Back in December the N.C. Building Code Council approved new energy efficiency guidelines, which still have several steps to go before they get final approval. The council is also considering other code changes meant to offset the additional construction costs that come with increasing efficiency.
The N.C. Home Builders Association pushed for these offsets, and Gov. Bev Perdue backed the concept to protect the industry as it recovers from the housing bust. But some of these offsets look like red flags.
For example: Fewer apartment buildings would have to have fire sprinkler systems.
If all this passes as is, there would be a moderate increase in mandated efficiency — 15 percent instead of the 30 percent environmentalists pushed for. But several builders I spoke to said they already build past that standard. And, as a tradeoff, companies that build only to the minimum code would be set free from a number of safety and other standards.
My full story on this ran in The Triad Business Journal, though you'll need to subscribe to read it. The issue is something to watch, to be sure. To me, the story isn't the new energy standards. It's what gets compromised away to help builders pay for those new standards, and how it affects public safety, particularly in low-end construction.
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