BILL NUMBER: AB 1013 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Quirk
FEBRUARY 26, 2015
An act to amend Sections 25402.1 and 25942 of the Public Resources
Code, relating to energy.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1013, as introduced, Quirk. Energy: public domain computer
program: home energy rating.
(1) Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation
and Development Commission to prescribe, by regulation, lighting,
insulation climate control system, and other building design and
construction standards that increase the efficiency in the use of
energy and water for new residential and new nonresidential
buildings. Existing law also requires the commission to prescribe, by
regulation, energy and water conservation design standards for new
residential and new nonresidential buildings. In order to implement
these requirements, existing law requires the commission to develop a
public domain computer program that enables contractors, builders,
architects, engineers, and government officials to estimate energy
consumed by residential and nonresidential buildings.
This bill would require the commission to approve and make
publicly available, not less than 6 months prior to the effective
date of adopted or updated efficiency standards, a version of the
public domain computer program that will function properly with these
adopted or updated standards. The bill would require the commission,
before approving the public domain computer program for use with
adopted or updated standards, to perform preliminary tests of the
public domain computer program using common examples of residential
and nonresidential buildings and building systems to ensure the
usability of the program. The bill would require the commission to
make the results of those preliminary tests publicly available.
(2) Existing law requires the commission to establish criteria for
adopting a statewide home energy rating program for residential
dwellings.
For existing single-family residential dwellings and multifamily
residential dwellings with up to 4 units, this bill would require the
commission, in administering the statewide home energy rating
program, to ensure that energy assessment tools used by the
commission are routinely adjusted to improve modeling accuracy and to
ensure that consumers receive a notice with the output of the energy
assessment tools explaining the assumptions used in the energy
assessment tools and how they may differ from actual usage patterns.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 25402.1 of the Public Resources Code is amended
to read:
25402.1. In order to implement the requirements of subdivisions
(a) and (b) of Section 25402, the commission shall do
all of the following: following
shall apply:
(a) Develop The commission shall develop
a public domain computer program which
that will enable contractors, builders, architects, engineers,
and government officials to estimate the energy consumed by
residential and nonresidential buildings. The commission may charge a
fee for the use of the program, which fee shall
be based upon the actual cost of the program, including any computer
costs.
(b) Establish The commission shall
establish a formal process for certification of compliance
options for new products, materials, and calculation methods
which that provides for adequate technical and
public review to ensure accurate, equitable, and timely evaluation of
certification applications. Proponents filing applications for new
products, materials, and calculation methods shall provide all
information needed to evaluate the application that is required by
the commission. The commission shall publish annually the results of
its certification decisions and instructions to users and local
building officials concerning requirements for showing compliance
with the building standards for new products, materials, or
calculation methods. The commission may charge and collect a
reasonable fee from applicants to cover the costs under this
subdivision. Any funds received by the commission for purposes of
this subdivision shall be deposited in the Energy Resources Programs
Account and, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code,
are continuously appropriated to the commission for the purposes of
this subdivision. Any unencumbered portion of funds collected as a
fee for an application remaining in the Energy Resources Programs
Account after completion of the certification process for that
application shall be returned to the applicant within a reasonable
period of time.
(c) Include The commission shall include
a prescriptive method of complying with the standards,
including design aids such as a manual, sample calculations, and
model structural designs.
(d) Conduct The commission
shall conduct a pilot project of field testing of actual
residential buildings to calibrate and identify potential needed
changes in the modeling assumptions to increase the accuracy of the
public domain computer program specified in subdivision (a) and to
evaluate the impacts of the standards, including, but not limited to,
the energy savings, cost effectiveness,
cost-effectiveness, and the effects on indoor air quality. The
pilot project shall be conducted pursuant to a contract entered into
by the commission. The commission shall consult with the participants
designated pursuant to Section 9202 of the Public Utilities
Code Code, as that section read on December 31, 2003,
to seek funding and support for field monitoring in each
public utility service territory, with the University of California
to take advantage of its extensive building monitoring expertise, and
with the California Building Industry Association to coordinate the
involvement of builders and developers throughout the state. The
pilot project shall include periodic public workshops to develop
plans and review progress. The commission shall prepare and submit a
report to the Legislature on progress and initial findings not later
than December 31, 1988, and a final report on the results of the
pilot project on residential buildings not later than June 30, 1990.
The report shall include recommendations regarding the need and
feasibility of conducting further monitoring of actual residential
and nonresidential buildings. The report shall also identify any
revisions to the public domain computer program and energy
conservation standards if the pilot project determines that revisions
are appropriate.
