Tampa
City Scorecard Rank
32
Tampa, FL
33.50Scored out of 100Updated 5/2017
Local Government Score:
1.5 out of 10 points
Local Government Summary List All
Tampa’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Plan, released in 2011, articulates some of the city’s energy-related activities for its internal government operations, however, the city does not have any overall energy or emissions reduction goals for its operations.
Last updated: February 2017
Local Government Energy Efficiency Goals List All
Tampa does not have an energy efficiency-related goal for its local government operations.
Stringency
N/A
Progress
N/A
Reporting
Tampa publicly releases annual sustainability reports detailing progress toward energy-related local government operations initiatives. In addition, Tampa publishes a variety of performance data on its Performance Measurement Dashboard. While this dashboard includes 2015/2016 municipal emissions data, it is uncertain that this data will be released on an annual basis. Tampa also releases several other sustainability reports.
Last updated: January 2017
Procurement and Construction List All
Vehicle Fleets and Infrastructure
Tampa does not have formal fuel efficiency requirements for their vehicles or energy-efficient vehicle procurement policies in place. Although this city is in the process of developing a technology based tracking program, currently there are no web-based GPS technologies available for fleet management.
Note: For local fleet initiatives, policies listed must make a specific, mandatory requirement for increasing fleet efficiency. Local alternative-fuel vehicle procurement requirements that give a voluntary option to count efficient vehicles are thus not included.
Public Lighting
Tampa has not yet adopted a policy requiring efficient outdoor lighting, such as the International Dark-Sky Association’s Model Lighting Ordinance. A policy in Tampa’s Comprehensive Plan (Policy 40.1.7) calls for Tampa to pursue energy-saving options for exterior lighting of municipal buildings. Nevertheless, there are no formal efficiency focused lighting replacement programs in place in this city.
New Buildings and Equipment
Ordinance 17.5-203 requires all new construction of municipal buildings of at least 5,000 square feet to be built to LEED Silver standards. Renovations of existing municipal buildings must incorporate building materials recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council for their sustainable qualities and recycled products whenever possible. We did not find information regarding an energy efficiency procurement policy for equipment purchases.
Last updated: April 2017
Asset Management List All
Building Benchmarking and Retrofitting
Tampa does not benchmark public building energy use through ENERGY STAR or a similar tool. Although Tampa has no comprehensive retrofit strategy for its municipal buildings in place, the City is currently undertaking energy efficient investments at the McKay Bay Waste to Energy facility.
Public Employees
Tampa allows city employees to use flexible schedules.
Last updated: January 2017
Community-Wide Initiatives
Score: 5 out of 12 points
Community-Wide Summary List All
Green Tampa leads Tampa’s implementation of its community-wide energy efficiency initiatives.
Last updated: January 2017
Community-Wide Energy Efficiency GoalsList All
The city’s Green Resolution formally adopted a goal proposed by Mayor Pam Iorio to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2025. Mayor Iorio originally proposed the goal in signing the U.S. Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement. The city has also established a goal to reduce community-wide energy use in the city by 38.6% below business as usual projections for the year 2025 as part of its Energy Efficiency and Conservation Plan. We could not confirm that the specific energy goal has been formally adopted by either executive order or city council resolution.
The city releases Annual Sustainability Reports to track greenhouse gas emissions for city assets, but these reports do not contain an updated community-wide total. We are thus unable to determine if the city is on track to meet its targets.
Last updated: January 2017
Efficient Distributed Energy Systems - District Energy and Combined Heat and PowerList All
We did not find information on any programs or policies to plan for future district energy systems.
Last updated: January 2017
Mitigation of Urban Heat Islands List All
The city’s Urban Forest Management Plan includes a goal of no net loss of tree canopy cover for the entire city and has also established individual neighborhood tree canopy goals for each of the city’s municipal districts.
The city has adopted a private tree protection ordinance. The city also allows for cluster residential subdivision zoning that permanently protect land alongside dense residential development patterns as part of its Site Plan Zoning District Procedures Ordinance. The city has not adopted policies that require or incentive the use of low impact development (LID) techniques.
Last updated: January 2017
Buildings Policies
Score: 12 out of 28 points
Buildings Summary List All
Tampa has some building sector initiatives to improve efficiency including upfront code support. The Construction Services Department manages the building energy code compliance and enforcement for the City of Tampa.
