CALBO Model Green Building Ordinance

 CALBO (California Building Officials) has prepared the attached Model Green Building Ordinance as a guideline for local jurisdictions interested in making amendments to the California Green Building Code.

The California Building Standards Commission recently incorporated green building provisions into the California Building Code (Title 24). This action made California the first state in the nation to develop a “Green Building Code”. Adoption of this code is considered a significant step towards addressing the requirements of AB-32 (greenhouse gas reduction) and various other laws governing green building and sustainability in California.

As currently written, the California Green Building Code sets minimum codes and guidelines for building green. New legislation has authorized the Building Standards Commission to further develop and enhance the California Green building Code. Many local jurisdictions are also interested in amending this code to tailor green building regulations to meet their needs. In fact, many cities and counties in California have already enacted ordinances and policy’s concerning green building and sustainability.

To assist in this endeavor, CALBO has collaborated with the California Building Standards Commission to create a model green building ordinance that provides a consistent basis for local amendments. This model ordinance can be used as a framework by which a local jurisdiction can adopt and amend the California Green Building Code to incorporate necessary local amendments in accordance with State Building Standards law.

The guideline is set up to be very flexible and simple to implement. The format closely follows the California Green Building Code and uses a matrix approach to incorporate either mandatory or voluntary green provisions. To custom tailor the document, a jurisdiction would simply determine the green building requirements to be enacted, and then specify the type of buildings it applies to by checking the appropriate columns in the matrix (i.e. single family, commercial, multifamily, etc.). To complete the package, the jurisdiction would just add their logo.

CALBO is pleased to present this model ordinance for use statewide. CALBO welcomes your feedback, and hopes you find it useful in preparing your local amendments to the California Green Building Code.

Green Building Code Ordinance

Possible Green Building Project Types