Del. Lorig Charkoudian (D-Montgomery) is pushing back against proposed building energy code changes she says would make it easier to construct data centers, warehouses and large apartment buildings with weaker efficiency standards. The proposal applies to the type of large commercial facilities that Potomac-area residents have been fighting near the river watershed.
The Maryland Department of Labor published proposed amendments to the state's commercial building energy code in the Maryland Register on Friday. Environmental groups and Charkoudian argue the changes would weaken the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code, which state law requires Maryland to adopt at a level no less stringent than the national standard.
"It creates a lower baseline standard, and makes a bunch more things flexible," Charkoudian told Bethesda Magazine. "In the end, the impact is lower levels of efficiency."
Two changes draw the sharpest criticism. The national code requires new large buildings to generate 0.75 watts of renewable energy per square foot for the three largest floors, a modest on-site solar requirement. Maryland's proposal deletes it entirely, according to Erin Sherman, a senior associate at the Rocky Mountain Institute, who testified at the Department of Labor's public hearing in Hunt Valley on Thursday, July 16. The proposal would also let builders double-count certain efficiency measures, reducing the total energy-saving work required.
Charkoudian has asked the Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review to place a hold on the regulations. Committee Chair Del. Sandy Rosenberg (D-Baltimore City) said no decision has been made, but the committee gives "significant weight" to the opinions of leaders on the subject matter it covers.
Why Potomac residents are watching
No local Potomac civic group has publicly commented on the building code proposal. But the code applies to data centers, and seven such facilities proposed for the Agricultural Reserve near Dickerson received provisional conditional use approval in January 2026, with a property line just 110 feet from the C&O Canal towpath. Those facilities would draw cooling water from the Potomac River, which supplies more than 75 percent of the region's drinking water.
The West Montgomery County Citizens Association has been actively opposing data center development near the watershed, citing water quality risks, power demand and noise.
Montgomery County Councilmember Evan Glass introduced legislation in May 2026 to pause data center permits for six months, and a separate zoning proposal, ZTA 26-01, remains under review, with proposed amendments requiring water-use plans and 100% clean-energy compliance.
How to comment
The public comment period closes Monday, July 27. Residents can submit comments by email to [email protected], by phone at 410-767-2225, or by mail to the Division of Labor and Industry, Building Codes Administration, 10946 Golden West Drive, Suite 160, Hunt Valley, MD 21031.
Department of Labor spokesperson Dinah Winnick said the agency will review all stakeholder input after the comment period closes and determine whether further changes are needed. The outcome of Charkoudian's hold request before the AELR committee remains pending.
