Panel pushes new building energy code implementation to 2024

BY EMMA COTTON VTDigger

In May, a group of builders and architects took a somewhat unusual step: They asked Vermont lawmakers and state government officials to increase regulation and oversight of their industry.

Requirements created by a new proposed building energy code, they argued, could become dangerous for homeowners and tenants unless contractors and builders have more training and oversight while they attempt to meet the standards.

Last Thursday, the state’s Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules, or LCAR, appeared to heed the builders’ concerns. Members voted to move forward with a new residential building energy stan - dard, but they delayed its effective date by a year — to July 2024.

Meanwhile, lawmakers who serve on the committee said they plan to introduce a bill next session that would design a new state program to enforce the building energy code and educate builders who have not had the training they need to comply with it.

As it stands, the building energy code in Vermont — which regulates residential construction to ensure that buildings use energy efficiently and to help meet climate change goals — is seldom enforced.

“Every other state has a full agency dedicated to amending the code, adopting a code, certifying contractors, training contractors, inspecting contractors and certifying,” Jason Webster, president and co-owner of Huntington Homes, told lawmakers in May. “Since 1997, the Vermont Legislature has not given Vermonters or Vermont builders that agency. It’s just given us the wish that we want energy efficiency.”

The lack of oversight and certification requirements for builders has led to buildings that structurally fail, builders told lawmakers last month. For example, improper use of spray foam insulation has caused building structures to rot, causing devastation for homeowners.

Vermont’s building energy code is updated every three years to comply with the International Energy Conservation Code. While builders say the lack of oversight has already led to home failures, the new proposed changes mark “the first amendment where the technical requirements of the code are going beyond basic building practices,” Webster said.