WEEK OF FEBRUARY 20 24, 2012 CODE ALERT BULLETIN

Brought to you by the Building Codes Assistance Project (BCAP) and its website The Online Code Environment & Advocacy Network (OCEAN) Welcome to the weekly Code Alert Bulletin designed to share information and support timely participation in state and local activities related to the adoption and implementation of building energy codes. This bulletin highlights immediate opportunities to influence state and local policy outcomes, indicates code status, and recommends contact for action. By promoting these opportunities among energy efficiency supporters, advocates can collectively increase their impact at legislative and regulatory proceedings at the state and local levels. Please forward this bulletin to others who support the advancement of building energy efficiency. If you are aware of activity that should be on this bulletin, or would like to provide feedback, please contact Paul Karrer at (202) 530-4347 or pkarrer@ase.org. For the latest energy code news and BCAP activity, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

* CODE RESOURCES & EVENTS *

OCEAN Five-Minute OCEAN User Survey Requested; $25 Gift Card Raffle

* GENERAL ALERTS *
SPEER New Regional Energy Efficiency Organization Created for Oklahoma, Texas

* NEW STATE ALERTS *

Arkansas - Update Commercial Code to ASHRAE 90.1-2007 in January 2013 California Title 24 Update Presentations Available; Draft Language to be Posted Soon

* ONGOING STATE ALERTS *

Alabama AERC Board Postpones Final Approval Vote on State Code Update South Carolina House and Senate Committees Advance 2009 IECC Legislation

* CALENDAR * ***** USER SURVEY

Alert Status: Please help us in our continued effort to ensure that OCEAN is serving all users to the best of its capability by filling out this 5 minute survey found here. Additionally, all participants will be entered into a raffle to win a $25 Amazon.com gift card. Don't miss out! Access and complete the User Survey. Top

***** SPEER
Alert Status: The South-central Partnership for Energy Efficiency as a Resource (SPEER) has become Americas newest Regional Energy Efficiency Organization (REEO) as of December 2011. SPEER is committed to the accelerated adoption of advanced building systems and energy efficiency products and services in the south central United States, including Oklahoma and Texas, states that were not associated with the other five American REEOs. More Information: SPEER Website | BCAP Texas State Page | BCAP Oklahoma State Page Action: If interested in getting involved, please contact Doug Lewin with SPEER [dlewin@eepartnership.org] or Paul Karrer with BCAP [pkarrer@ase.org] Top

***** ARKANSAS
Alert Status: In January, the Administrative Rules and Regulations Subcommittee of the Arkansas General Assembly approved the Arkansas Energy Office (AEO) 2011 proposal to update the states commercial energy code. The code update rule has renamed the 2004 Arkansas Energy Code as the Arkansas Energy Code for New Building Construction. Effective January, 1, 2013, it updates the commercial provisions to reference ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2007 and Chapter 5 of the 2009 IECC (the previous 2004 state code is based on ASHRAE 90.1-2001 and the 2003 IECC), while the residential standards will continue to reference the 2003 IECC. AEO has also partnered with the state chapter of the USGBC to provide four training sessions on the new commercial code in 2012. Arkansas has already begun taking several actions to improve the states energy code policies similar to recommendations developed by BCAP in the states Gap Analysis Report. In March 2011, the state legislature created a regulatory update process by authorizing AEO to promulgate rules to update the states energy codes. As directed by the state legislature, AEO began implementing the Rules for Sustainable Energy-Efficient Public Buildings on January 1, 2011. The rules are based on ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2007 with strengthening amendments that achieve energy savings 10% beyond the base code. More Information: OCEAN Story Link | Text: Arkansas Energy Code for New Building Construction | AEO Codes Page | BCAP CPA Report | Rules for Sustainable Energy-Efficient Public Buildings Action: If interested in getting involved, please contact Brian Sernulka with BCAP [bsernulka@ase.org] or Jenah Zweig with SEEA [Jenah@seealliance.org] Top

