California's Title 24 Standards Updated

The California Energy Commission has approved updated standards for energy efficiency in residential and nonresidential buildings, to take effect in October 2005. Changes to the Title 24 standards, already the country’s most stringent energy-efficiency regulations, focus on reducing both peak energy loads and total energy use. The standards mandate cool roofs on nonresidential buildings, skylights and daylight-dimming sensors on “big-box” buildings, and state-of-the-art fluorescent lighting in residential and nonresidential permanent fixtures. “The cheapest kilowatt is the one you don’t have to generate,” noted presiding member of the efficiency committee, Energy Commissioner Robert Pernell. The new standards are available at www.energy.ca.gov/2005_standards/rulemaking/.