78R7388 SGA-D
By: Chisum H.B. No. 2454
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to home and building construction energy conservation
standards and programs.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 388.003, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (d) and (e) and by adding
Subsections (i) and (j) to read as follows:
(d) A municipality or county may establish procedures to
adopt:
(1) local amendments to the International Energy
Conservation Code and the energy efficiency chapter of the
International Residential Code; or
(2) local building codes that meet or exceed the green
building standards under Section 388.010.
(e) Local amendments may not result in less stringent energy
efficiency requirements in nonattainment areas and in affected
counties than the energy efficiency chapter of the International
Residential Code or International Energy Conservation Code. Local
amendments must comply with the National Appliance Energy
Conservation Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. Sections 6291-6309), as
amended. The laboratory, at the request of a municipality or
county, shall determine the relative impact of proposed local
amendments to an energy code, including whether proposed amendments
are substantially equal to or less stringent than the unamended
code. For the purpose of establishing uniform requirements
throughout a region, and on request of a council of governments, a
county, or a municipality, the laboratory may recommend a
climatically appropriate modification or a climate zone
designation for a county or group of counties that is different from
the climate zone designation in the unamended code. The laboratory
shall:
(1) report its findings to the council, county, or
municipality, including an estimate of any energy savings potential
above the base code from local amendments; and
(2) annually submit a report to the commission:
(A) identifying the municipalities and counties:
(i) that have adopted a green building
program or an urban heat island program;
(ii) whose codes are more stringent than
the unamended code;[,] and
(iii) whose codes are equally stringent or
less stringent than the unamended code; and
(B) quantifying energy savings and emission
reductions from these programs [this program].
(i) As required by Section 389.002, the commission shall
report the energy savings identified under Subsection (e)(2) to the
United States Environmental Protection Agency and shall
periodically revise the state implementation plan to reflect the
emissions reductions achieved.
(j) The commission, by rule, shall designate a method by
which a municipality, county, builder, or other person can
estimate:
(1) the energy savings and emissions reductions that
would be generated by the adoption of a code, the implementation of
a standard under this chapter, or the construction of a project that
implements the code or standards; and
(2) the emissions reduction credits that the
municipality or county could accrue toward attainment under the
state implementation plan as reported by the commission under
Section 389.002.
SECTION 2. Section 388.004, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 388.004. ENFORCEMENT OF ENERGY STANDARDS OUTSIDE OF
MUNICIPALITY. (a) For construction outside of the local
jurisdiction of a municipality:
(1) a building certified by a national, state, or
local accredited energy efficiency program shall be considered in
compliance;
(2) a building with inspections from private
code-certified inspectors using the energy efficiency chapter of
the International Residential Code or International Energy
Conservation Code shall be considered in compliance; and
(3) a builder who does not have access to either of the
above methods for a building shall certify compliance using a form
provided by the laboratory, enumerating the code-compliance
features of the building.
(b) To ensure that homes and buildings outside a
municipality are credited for meeting or exceeding energy
efficiency standards, the county or commission shall distribute the
form required under Section 388.008 to a builder on request for an
on-site sewage disposal system permit under Section 366.051. The
completed form shall be filed with the county clerk's office when
the deeds for the home or building are filed and shall be forwarded
by the county clerk's office to the laboratory for compilation.
SECTION 3. Chapter 388, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Sections 388.009 through 388.012 to read as follows:
Sec. 388.009. GREEN BUILDING PERFORMANCE STANDARDS. As part
of the home energy ratings developed under this chapter, the
laboratory shall develop a series of green building performance
standards that establish guidelines for comparing buildings that:
(1) conserve energy and water;
(2) reduce waste and the use of toxic substances; and
(3) improve indoor air quality.
Sec. 388.010. GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM. (a) In this section,
"National Housing Act" means Section 203(b), (i), or (k) of the
National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. Sections 1709(b), (i), and (k)), as
amended.
(b) The General Land Office, in consultation with an
advisory committee appointed by the General Land Office and
composed of experts in various aspects of green building, including
mortgage companies and contractors who build according to green
building standards, shall develop an accreditation program for
buildings that meet green building standards.
(c) The General Land Office shall update the program on or
before December 1 of each even-numbered year using the best
available green building practices.
(d) The program shall use a checklist system to produce a
green building scorecard to help:
(1) home buyers compare potential homes and, by
providing a copy of the completed scorecard to a mortgage lender,
qualify for energy–efficient mortgages under the National Housing
Act; and
(2) communities qualify for emissions reduction
credits by adopting codes that meet or exceed the green building or
energy performance standards established under this chapter.
(e) The General Land Office shall base green building
standards for commercial buildings on federal agency programs such
as the green building program under the Environmental Protection
Agency.
(f) The General Land Office shall establish a public
information program to inform homeowners, sellers, buyers, and
others regarding green building ratings.
(g) The laboratory shall establish a system to measure the
reduction in energy and emissions produced under the green building
program.
Sec. 388.011. URBAN HEAT ISLAND REDUCTION PROGRAM. A
municipality shall require, for the building of new or the
remodeling of existing commercial buildings, the use of roofing
materials that meet the United States Environmental Protection
Agency's energy star standards at an albedo level of 0.65 or higher.
Sec. 388.012. OUTREACH TO NEAR-NONATTAINMENT AREAS. The
commission shall conduct outreach to near-nonattainment areas and
affected counties on the benefits of implementing energy efficiency
initiatives, including the promotion of green building programs and
urban heat island mitigation techniques, as a way to meet air
quality attainment goals under the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C.
Section 7401 et seq.).
SECTION 4. Chapter 389, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Section 389.003 to read as follows:
Sec. 389.003. COMPUTING ENERGY EFFICIENCY CREDITS. The
commission shall develop a method to use in computing the credits
received for emissions reductions obtained through energy
efficiency initiatives.
SECTION 5. (a) Not later than November 1, 2003, the Energy
Systems Laboratory at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of
The Texas A&M University System shall develop an initial set of
green building performance standards as required by Section
388.009, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act.
(b) Not later than December 1, 2003, the General Land Office
shall adopt rules needed to implement the green building program
under Section 388.010, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act.
(c) Not later than January 1, 2004, the General Land Office
shall implement the green building program under Section 388.010,
Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act.
(d) Not later than January 1, 2004, all municipalities in
this state shall adopt ordinances requiring the use of roofing
materials as required by Section 388.011, Health and Safety Code,
as added by this Act.
(e) Not later than December 1, 2003, the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality:
(1) shall adopt rules needed to implement Sections
388.012 and 389.003, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act;
and
(2) shall develop a method for computing energy
efficiency credits, as required by Section 389.003, Health and
Safety Code, as added by this Act.
(f) Not later than January 1, 2004, the Energy Systems
Laboratory at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas
A&M University System shall develop a system to measure the energy
savings and emissions reductions required by Section 388.003(e),
Health and Safety Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003, and
applies only to a request for an on-site sewage disposal permit
under Section 366.051, Health and Safety Code, received on or after
that date.