Relationship to Local Government Green Building Policies

The new California Green Building Standards Code addresses all building types; however, it treats homes and commercial buildings very differently. All of the proposed measures in the new code will be voluntary until 2010, but only residential will have a short list of mandatory requirements at that time. The commercial section consists of a longer list of measures that are voluntary and are not slated to become mandatory.  The code is meant to set the minimum floor and does not preempt local governments to go above and beyond as per the Building Standards Commission intent language below.

“101.7 It is the intent of the California Building Standards Commission, by adopting this code, to set minimum Green Building Standards that may, at the discretion of any local government entity, be applied. It is the further intent of the California Building Standards Commission that all entities subject to this code view these standards as minimal Green Building Standards and that local government entities retain their discretion to exceed the standards established by this code.”

Over 100 local governments have already passed green building policies and about 30 of those have mandatory green building requirements. Most of these policies and the dozens more that are in active development utilize Build It Green’s GreenPoint Rated program or LEED and therefore significantly exceed the new green building code. The new green building code is not equivalent or a substitute for GreenPoint Rated or LEED as per the Building Standards Commission intent language below.

“101.3 It is not the intent of the California Building Standards Commission that this code substitute or be identified as meeting the certification requirements of any green building program that is not established and adopted by the California Building Standards
Commission.”

Voluntary and Mandatory Sections

A unique aspect of the new code is that most of the stated best design and construction practices are voluntary. Over time some of these voluntary practices will likely become mandatory but that will be several years away. The voluntary practices serve to educate and raise awareness of options available as per the Building Standards Commission intent language below.

“Appendix A: A101.1 Scope. The measures contained in this appendix are not mandatory and provide additional considerations that designers, builders, and property owners may wish to consider during the planning, design and construction process. The standards in this appendix will continue to be developed through the next code adoption cycle for placement in the body of this code.”

Builders that follow and comply with the residential mandatory minimum requirements that go into effect in 2010 will not be able to call their projects “green” because there is no requirement to exceed the T24 energy code as per the Building Standards Commission code language stated in 503.2 and the intent language in 503.1 and A501.1 below.

“503.2 Minimum energy performance for low-rise residential buildings. Low-rise residential buildings shall meet or exceed the minimum standard design required by the California Energy Code currently in effect.”

“503.1 and A501.1 For the purposes of energy efficiency standards in this code the California Energy Commission will continue to adopt mandatory building standards. It is the intent of this code to encourage green buildings to achieve exemplary performance in the area of energy efficiency. Specifically, a green building should achieve more than a 15% reduction in energy usage when compared to the State’s mandatory energy efficiency standards.”

Conclusion

Build It Green supports this code and will continue to work with and support local governments in creating credible and accessible green building policies and programs that exceed the new green building code. The state of California has taken an important step and Build It Green looks forward to coordinating and working with the Building Standards Commission, the Department of Housing and Community Development, and the Governor to evolve the code over time and help improve the quality of life for all Californians.