CALIFORNIA
Alert Status: The California Energy Commission (CEC) has prepared draft language for its update to the state building energy code (Title 24, Part 6), the 2013 Building Energy Efficiency Standards (BEES) The current draft represents a 30% energy savings over the current 2008 version. It is scheduled to be released for a 45-day public comment period on February 24. On February 15 and 17, BCAP and NRDC hosted brief webinars on the details of the new building energy code, including why it is critically important that the public serve as active participants in the process. If you missed the presentation and are interesting in learning more, view the resources below. More Information: OCEAN Story Link | T24 - 2013 Presentation Slides | T24 - 2013 Summary of Changes | T24 2013 Fact Sheet | CEC Title 24 - 2013 Homepage

Action: If interested in getting involved, please contact Jamy Bacchus of NRDC [jbacchus@nrdc.org] or Paul Karrer with BCAP [pkarrer@ase.org] Top

***** ALABAMA
Alert Status: A January 12 vote to give final approval to Alabamas first mandatory statewide energy code was postponed due to a lack of a quorum of the Alabama Residential and Energy Code (AERC) Board. The final draft of the AERC was published in the November 30 issue of the state administrative journal. Board members plan to meet again in February, republish the code in the journal, and vote for final approval in April. The previously planned June 1, 2012 effective date for enforcement will likely also be postponed. As proposed, the commercial code would be based on the 2009 IECC. The residential code would be based on Chapter 11 of the 2009 IRC with list of amendments. Legislation passed in March 2010 (SB 315) created the AERC Board with the authority to adopt mandatory residential and commercial energy codes for the entire state and residential building codes for jurisdictions that had not implemented a residential building code prior to March 2010. The state has previously adopted the Residential Energy Code for Alabama (RECA 2004) based on the 2000 IECC as a voluntary code for residential construction. Since December 2008, the 2006 IECC has been encouraged for private commercial construction. The Alabama Building Commission enforces ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2007 for all state building construction. The Alabama Energy Code Ambassadors Program (ECAP) will also expand in 2012. More Information: OCEAN Story Link | Rule 305-2-4 | SB 315 | ADECA Building Energy Efficiency | ADECA Building Energy Codes Action: If interested in getting involved, please contact Jenah Zweig with SEEA [Jenah@seealliance.org] or Brian Sernulka with BCAP [bsernulka@ase.org] Top

SOUTH CAROLINA
Alert Status: In February, House and Senate committees in the South Carolina Legislature approved bills to update the South Carolina Energy Standard to reference the 2009 IECC (it currently references the 2006 IECC). On February 1, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed S. 1110. On February 2, the House Labor Commerce and Industry Committee passed H. 4639. The South Carolina Home Builders Association spoke in favor of the bills, which now move to the floor of each chamber. The proposed update previously won approval by the state Energy Advisory Council (EAC) of the Public Utility Review Committee of the South Carolina Legislature. The planned effective date would be January 1, 2013. The South Carolina Building Code Council has also begun to review of the 2012 family of I-codes. Recent investigation and analysis by Mathis Consulting Company for the 2012 IECC for South Carolina showed cost effective and significant energy and peak power benefits to the state. BCAP also recently completed its South Carolina Strategic Compliance Plan as part of its Compliance Planning Assistance (CPA) Program. More Information: OCEAN Story Link | Bills: S. 1110 & H. 4639 | PURC | SC Compliance Plan | Mathis 2012 IECC Cost Study Action: If interested in getting involved, please contact Brian Sernulka with BCAP [bsernulka@ase.org] or Jenah Zweig with SEEA [Jenah@seealliance.org] Top

***** EVENTS, HEARINGS, AND COMMENT DEADLINES

Wed, Feb 17: California NRDC/BCAP Webinar on proposed Title 24 code update (1pm ET / 10am PT) Mon-Fri, Feb 27-Mar 2: EduCode Annual code training conference in Las Vegas, NV Mon-Fri, Feb 27-Mar 2: EduCode Annual code training conference in Las Vegas, NV Thur, Mar 1: North Carolina 2012 NC Energy Conservation Code mandatory compliance effective Thur, Mar 15: Florida Anticipated effective date of 2010 Florida Building Code (2009 IECC/ statebased) Thur, Apr 5: Indiana Effective date of 2011 Amendments to Indiana Residential Code (2009 IRC+IECC) Fri, Jun 1: Alabama Tentative effective date of Alabama Energy and Residential Code (2009 IECC & IRC) Tues, Jan 1, 2013: Arkansas Effective date for commercial update of Arkansas Energy Code (90.12007)
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