Congressional Building
Office in Washington, DC, DC · 422 First Street, SE · 20003
At a glance
Congressional Building is a 9,171-square-foot office building at 422 First Street, SE in Washington, DC, built in 1965. In its 2018 Washington, DC benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 42 out of 100 (grade D), a site energy-use intensity of 84.3 kBtu/ft² and 61 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 11% of the 774 scored office buildings in Washington, DC.
Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS · reporting year 2018
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 42 (band D) |
| Site EUI | 84.3 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 168.3 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 61 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 6.7 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 122,559 kWh |
| Natural gas | 3,548 therms |
| Water use | 50 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 9,171 sq ft |
| Source record | dc:PM1347463:2018 |
Compliance context
Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS
DC's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require buildings below the performance standard to improve over compliance cycles (the first ends December 31, 2026; later cycles run five years), with penalties for buildings that fail to meet their pathway.
Ownership
SAN MANUEL BAND OF SERRANO MISSION INDIANS
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Location
- Address
- 422 First Street, SE
- City
- Washington, DC
- State
- District of Columbia
- ZIP
- 20003
- Coordinates
- 38.88426, -77.00556
Within ~1 km
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See also: most efficient in Washington, DC · biggest emitters
How does Congressional Building compare with other office buildings in Washington, DC?
The latest disclosures cover 899 office buildings in Washington, DC, out of 6,870 buildings citywide. Congressional Building's ENERGY STAR score of 42 compares with an average of 70 across the 774 that report a score; it scores higher than 11% of them and lower than 89%. Its site EUI of 84.3 kBtu/ft² is about 52% above the average of 55.6 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 6.7 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 34% above the group average of 5.0 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 9,171 sq ft, it is about 96% below the average floor area of 216,135 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1965, 9 years earlier than the group's average year built (1974). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 15,264 office buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 73 and a site EUI of 59.3 kBtu/ft².
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 42 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 42 means the building performs better than about 42% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 42 falls in band D — lowest band (1–54). It sits 33 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Washington, DC, 47% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. Congressional Building's 84.3 kBtu/ft² across 9,171 sq ft works out to about 0.8 billion Btu (227 MWh-equivalent) in 2018. Its source EUI of 168.3 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 122,559 kWh of electricity, 3,548 therms of natural gas and 50 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires Congressional Building to report its energy use?
Congressional Building reports under the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS, the legal basis of Washington, DC's Building Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2018 disclosure (source record dc:PM1347463:2018). DC's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require buildings below the performance standard to improve over compliance cycles (the first ends December 31, 2026; later cycles run five years), with penalties for buildings that fail to meet their pathway.
More office buildings in Washington, DC
- Administration Building, 4120 - 4124 Van Ness Street, NW· 8,034 sq ft
- JBG/2115 Wisconsin, L.L.C.· -74,948 sq ft
- Office buildings in Washington, DC· 899 benchmarked
- All Washington, DC benchmarked buildings· Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS
- Most efficient large buildings in Washington, DC
- Least efficient large buildings in Washington, DC
- Biggest emitters in Washington, DC
Frequently asked questions
What is Congressional Building's energy grade?
Congressional Building scores 42 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band D, lowest band (1–54) — in its 2018 Washington, DC disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does Congressional Building use?
Its 2018 site energy-use intensity was 84.3 kBtu/ft² (168.3 kBtu/ft² source) across 9,171 sq ft, including 122,559 kWh of electricity and 3,548 therms of natural gas.
What are Congressional Building's carbon emissions?
Congressional Building reported 61 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (6.7 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2018.
Where is Congressional Building?
Congressional Building is at 422 First Street, SE, in Washington, DC 20003. Its coordinates are 38.88426, -77.00556 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Building Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Congressional Building and when was it built?
Congressional Building has 9,171 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2018 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1965 as its year built. It is classed as office.
Is Congressional Building covered by the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS?
Yes — it appears in the 2018 Building Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS.
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About this data
Source: Building Energy Benchmarking (Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS), as published July 9, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “Congressional Building, Washington, DC — 2018 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/washington-dc/congressional-building-71b2ea2c (data as of July 9, 2026).