Glossary
Below is an alphabetized list of commonly used terminology associated with energy management in the federal sector. Terms are organized by category:
- Federal Agency Terms
- Legislation & Policy
- Legislation & Policy Guidance
- Technical Building-Related Terms
- Alternative Financing Terms
- Utility Terms
- Federal Fleet Terms
- Stakeholders & NGOs
Some of the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Adobe Reader.
Federal Agency Terms
Legislation & Policy 
| Abbreviation | Federal Authority & Web Site Link |
|---|---|
| CAA | Clean Air Act (as amended in 1990) |
| E.O. 13212 | Executive Order 13212—Actions to Expedite Energy-Related Projects (2001) (PDF 24 KB) |
| E.O. 13221 | Executive Order 13221—Energy Standby Power Devices (2001) (PDF 84 KB) |
| E.O. 13423 | Executive Order 13423—Strengthening Federal Environmental, Energy, and Transportation (2007) |
| EISA | Energy Independence and Security Act (2007) (PDF 444 KB) |
| EPACT | Energy Policy Act (of 1992 and 2005) |
| TEAM | Transformational Energy Action Management Initiative |
Legislation & Policy Guidance
| Issue | Guidance Document & Web Site Link |
|---|---|
| ESPC & UESC MOU | Substantially Increasing Federal Use of Energy Savings Performance Contracting (and Utility Energy Services Contracting) (PDF 924 KB) |
| Sustainable Design MOU | Memorandum of Understanding for Federal Leadership in High Performance Sustainable Buildings (PDF 152 KB) |
| Building Energy Performance | Guidelines Establishing Criteria Excluding Buildings form Energy Performance Requirements (PDF 445 KB) |
| Electric Metering | Guidance for Electric Metering in Federal Facilities (PDF 2.7 MB) |
| Products | Procurement for Energy Efficient Products |
| Building Standards | Energy Efficiency Standards for New Federal Commercial and Residential Buildings (PDF 132 KB) |
| Renewable Energy | Renewable Energy: Federal Purchase Requirement (PDF 540 KB) |
| E.O. 13423 | Instructions for Implementing E.O. 13423 |
| E.O. 13423 Water Efficiency | Establishing Baseline and Meeting Water Conservation Goals of E.O. 13423 (PDF 512 KB) |
| EPACT 2005 & E.O. 13423 | Renewable Energy Requirement Guidance (PDF 540 KB) |
| FAR Facilities | Federal Acquisition Regulations: Federal Energy Management and Planning Programs |
| FAR Utility Services | Federal Acquisition Regulations: Acquisition of Utility Services |
| FAR Owned or Leased Facilities | Federal Acquisition Regulations: Application of Government Owned or Leased Facilities |
Technical Building-Related Terms
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| AHU | Air Handling Units |
| AMA | Agency Model Agreements |
| BAMF | Biomass and Alternative Methane Fuels |
| Btu | British Thermal Unit |
| CDSM | Certified Demand Side Management Professional |
| CEM | Certified Energy Manager |
| CHP | Combined Heat and Power |
| CLEP | Certified Lightening Efficiency Professional |
| Cx | Commissioning |
| DDC | Direct Digital Control |
| DER | Distributed Energy Resources |
| DG | Distributed Generation |
| ECM | Energy Conservation Measures |
| EERC | Energy Escalation Rate Calculator |
| EIS | Environmental Impact Statement |
| EMCS | Energy Management Control Systems |
| EMSA | Energy Management Services Authorization |
| ESC | Energy Solutions Center |
| EUI | Energy Use Index |
| FEDS | Facility Energy Decision System (Software) |
| FLEX | Federal Lighting Expert |
| FRESA | Federal Renewable Energy Screening Assistant |
| GHP | Geothermal Heat Pump |
| GPP | Green Power Partnership |
| GSF | Gross Square Feet |
| GWh | Gigawatts Per Hour |
| HID | High Intensity Discharge |
| HVAC | Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning System |
| IAQ | Indoor Air Quality |
| IEQ | Indoor Environmental Quality |
| LED | Light Emitting Diodes |
| LEED | Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design |
