How a Tier 2 filing gets done, and who does each part
A Tier 2 filing is mostly paperwork and waiting: utility data, equipment lists, two Commerce templates and three forms. We do the paperwork and the chasing; you do about two hours; a Qualified Energy Manager reviews, signs and submits.
The sequence
- You · 5 minutes
Start a building
You send the building's address, size, type and utility. You get a private status page with the checklist of what we need.
- You + Tier 2 Desk · day 0
Deposit and kickoff
You pay the $500 refundable deposit. The same day we send the utility data requests and the questionnaire.
- Utility · day 1–28
Utility data
Your utility uploads at least 12 months of whole-building data to Portfolio Manager. This is the wait we don't control: 2 days to about 4 weeks.
- Your maintenance person · about 1 hour
Questionnaire and photos
Operating hours and occupancy, current maintenance contracts, and nameplate photos of air handlers, rooftop units, boilers, water heaters, pumps, fans and controls.
- You · 20 minutes
State accounts
You create your Secure Access Washington and Clean Buildings Portal accounts and give our portal user shared access. Only you can create them.
- Tier 2 Desk · within 3 weeks of the data
Drafts
Portfolio Manager is complete and shared with Commerce; Forms B and C, the Energy Management Plan (CBPS 039) and the O&M program (CBPS 040) are drafted.
- QEM · about 5 hours
QEM review
The QEM checks the evidence, sets the EUI target and walks the plan through with your energy manager. We fix anything they flag and keep a record of the review.
- You + QEM
Signature and submission
Owner, QEM and energy manager sign Form A. The QEM submits the compliance and incentive application in the portal. The balance is due now.
- Commerce, utility · weeks to months
Commerce review
Commerce reviews in the order received. We answer its questions and resubmit if asked. Once approved, Commerce notifies your utility, which pays the incentive against your W-9.
What we need from you
| Commerce building ID | On the notification letter Commerce mailed on 1 July 2025. |
|---|---|
| Legal owner, parcel number, floor area by use | From your records or the county assessor. |
| Utility account numbers and authorization | For every electric, gas and steam meter. For buildings with few tenants some utilities ask for tenant release forms; we cite the 2025 statute (RCW 19.27A.170) that requires aggregated data without prior tenant consent first. |
| Operating hours and occupancy | Weekly hours per use, for the Form B shift factors. |
| Nameplate photos and a short video walk-round | Uploaded on your status page; they become the O&M equipment inventory. |
| A designated energy manager | Can be the property manager. |
| Secure Access Washington + portal shared access | Created by each owner; we send the user to share with. |
| For enhanced multifamily incentive | The signed anti-displacement agreement and rent schedule. |
| A W-9 for the utility | The utility pays the incentive to the owner. |
The utility data wait
Benchmarking needs at least 12 months of whole-building energy data in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. Utilities with more than 25,000 customers must upload it when the owner authorizes it; smaller ones must upload or send it within 60 days. Their own published turnaround:
| Utility | How and how long |
|---|---|
| Seattle City Light | Accept the benchmarking terms in Portfolio Manager; resubmit if there is no reply in 48 hours. |
| Puget Sound Energy | MyData request; the first report can take up to 3 days, then monthly. |
| Avista | Permission form; allow up to 4 weeks. |
| Snohomish PUD | Whole-building request in MySnoPUD; about 5-10 business days. |
| Tacoma Power | Intake form; usually 24-48 hours. |
| Clark Public Utilities | Terms agreement; follow up after 10 business days. |
| Cascade Natural Gas | Release form emailed by the account holder; about 5 business days. |
| NW Natural | Request form; the first upload comes about 30 days after processing. |
| Another utility or PUD | Utilities with 25,000 or fewer customers must upload or send the data within 60 days. |
From the utilities' own benchmarking pages, checked 2026-10-01. Where a building isn't separately metered, Commerce requires benchmarking at the connected-building level.
What our agents do and don't do
The drafting, the data entry and the follow-ups are done by AI agents and checked by a human operator at Jestr. They never sign anything, never create or log in to your state accounts, and never submit for you: the owner and the QEM do those. Every file they produce is yours to read.