California Green Building Standards Code — CALGreen

CALGreen is California’s first green building code and first in the nation state-mandated green building code.  It is formally known as the California Green Building Standards Code, Title 24, Part 11, of the California Code of Regulations .

The purpose of CALGreen is to improve public health, safety, and general welfare through enhanced design and construction of buildings using concepts which reduce negative impacts and promote those principles which have a positive environmental impact and encourage sustainable construction practices.

CALGreen was adopted to address the five divisions of building construction:

  • Planning and design
  • Energy efficiency
  • Water efficiency and conservation
  • Material conservation and resource efficiency
  • Environmental quality

Application

CALGreen applies to the planning, design, operation, construction, use, and occupancy of every newly-constructed building or structure on a statewide basis unless otherwise indicated.  Additions and alterations to existing buildings which increase the building’s conditioned area, interior volume, or size are also covered by the scope of CALGreen.

CALGreen also specifies requirements for applications regulated by the California Building Standards Commission (BSC), California Energy Commission (CEC), Division of the State Architect (DSA), Department of Public Health (CDPH), Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD), and the Department of Water Resources (DWR).  Consistent with other parts of Title 24, the Matrix Adoption Tables at the front of each chapter are to assist the code user to determine which sections or chapters are applicable to buildings under the authority of a specific State agency; however, they are for information only and are not considered regulatory.

Scope

CALGreen provisions under the jurisdiction of the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) are for newly constructed residential structures, as well as additions and alterations to existing buildings which increase the building’s “conditioned area, interior volume or size.  Therefore, for the purposes of HCD, CALGreen applies to the following types of residential structures:

  • Hotels, motels, lodging houses
  • Apartment houses, condominiums
  • One and two-family dwellings, townhouses, factory-built housing
  • Dormitories, shelters for homeless persons, congregate residences, employee housing
  • Other types of dwellings containing sleeping accommodations with or without common toilets or cooking facilities

CALGreen Resources

2019 CALGreen

2016 CALGreen

2013 CALGreen

2010 CALGreen

CALGreen Report to the Legislature

Compliance Forms and Worksheets

HCD developed forms and worksheets to support users in meeting CALGreen documentation requirements.  The forms and worksheets are offered only as aids, which may be used to show compliance with CALGreen, and are not State mandated. Contact the State Housing Law Program at 800.952.8356 to obtain copies of any of the forms or worksheets. You may modify the forms to fit the needs of an individual or local enforcing agency.  Before using the compliance forms, you should always check with the local enforcing agency to verify whether any jurisdiction-specific forms are required.