The state?s new building code, which goes into effect in 2020, will save an estimated $1.7 billion in energy costs over 30 years California passed a new statewide building code yesterday that requires all homes from 2020 onward to have rooftop solar and advanced energy efficiency measures. These moves reinforce the state?s role as a progressive harbinger of more stringent environmental standards.
The 2019 Building Energy Code, passed by a unanimous 5-0 vote by the California Energy Commission, positions the state at the forefront of more sustainable residential construction. It also bolsters the residential solar industry, installers, and solar manufacturers in a state that already generates 10 percent of its power from solar.
The new rules will require residential buildings up to three stories high, including single-family homes and condos, be built with solar installations. According to the group Safe California Energy, the updated code will save Californians $1.7 billion on energy costs over the next 30 years, and cut home energy use by 53 percent. The California Building Industry Association supported the rule, though it did say it would have liked them to be delayed an additional two or three years.
?I know from experience that energy-efficient homes sell faster and bring a better price, and data from the Department of Energy backs me up on that,? says Brandon De Young, executive vice president of De Young Properties, which specializes in energy-efficient const...