By Cyrus Reed, Conservation Director
In a welcome development, the State Energy Conservation Office (SECO) proposed rules earlier this month that would raise the minimum energy codes in Texas for new construction to 2015 standards. The proposed rules – published in the Texas Register on October 2 – would finally bring Texas level with many other states by requiring that any new home, commercial, or industrial building in Texas meet 2015 versions of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) or the 2015 International Residential Code (IRC) beginning in September of next year. Click here to take action and support raising the codes in Texas by sending comments to SECO before November 2.
Energy Codes – A Long and Convoluted History in Texas
Texas first took on the issue of making sure our buildings are more energy efficient back in 2001 when, as part of an air quality bill, the Texas Legislature adopted the 2001 IRC and IECC standards, the first time the state had adopted such a code. In 2007, after those codes were adopted by most major cities statewide, the Legislature expanded SECO’s powers (it’s actually an arm of the State Comptroller of Public Accounts) to review future code changes along with an arm of Texas A & M University known as the Energy Systems Laboratory.
SECO last raised the code in 2010, adopting the 2009 IRC and 2009 IECC.
International energy codes are developed on a three-year cycle, but Texas ended up skipping the 2012 update. When the new 2012 codes came out, it was around the time that Texas just started requiring builders to meet the 2009 codes. SECO decided to delay implementing the 2012 codes, and also passed on adopting the 2015 codes when initially released in 2014, despite many organizations, including Sierra Club, urging action.
Legislature Stepped In
The group most often opposed to raising state energy codes is probably the Texas Association of Builders (TAB), which frequently cites cost and implementation concerns. Working with State Senator Troy Fraser (R-Horseshoe Bay) and State Representative Jason Villalba (R-Dallas), the TAB introduced legislation (HB 1739) that would have further delayed SECO from taking action on the 2015 codes, and created an additional advisory committee for any future code adoption.
The legislation led to opposition from Sierra Club, the Texas Chemical Council, Public Citizen, U.S. Green Building Council, the Texas Municipal League, and many others. The different stakeholders ended up drafting a compromise bill.
Under the version adopted by the Texas Legislature and signed by Governor Greg Abbott, Texas adopted the 2015 IRC for all new homes effective September 1, 2016, but included two provisions sought by the homebuilders.
First, stakeholders agreed that the code would not be raised again until the 2021 version came out, skipping the 2018 cycle. This is because builders get concerned with simply keeping up with codes if they change every three years - although a few states do have processes in place to adopt codes automatically when new editions are published. Second, the legislation included a more flexible path for builders known as the Energy Rating Index (ERI) – a sort of miles-per-gallon rating for homes. The ERI values present in the legislation get tougher over time, but offer an easier compliance option for meeting the more prescriptive code. The legislation does preserve the rights of individual cities to adopt more energy efficient versions of the code if they feel the ERI path is not energy-efficient enough.
While Sierra Club would have preferred slightly tighter ERI paths, in the spirit of compromise, we ultimately helped get the legislation through the Legislature. The only down side: the final version of the legislation only covered the codes for homes, not for other types of buildings.
SECO Proposal
Under the proposed rules, SECO would not only adopt the 2015 IRC for new homes beginning in September 2016 – as required by the legislation – but also adopt the 2015 IECC for all other types of buildings, with the same implementation date.
Assuming the rules become final, this is great news for the Texas environment and economy.
First, the 2015 codes are more energy efficient. An analysis done by the Energy Systems Laboratory found that the 2015 codes would lead to a 10-23 percent improvement in energy usage in new homes compared to the 2009 codes. ESL and the U.S. Department of Energy found similar findings for commercial buildings when comparing the 2009 and 2015 codes and a slight improvement when comparing the 2012 and 2015 codes. Less energy means less fossil fuel power plant pollution – meaning cleaner air and less carbon, methane, mercury, and smog-forming pollution. The codes also would help conserve water.
Second, energy efficient buildings also mean lower utility bills for those living in or using them. Better energy codes also mean the types of appliances, windows, insulation, duct work, and lighting – much of it made here in Texas – improve, leading to job growth in those industries that make products that meet the codes.
Put simply, better codes mean more jobs.
And Renewable Energy, You Ask?
While the new codes do not require the use of solar panels or other renewable technologies, they do help promote it. First, if builders seek to comply with the codes using the more flexible ERI, solar power earns them points toward compliance. In addition, there is a specific solar-ready provision in the code that, while voluntary in the 2015 codes, can encourage homeowners to go solar or at least be solar-ready.
Keep This In Mind
The 2015 codes adopted by the Legislature, and hopefully by SECO, are a floor, not a ceiling. Thus, cities will be able to make local amendments to the 2015 codes to make them even more energy efficient. An example would be if a city decided to adopt the Solar-Ready Appendix and make any new home built be ready to have solar added.
Next Steps
SECO will take comments until November 2, and then shortly thereafter it is expected they will formally adopt the rules. It will then be up to cities throughout Texas to update their local codes to meet the new state minimum energy codes, and up to builders and inspectors to actually comply with the codes. A variety of entities, including Energy Systems Laboratory, SECO, the Southwest Partnership for Energy Efficiency as a Resource (SPEER), and Sierra Club will be engaged in discussions and trainings to get local officials and builders up to speed on the new code over the next nine months.