Energy: public domain computer program: home energy rating.

(1) Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to prescribe, by regulation, lighting, insulation climate control system, and other building design and construction standards that increase the efficiency in the use of energy and water for new residential and new nonresidential buildings. Existing law also requires the commission to prescribe, by regulation, energy and water conservation design standards for new residential and new nonresidential buildings. In order to implement these requirements, existing law requires the commission to develop a public domain computer program that enables contractors, builders, architects, engineers, and government officials to estimate energy consumed by residential and nonresidential buildings. This bill would require the commission to approve and make publicly available, not less than 6 months prior to the effective date of adopted or updated efficiency standards, a version of the public domain computer program that will function properly with these adopted or updated standards. The bill would require the commission, before approving the public domain computer program for use with adopted or updated standards, to perform preliminary tests of the public domain computer program using common examples of residential and nonresidential buildings and building systems to ensure the usability of the program. The bill would require the commission to make the results of those preliminary tests publicly available. (2) Existing law requires the commission to establish criteria for adopting a statewide home energy rating program for residential dwellings. For existing single-family residential dwellings and multifamily residential dwellings with up to 4 units, this bill would require the commission, in administering the statewide home energy rating program, to ensure that energy assessment tools approved by the commission are routinely adjusted to improve modeling accuracy and to ensure that consumers receive a notice with the output of the energy assessment tools explaining the assumptions used in the energy assessment tools and how they may differ from actual usage patterns.