(e) Certify, The commission shall certify,
not later than 180 days after approval of the standards by the
State Building Standards Commission, an energy conservation manual
for use by designers, builders, and contractors of residential and
nonresidential buildings. The manual shall be furnished upon request
at a price sufficient to cover the costs of production and shall be
distributed at no cost to all affected local agencies. The manual
shall contain, but not be limited to, the following:
(1) The standards for energy conservation established by the
commission.
(2) Forms, charts, tables, and other data to assist designers and
builders in meeting the standards.
(3) Design suggestions for meeting or exceeding the standards.
(4) Any other information which the commission finds will assist
persons in conforming to the standards.
(5) Instructions for use of the computer program for calculating
energy consumption in residential and nonresidential buildings.
(6) The prescriptive method for use as an alternative to the
computer program.
(f) The commission shall approve and make publicly available, not
less than six months prior to the effective date of adopted or
updated standards, a version of the public domain computer program
developed pursuant to subdivision (a) that will function properly
with those adopted on updated standards. Before approving the public
domain computer program for use with adopted or updated standards,
the commission shall do both of the following:
(1) Perform preliminary tests of the public domain computer
program using common examples of residential and nonresidential
buildings and building systems to ensure the usability of the public
domain computer program by users of the program, including, but not
limited to, architects, builders, contractors, and local code
enforcement personnel.
(2) Make the results of the preliminary tests publicly available.
(f)
(g) The commission shall establish a continuing program
of technical assistance to local building departments in the
enforcement of subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 25402 and this
section. The program shall include the training of local officials in
building technology and enforcement procedures related to energy
conservation, and the development of complementary training programs
conducted by local governments, educational institutions, and other
public or private entities. The technical assistance program shall
include the preparation and publication of forms and procedures for
local building departments in performing the review of building plans
and specifications. The commission shall provide, on a contract
basis, a review of building plans and specifications submitted by a
local building department, and shall adopt a schedule of fees
sufficient to repay the cost of those services.
(g)
(h) Subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 25402 and this
section, and the rules and regulations of the commission adopted
pursuant thereto, to those provisions,
shall be enforced by the building department of every city, county,
or city and county.
(1) No A building permit for
any a residential or nonresidential
building shall not be issued by a local building
department, unless a review by the building department of the plans
for the proposed residential or nonresidential building contains
detailed energy system specifications and confirms that the building
satisfies the minimum standards established pursuant to subdivision
(a) or (b) of Section 25402 and this section applicable to the
building.
(2) Where there is no local building department, the commission
shall enforce subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 25402 and this
section.
(3) If a local building department fails to enforce subdivisions
(a) and (b) of Section 25402 and this section or any other provision
of this chapter or standard adopted pursuant thereto, the commission
may provide enforcement after furnishing 10 days' written notice to
the local building department.
(4) A city, county, or city and county may, by ordinance or
resolution, prescribe a schedule of fees sufficient to pay the costs
incurred in the enforcement of subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section
25402 and this section. The commission may establish a schedule of
fees sufficient to pay the costs incurred by that enforcement.
(5) No The construction of
any a state building shall not
commence until the Department of General Services or the state agency
that otherwise has jurisdiction over the property reviews the plans
for the proposed building and certifies that the plans satisfy the
minimum standards established pursuant to subdivision (a) or
(b) of Chapter 2.8 (commencing with Section 15814.30) of
Part 10b of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code,
subdivision (a) or (b) of Section 25402, and this section
which that are applicable to the
building.
(h)
(i) Subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 25402 and this
section shall apply only to new residential and nonresidential
buildings on which actual site preparation and construction have not
commenced prior to the effective date of rules and regulations
adopted pursuant to those sections provisions
that are applicable to those buildings. Nothing in
those Those sections shall not
prohibit either of the following:
(1) The enforcement of state or local energy conservation or
energy insulation standards, adopted prior to the effective date of
rules and regulations adopted pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b) of
Section 25402 and this section with regard to residential and
nonresidential buildings on which actual site preparation and
construction have commenced prior to that date.