| LEED AP | Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional |
| LEED EB | LEED Existing Building |
| LEED H | LEED Homes |
| LEED-NC | LEED New Construction |
| M&V | Measurement and Verification |
| MMBtu | One Million British Thermal Units |
| MSA | Metropolitan Statistical Area |
| MWh | Megawatt-Hours |
| MW | Megawatt |
| NTD | New Technology Demonstration |
| O&M | Operations and Maintenance |
| PE | Professional Engineer |
| PF | Project Facilitator |
| PBR | Performance-Based Regulation |
| PV | Photovoltaic |
| QF | Qualifying Facilities |
| R&D | Research and Development |
| RE | Renewable Energy |
| REC | Renewable Energy Certificate |
| REM | Resource Efficiency Managers |
| RPS | Renewable Portfolio Standard |
| SEL | Spectrally Enhanced Lighting |
| SSL | Solid State Lighting |
| TA | Technical Assistance |
| TIR | Technology Installation Review |
| TOU | Time of Use |
| WATERGY | Spreadsheet model that uses water/energy relationship assumptions to analyze potential for water and associated energy savings |
| WBDG | Whole Building Design Guide |
Alternative Financing Terms
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| ACQ | Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics |
| AFR | Alternative Financing Representative |
| AWC | Area-Wide Contract |
| BLCC | Analysis Building Life-Cycle Cost Analysis |
| BLCC | Programs Building Life-Cycle Cost Programs |
| BOA | Basic Order Agreement |
| CO | Contracting Officer |
| COTR | Contracting Officer's Technical Representative |
| DES | Detailed Energy Survey |
| DO | Delivery Order |
| ECIP | Energy Conservation Investment Program |
| ESA | Energy Services Agreement |
| ESCO | Energy Services Company |
| ESPC | Energy Savings Performance Contracts |
| FAR | Federal Acquisition Regulations |
| IDIQ | Indefinite Delivery indefinite Quantity |
| IDS | Investor's Deal Summary |
| IOU | Investor Owned Utilities |
| ITC | Independent Transmission Companies |
| LCCA | Life Cycle Cost Analysis |
| LCC | Life Cycle Cost |
| MCP | Market Clearing Price |
| MMP | Market Marginal Price |
| NOI | Notice of Intent Award |
| PBA | Planning, Budget, and Analysis |
| PO | Purchase Order |
| RFP | Request for Proposal |
| ROI | Return on Investment |
| SES | Shared Energy Savings |
| SFO | Standard Finance Offer |
| SSJ | Sole Source Justification |
| Super ESPC | Super Energy Savings Performance Contracts |
| T-bill | U.S. Treasury Bill |
| TO | Task Order |
Utility Terms
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| AWC | Area Wide Contract |
| DSM | Demand-Side Management |
| FPC | Federal Power Commission |
| G&T | Generation and Transmission |
| IPP | Independent Power Producers |
| ISO | Independent System Operator |
| NRCFC | National Rural Cooperative Finance Corporation |
| PB | Public Benefit |
| PPA | Power Purchase Agreement |
| PSC | Public Service Commission |
| POU | Publicly Owned Utility |
| PSOs | Program Secretarial Offices |
| PUC | Public Utility Commission |
| RTG | Regional Transmission Group |
| RTO | Regional Transmission Organization |
| UESC | Utility Energy Services Contract |
Federal Fleet Terms
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| AF | Alternative Fuel |
| AFV | Alternative Fuel Vehicle |
| AFDC | Alternative Fuels and Advanced Vehicles Data Center (formerly Alternative Fuels Data Center) |
| B20 | 20% (Volume) Biodiesel |
| B100 | 100% (Volume) Biodiesel |
| CMSA | Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area |
| DAVE | Driving Alternative Fuel Vehicles Easily |
| E85 | 85% Ethanol and 15% Gasoline Fuel Blend |
| FAST | Federal Automotive Statistical Tool |
| GVWR | Gross Vehicle Weight Rating |
| INTERFUEL | Interagency Committee for Alternative Fuels |
| LDV | Light Duty Vehicle |
| MSA | Metropolitan Statistical Area |