BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1058|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1058
Author: Laird (D)
Amended: 7/17/07 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMM. : 7-4, 6/26/07
AYES: Lowenthal, Cedillo, Corbett, Kehoe, Simitian,
Torlakson, Yee
NOES: McClintock, Ashburn, Dutton, Harman
SENATE ENV. QUALITY COMMITTEE : 5-2, 7/10/07
AYES: Simitian, Florez, Kuehl, Lowenthal, Steinberg
NOES: Runner, Aanestad
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 9-7, 8/30/07
AYES: Torlakson, Cedillo, Corbett, Florez, Kuehl, Oropeza,
Ridley-Thomas, Steinberg, Yee
NOES: Cox, Aanestad, Ashburn, Battin, Dutton, Runner,
Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Simitian
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 45-34, 6/5/07 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Green building construction: best practices
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires the California Environmental
Protection Agency and ultimately the Building Standards
Commission to adopt best practices and building standards
CONTINUED
AB 1058
Page
2
related to green building.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Under the California Integrated Waste Management Act
of 1989, contains requirements for recycling certain
types of materials (e.g., metallic discards, papers,
plastic trash bags, rigid plastic packaging
containers, cell phones, paving materials, and waste
tires), provides programs for recycling at certain
types of facilities (e.g., schoolsites, large venues),
and requires model ordinances for certain matters
(e.g., adequate areas for collection and loading of
recyclable materials in development projects;
diversion of construction and demolition materials;
solid waste reduction, reuse, and recycling at large
venues). The Act creates the California Integrated
Waste Management Board (CIWMB) under the California
Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA).
2. Under the California Building Standards Law, sets
procedures for adopting state building codes that
require a building standard adopted or proposed by
state agencies to be submitted to the California
Building Standards Commission (BSC) for approval or
adoption prior to codification. Where no state agency
has authority to adopt building standards applicable
to state buildings, the BSC must adopt, approve,
codify, and publish building standards for the design
and construction of state buildings.
This bill creates the Green Building Standards Law that:
1. Requires CalEPA to develop, adopt, and make available
voluntary best practices by July 1, 2009, for
residential home construction that address certain
matters (e.g., energy efficiency, water efficiency,
materials and resources, indoor environmental
quality).
2. Requires CalEPA to coordinate a working group
consisting of certain state entities (e.g., BSC,
AB 1058
Page
3
CIWMB, State Energy Resources Conservation and
Development Commission, Air Resources Board) that must
consult representatives from certain organizations in
developing voluntary best practices. Entities
involved in this effort must consider current
guidelines (e.g., US Green Building Council's
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)
for homes rating system, 2005 Build It Green "New Home
Construction Green Building Guidelines).
3. Each state entity must provide the BSC and CalEPA with
an analysis of the proposed best practices that
include potential overlap with other agencies'
jurisdiction, assurance that all aspects exceed the
California Building Standards Code, and justification
of the best practices.
4. Requires the BSC to review the voluntary best
practices prior to adoption to ensure that nothing
falls below or conflicts with standards in the
California Building Standards Code (Title 24). If the
BSC identifies conflict with the Code, CalEPA must
revise its best practices to be in conformance with
the code.
5. Requires CalEPA to develop an education program
informing local entities of green building benefits
and encourage use of the best practices.
6. Requires CalEPA, beginning July 1, 2011, to conduct a
public review of the best practices with state, and
local government entities and certain representatives
to determine the level of use and effectiveness in a
representative sampling of residential construction.
7. Requires CalEPA to reconvene the working group to
develop proposed building standards based on the best
practices and their review. Each state entity must
develop proposed building standards related to its
area of expertise. CalEPA must be responsible for
coordinating proposed building standards and
submitting a comprehensive set of proposed building
standards to the BSC by July 1, 2012, for BSC adoption
pursuant to the California Building Standards Code.
AB 1058
Page
4
8. Authorizes the BSC to modify the proposed building
standards as long as the modifications do not reduce
the environmental benefits or efficiencies that would
have been achieved by the proposed standards.
9. Requires all residential occupancies for which a
project application is deemed complete on or after
July 1, 2013, to comply with the building standards
proposed by CalEPA if the BSC rejects the proposed
standard, until the date that the proposed CalEPA
building standards are adopted by the BSC take effect.
10. Contains related legislative intent.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2007-08 2008-09
2009-10 Fund
Develop standards $150 $300 $300
GF
Adopt standards -minor and
absorbable GF
Implement standards in -unknown increase in construction
costs GF
applicable state buildingsoffset by unknown, potentially
savings
in out years
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/31/07)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees
American Lung Association
California Interfaith Power and Light
California League of Conservation Voters
City of Santa Cruz
County of Santa Cruz
Environment California
AB 1058
Page
5
Gilroy Independence
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Natural Resources Defense Council
Planning and Conservation League, Santa Cruz, Sierra Club
California, Silicon Valley Leadership Group
Sierra Club California
OPPOSITION : (Verified 8/31/07)
Department of Finance
Department of Housing and Community Development
Building Standards Commission
California Apartment Association
California Building Industry Association
California Business Properties Association
California Chamber of Commerce
California Major Builders Council
California Manufacturers & Technology Association
Consulting Engineers and Land Surveyors of California
Shapell Industries
Western Electrical Contractors Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author, "In 2005,
California had approximately 12.9 million existing housing
units and over 211,000 new units were constructed. In
2003, construction investment in California for new
residential housing totaled $34 billion. While residential
housing is [a] significant economic force, the construction
of a 2,000 square foot home generates three to five tons of
waste, California residences use 5.6 million acre-feet of
applied water annually, and the residential sector accounts
for roughly 31 percent of the electricity consumed in the
state."
The author also notes that "Green building practices
utilize energy, water, and materials efficiently throughout
the building life cycle; enhance indoor air quality; and
incorporate environmentally preferable products. While
green building practices have been encouraged by the past
three Governors through Executive Orders, none of these
have included residential. As shown above, California
residences have a large impact on the environment, and by
providing guidelines on how to most efficiently
build/operate a home to minimize the environmental impact
AB 1058
Page
6
we can make a significant difference in that impact."
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : Opponents primarily object to
the fact that the bill goes outside the existing process
for developing building standards. In addition, opponents
argue that the benefits of green building standards should
be balanced against the impact on housing affordability.
BSC and HCD have proposed amendments that require HCD to
propose green building standards for residential
occupancies and BSC to propose green building standards for
uses outside state jurisdiction by July 1, 2009. These
standards may be voluntary or mandatory and would take into
account the impact on housing affordability.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Bass, Beall, Berg, Brownley, Caballero, Charles
Calderon, Carter, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon,
DeSaulnier, Dymally, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fuentes,
Galgiani, Hancock, Hayashi, Hernandez, Huffman, Jones,
Karnette, Krekorian, Laird, Leno, Levine, Lieber, Lieu,
Ma, Mendoza, Mullin, Nava, Portantino, Price, Richardson,
Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Solorio, Swanson, Torrico, Wolk,
Nunez
NOES: Adams, Aghazarian, Anderson, Arambula, Benoit,
Berryhill, Blakeslee, Cook, DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson,
Fuller, Gaines, Garcia, Garrick, Horton, Houston, Huff,
Jeffries, Keene, La Malfa, Maze, Nakanishi, Niello,
Parra, Plescia, Sharon Runner, Silva, Smyth, Spitzer,
Strickland, Tran, Villines, Walters
NO VOTE RECORDED: Soto
JJA:nl 8/31/07 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****