Last Updated: January 2017
Stringency of Energy CodesList All
Effective June 30, 2015, Florida law requires that residential and commercial buildings comply with the 5th Edition (2014) Florida Building Code, Energy Conservation. The 5th Edition (2014) Florida Building Code, Energy Conservation based on the 2012 IECC with amendments. The 6th Edition (2017) is on schedule to take effect on December 31, 2017. Cities are not permitted to adopt codes more stringent than the state codes. To learn more about Florida’s building energy codes, please visit the State Policy Database.
Commercial
Commercial construction in Tampa complies with the Florida codes. Tampa has not yet begun advocating for increased stringency in commercial building energy codes.
Residential
Residential construction in Tampa complies with the Florida codes. Tampa has not yet begun advocating for increased stringency in residential building energy codes.
Last Updated: January 2017
Building Energy Code Enforcement and ComplianceList All
Tampa does not have internal staff dedicated solely to energy code compliance. The city requires building code officials to complete energy code training. Tampa has not made third-party plan review or performance testing mandatory for code compliance, nor has it established either as a voluntary code compliance option. Tampa provides upfront building energy code support through energy code workshops.
Last Updated: January 2017
Requirements and Incentives for Efficient Buildings List All
Green Building Requirements
Private commercial and residential buildings are not subject to green building requirements.
Energy Audit and Retrofit Requirements
Tampa does not yet require commercial or residential buildings to take energy efficiency actions such as energy audits or retro-commissioning.
Incentives and Financing for Efficient Buildings
Tampa offers expedited plan review for commercial construction which includes provisions for energy efficiency. Rebates are available to residential and commercial construction achieving the LEED standards. Homes built to the Florida Green Building Coalition standards also receive a rebate.
Last Updated: January 2017
Energy & Water Utilities
Score: 7 out of 20 points
Energy & Water Utilities Summary List All
Tampa Electric Company (TECO), an investor-owned utility (IOU) is the primary electric utility serving the City of Tampa. TECO Peoples Gas, an IOU, is Tampa’s primary natural gas utility. The State of Florida requires its utilities which post sales of 2,000 GWh or more to implement cost-effective energy efficiency programs and to conduct energy efficiency potential studies. Natural gas programs are required by orders and legislation. To learn more about the state-requirements for electric and gas efficiency, please visit the Florida page of the State Database.
The City of Tampa Water Department is the municipal utility which provides drinking water, wastewater treatment, and stormwater management services to the City of Tampa.
Last Updated: January 2017
Electric & Gas Energy Efficiency Programs, Spending & SavingsList All
In 2015, according to TECO, they achieved 31,880 MWh in net incremental savings, representing 0.17% of retail sales. To achieve these savings, TECO spent $27,502,000 on electric efficiency programs in 2015, which equates to 1.37% of annual revenue. In 2015, TECO Peoples Gas reported spending $12,335,245 on natural gas efficiency programs, which is normalized to $37.76 per residential customer. TECO Peoples Gas did report savings on natural gas efficiency programs. Spending on electricity and natural gas represented in this section covers the entire Florida service territory, not just Tampa. TECO offers electric efficiency incentives and technical assistance to residential and commercial/industrial customers. TECO Peoples Gas similarly offers natural gas efficiency programs to residential and business customers.
TECO and Hillsborough County School Board (HCSB) have joint energy efficiency goals. TECO and the HCSB have been collaborating to install thermal energy storage units, lighting retrofit upgrades, chiller units and solar window film. TECO and the HCSB meet monthly to discuss billing & usage patterns, potential energy projects, and conservation programs that could help support implementing energy projects and meeting their energy goals.
TECO and the City of Tampa also have shared energy efficiency goals. The City of Tampa has an internal computer-aided tool they use to monitor controls and optimize performance of their electric operations. TECO’s Account Management team works closely with the City to ensure all their energy needs are addressed. The assigned account manager work as a liaison collaborating energy audits and promoting all conservation programs available.
Last Updated: January 2017
Low-Income & Multifamily EE Programs List All
Low-Income Programs
Tampa Electric Co. offers the Neighborhood Weatherization Program to qualified low-income residential customers. This program provides energy-efficient installations at no cost to the customer, and includes duct sealing, caulking, insulation, lighting fixtures, water heater wrap, water efficiency measures, and energy efficiency education materials, amongst others. The program targets high energy users and elderly households, and also streamlines implementation with the federal Weatherization Assistance Program. Tampa Electric participates with several civic and local organizations including Hillsborough County Neighborhood Service Centers, Rebuild Together Tampa Bay, and Paint Your Heart Out Tampa Bay.
In 2015, according to Tampa Electric Co., it achieved 4,666 MWh in energy savings from its low-income programs, while spending $3,994,280 on its low-income efficiency portfolio. These programs served 7,912 low-income customers, with each household receiving an average of $505 and saving an average of 590 kWh.
