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6/25/2026
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Sponsors say McKee’s veto of legislation to measure energy use of large buildings is short-sighted, irresponsible
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Move will further slow effort to reduce carbon emissions
STATE HOUSE – Rep. Rebecca Kislak and Sen. Meghan E. Kallman said Gov. Daniel J. McKee’s veto of their legislation to create an energy-use reporting requirement for large buildings and campuses is short-sighted and irresponsible, and it will stall work on keeping the state’s commitment to carbon-emission reduction.
“Rhode Island set ambitious and very necessary commitments to reducing our carbon emissions, but we are giving up on them if we refuse to take even the first steps, such basic measurement of carbon output from some large sources, as our bill would institute. We have been working on this legislation for several years to begin the tough job of addressing carbon from buildings, and this year, we separated the effort into two bills so we could at least get moving on holding up a mirror to view our emissions. It is irresponsible to take so little action toward reducing our carbon output. The governor should be enthusiastically leading the way in our transition to clean energy, not vetoing the first steps toward it,” said Senator Kallman (D-Dist. 15, Pawtucket, Providence).
Said Representative Kislak (D-Dist. 4, Providence), “We cannot wait any longer to get on a path to an energy resilient future. The instability and high gas prices right now are exactly why we need to support and encourage moving to the more available and stable renewable sources we can generate in our own state. We can’t afford to keep dragging our feet on addressing the emissions coming from our built environment, which represents about one-third of all carbon emissions. We need bold progress, not fear of even asking big energy users to look at their own energy use. We will keep working to get our large buildings on a path to a more sustainable energy future. This veto is short-sighted and disappointing.”
The legislation (2026-H 7183, 2026-S 2260) would require owners of residential and nonresidential buildings or campuses of 25,000 square feet or more to report information about their energy use and sources using the ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, an internet-based tool developed and maintained by the federal Environmental Protection Agency, or a portal already operated by Rhode Island Energy, the state’s largest electric and gas utility.
The sponsors noted that, although the governor claimed in his veto message that their act conflicts with a similar program included in the state budget to measure carbon output from large state-owned buildings, their legislation complements that program by doing the same for large private buildings. Whether public or private, big buildings are big energy users, and there’s no distinction between their emissions in the environment, they said.
Forty percent of the buildings in the state subject to the reporting requirements in their bill are already required to report energy use, because Providence instituted a similar municipal reporting program in 2024. Buildings in cities or towns with similar programs would have been exempt from having to report to the state under the bill.
For more information, contact:
Meredyth R. Whitty, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
(401) 222-1923
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