years,including ASHRAE Standard 189.1 for the Design of High PerformanceGreen Buildings, Green Globes, International Green ConstructionCode, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), LivingBuilding Challenge and the ICC 700 National Green BuildingStandard. Even if the federal government does opt to givegovernment agencies more choice in their systems, these otherstandards are facing a steep uphill climb. UGSBC’s LEED standard isthe dominant standard by most opinions; certainly it has the namerecognition of being associated with green building.