At this time, TECO Peoples Gas does not offer energy efficiency programs targeted at low-income customers.
Multifamily Programs
At this time, TECO and the TECO Peoples Gas do not offer energy efficiency programs targeted at multifamily properties.
Last Updated: June 2017
Provision of Energy Data by UtilitiesList All
TECO has not yet committed to the Green Button or another online service to provide customers with their energy consumption data. If requested, TECO will provide Tampa’s building managers with automatic benchmarking data for use in Portfolio Manager. Also upon request, TECO will provide community aggregate energy usage data for public consumption for planning or program evaluation. At this time, the City of Tampa does not advocate to the state for improvements in data provision by the utilities.
Last Updated: January 2017
Efficiency Efforts in Water ServicesList All
Water Efficiency
The City of Tampa offers water efficiency programs independently of the energy utilities, such as water audits, plumbing fixture retrofits, rain sensors, irrigation system efficiency check-ups and other programs. These programs and general water usage is monitored by the Water Use Restrictions Enforcement Program. The city has a year-round restriction on water use for all water sources except reclaimed water inside the city limits.
Energy Efficiency and Self-Generation
Tampa does not currently have an energy efficiency goal set in place for water services. However, its Wastewater Department employs staggered starting of motor loads throughout their facilities to reduce transient power usage. Additionally, the City of Tampa Wastewater Department produces approximately 1.18 million kWh per month by burning the methane gas from the digesters in the cogeneration engines. This supplies 25% of the electricity consumed on-site.
Green Stormwater Infrastructure
The City of Tampa does not have a comprehensive green stormwater infrastructure plan, but the City did recently initiate a $251,000,000 capital project program that will include green infrastructure applications.
Last Updated: January 2017
Transportation
Score: 8 out of 30 points
Transportation Summary List All
The transportation authority serving the City of Tampa is The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority. HART also provides the public transportation for the city and the broader metropolitan area, including bus and trolley service. The Planning Commission is the MPO in charge of conducting metropolitan transportation planning. Its area of jurisdiction encompasses Hillsborough, Tampa, and many surrounding cities and towns. The Transportation Division is the city agency charged with managing the city’s transportation network.
Last updated: January 2017
Location Efficiency List All
Tampa has neighborhood form-based codes for the Greater Seminole Heights Planning Areas, 40th Street, and Tampa Heights neighborhoods. The city allows one or more parking spaces per residential unit. There are no incentives available through the city to promote location efficiency.
Last updated: January 2017
Mode Shift List All
Modal Share Targets
Tampa has not yet developed targets to promote a modal shift in transportation.
Car and Bicycle Sharing
The car sharing services enterprise CarShare, and zipcar are now available in the city of Tampa. The city is served by a bikesharing program, Coast, with 34operable stations.
Complete Streets
Tampa adopted its complete streets policy in 2012, through Resolution No. 2814. The adoption of the guidelines encourages the inclusion of complete streets principles in all road construction and maintenance projects.
Last updated: January 2017
Transit List All
The HART transit system that serves Tampa received $80,173,663 in average annual funding from 2011-2015. This funding level is $26.95 per resident in the service territory of the agency, putting the city in the second lowest category ($25-49) available in transit funding.
The Transit Connectivity Index measures transit service levels. It is based on the number of bus routes and train stations within walking distance for households scaled by frequency of service. Tampa’s Transit Connectivity Index value is 9, putting it in the fourth highest category (5-14) available in transit connectivity.
Last updated: January 2017
Efficient VehiclesList All
At this time, Tampa does not offer incentives for citizens to purchase hybrid, plug-in, or EV vehicles. There are no incentives available for the construction of commercial or private EV charging infrastructure. The city has 50 EV charging stations available for public use.
Last updated: January 2017
Freight List All
Sustainable freight plan
Tampa does not have a sustainable freight transportation plan in place nor does the city has any policies that address freight efficiency.
Smart freight
Tampa does not employ an internet-based application or service to coordinate freight transport.
Last updated: January 2017
Sustainable Transportation Planning List All
The city of Tampa has a comprehensive plan with an mobility element to provide multi-modal mobility with all mode of travel such as transit (bus, ferry and rail), cycling and walking. We did not find information on specific greenhouse gas or VMT reduction targets.
Last updated: January 2017
Low-Income in Transit-Oriented Development Areas List All
Tampa awards a density/FAR bonus for developers that provide 10% of a project’s dwelling units as affordable within a transit served area.
Last updated: January 2017