(2) The enforcement of city or county energy conservation or
energy insulation standards, whenever adopted, with regard to
residential and nonresidential buildings on which actual site
preparation and construction have not commenced prior to the
effective date of rules and regulations adopted pursuant to
subdivisions (a) and (b) of Section 25402 and this section, if the
city or county files the basis of its determination that the
standards are cost effective with the commission and the commission
finds that the standards will require the diminution of energy
consumption levels permitted by the rules and regulations adopted
pursuant to those sections. If, after two or more years after the
filing with the commission of the determination that those standards
are cost effective, there has been a substantial change in the
factual circumstances affecting the determination, upon application
by any interested party, the city or county shall update and file a
new basis of its determination that the standards are cost effective.
The determination that the standards are cost effective shall be
adopted by the governing body of the city or county at a public
meeting. If, at the meeting on the matter, the governing body
determines that the standards are no longer cost effective, the
standards shall, as of that date, be unenforceable and no building
permit or other entitlement shall be denied based on the
noncompliance with the standards.
(i)
(j) The commission may exempt from the requirements of
this section and of any regulations adopted pursuant thereto
to this section any proposed building for which
compliance would be impossible without substantial delays and
increases in cost of construction, if the commission finds that
substantial funds have been expended in good faith on planning,
designing, architecture architecture,
or engineering prior to the date of adoption of the regulations.
(j)
(k) If a dispute arises between an applicant for a
building permit, or the state pursuant to paragraph (5) of
subdivision (g), (h), and the building
department regarding interpretation of Section 25402 or the
regulations adopted pursuant thereto, either party may submit the
dispute to the commission for resolution. The commission's
determination of the matter shall be binding on the parties.
(k)
( l ) Nothing in Section 25130,
25131, or 25402, or in this section prevents enforcement of any
regulation adopted pursuant to this chapter, or Chapter 11.5
(commencing with Section 19878) of Part 3 of Division 13 of the
Health and Safety Code as they existed prior to September 16, 1977.
SEC. 2. Section 25942 of the Public Resources Code is amended to
read:
25942. (a) On or before July 1, 1995, the
The commission shall establish criteria for
adopting a statewide home energy rating program for residential
dwellings. The program criteria shall include, but are not limited
to, all of the following elements:
(1) Consistent, accurate, and uniform ratings based on a single
statewide rating scale.
(2) Reasonable estimates of potential utility bill savings, and
reliable recommendations on cost-effective measures to improve energy
efficiency.
(3) Training and certification procedures for home raters and
quality assurance procedures to promote accurate ratings and to
protect consumers.
(4) In coordination with home energy rating service organization
data bases, databases, procedures to
establish a centralized, publicly accessible, data base
database that includes a uniform reporting
system for information on residential dwellings, excluding
proprietary information, needed to facilitate the program. There
shall be no public access to information in the data base
database concerning specific dwellings without
the owner's or occupant's permission.
(5) Labeling procedures that will meet the needs of home buyers,
homeowners, renters, the real estate industry, and mortgage lenders
with an interest in home energy ratings.
(b) The commission shall adopt the program pursuant to subdivision
(a) in consultation with representatives of the Department
Bureau of Real Estate, the Department of Housing
and Community Development, the Public Utilities Commission,
investor-owned and municipal utilities, cities and counties, real
estate licensees, home builders, mortgage lenders, home appraisers
and inspectors, home energy rating organizations, contractors who
provide home energy services, consumer groups, and environmental
groups.
(c) On and after January 1, 1996, no Home
energy rating services may
shall not be performed in this state unless the services have
been certified, if such a certification program is available, by the
commission to be in compliance with the program criteria specified in
subdivision (a) and, in addition, are in conformity with any other
applicable element of the program.
(d) On or before July 1, 1996, the The
commission shall consult with the agencies and
organizations described in subdivision (b), to facilitate a public
information program to inform homeowners, rental property owners,
renters, sellers, and others of the existence of the statewide home
energy rating program adopted by the commission.
(e) Beginning with the 1998 biennial energy conservation
report required by Section 25401.1, the The
commission shall, as part of that the
biennial report, report prepared pursuant to
Section 25302, report on the progress made to implement a
statewide home energy rating program. The report shall include an
evaluation of the energy savings attributable to the program, and a
recommendation concerning which means and methods will be most
efficient and cost-effective to induce home energy ratings for
residential dwellings.
(f) For existing single-family residential dwellings and
multifamily residential dwellings with up to four units, the
commission shall do both of the following in administering the
statewide home energy rating program:
(1) Ensure energy assessment tools used by the commission are
routinely adjusted to improve modeling accuracy.
(2) Ensure that consumers receive a notice with the output of the
energy assessment tools explaining the assumptions used in the energy
assessment tools and how they may differ from actual usage patterns.