                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

(FOR APPLICABILITY, SEE ACTS 2021, SP. SESS. I, C. 473, CL. 2) BUILDING BY
LOCALITY; HIGH PERFORMANCE STANDARDS (§ 15.2-1804.1)

A. As used in this section:
			&#8220;Appropriate resilience features&#8221; means features that are
included to prepare for, by reducing risk or enabling recovery, acts of nature,
failures of systems, or adversarial acts that could cause a major disruption to
building functionality. A locality maintains the responsibility for identifying
those potential hazards for which a project should prepare and for determining
the sufficiency of the incorporated features to address the potential hazard,
following consideration of any guidance pursuant to subsection E.
			&#8220;Commissioning&#8221; means the process of ensuring functional
performance of mechanical equipment, water heating equipment, lighting,
automated control systems, and building envelope, including the steps described
in the ICC G4-2018 &#8220;Guideline for Commissioning&#8221; or successor
guidelines and additional guidelines as may be applicable to such systems.
			&#8220;Design phase&#8221; means the design of a building construction or
renovation project, which, until July 1, 2025, shall be inclusive of the
issuance of a request for proposal and the project budget approval, and after
July 1, 2025, shall be based on the effective execution date of the contract
with the design team.
			&#8220;EV&#8221; means an electric vehicle.
			&#8220;High performance building certification program&#8221; means a public
building design, construction, and renovation program that achieves
certification using the U.S. Green Building Council&#8217;s Leadership in Energy
and Environmental Design (LEED) green building rating standard or the Green
Building Initiative&#8217;s &#8220;Green Globes&#8221; building standard. For
buildings 50,000 square feet and smaller, Earthcraft Light Commercial at the
silver level may instead be used for certification under this section.
			&#8220;Locality&#8221; means a county, city, or town, inclusive of a school
division.
			&#8220;Major disruption&#8221; means a disturbance that interrupts the normal
activities that are conducted in a building for a duration of time that would
require that building to temporarily or permanently cease operations. Localities
may define the parameters that would constitute a major disruption based on the
nature and duration of a disrupting event, as well as on building typology,
consistent with any guidance pursuant to subsection E.
			&#8220;Sufficient ZEV charging and fueling infrastructure&#8221; means the
provision of EV supply equipment, EV-ready charging electrical capacity and
pre-wiring, or fueling infrastructure for other ZEVs that is deemed sufficient
based on meeting relevant guidelines or recommendations available during the
design phase of a project from either the Virginia Department of Energy pursuant
to subsection E or the U.S. Department of Energy.
			&#8220;ZEV&#8221; means a zero-emissions vehicle.

B. Any locality entering the design phase for the construction of a new building
greater than 5,000 gross square feet in size, or the renovation of a building
where the cost of the renovation exceeds 50 percent of the value of the
building, shall ensure that such building:

   1. Is designed, constructed, verified, and operated to comply with a high
   performance building certification program;

   2. Has sufficient ZEV charging and fueling infrastructure;

   3. Has features that permit the agency or institution to measure the
   building&#8217;s energy consumption, including metering of all electricity,
   gas, water, and other utilities; and

   4. Incorporates appropriate onsite renewable energy generation, energy
   storage, and resilience features as determined by the locality and following
   consideration of any guidance pursuant to subsection E.

C. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection B, for any such construction or
renovation of a building that is less than 20,000 gross square feet in size, the
locality may instead ensure that such building achieves the relevant ENERGY STAR
certification and implement commissioning. In the event that the specific
building type is not eligible for ENERGY STAR certification, then the locality
shall demonstrate, using energy modeling, that the project has been designed to
perform at least as well as the ENERGY STAR Target Finder value for that
building type or that the project has been designed to meet equivalent standards
for such building types as provided in guidance pursuant to subsection E.

D. Upon a finding that special circumstances make the construction or renovation
to the standards impracticable, the governing body of such locality may, by
resolution, grant an exemption from any such design and construction standards.
Such resolution shall be made in writing and shall explain the basis for
granting the exemption. If the local governing body cites cost as a factor in
granting an exemption, the local governing body shall include a comparison of
the cost the locality will incur over the next 20 years or the lifecycle of the
project, whichever is shorter, if the locality does not comply with the
standards required by subsection B versus the costs to the locality if the
locality were to comply with such standards.

E. The Department of Energy shall upon request provide technical assistance
related to subsections A, B, and C to localities subject to available budgetary
resources. Such technical assistance may include the issuance of guidance.

F. Any local governing body may, by ordinance, adopt its own green design and
construction program. When a local program includes standards that address all
of the requirements in subsection B and is equal in stringency to or more
stringent than the standards in subsection B, the locality shall be deemed
compliant with the provisions of this section.

HISTORY: 2021, Sp. Sess. I, c. 473; 2024, cc. 687, 706.