The California Energy Commission on Wednesday approved a major update to the state’s building code that establishes leading-edge requirements for electric heat pumps for space and water heating, solar paired with battery storage in commercial buildings, and wiring that makes homes ready for all-electric appliances.
“The future we’re trying to build together is a future beyond fossil fuels,” CEC Chair David Hochschild said. “We all have a role to play in building this future.”
Lead Commissioner Andrew McAllister called the update “monumental” and said California was again leading the way for the rest of the nation by using its huge consumer market to influence the decisions of manufacturers and investors. The state has previously encouraged new lighting, insulation and window-and-door standards nationally.
“California is being forced to lead even more than before, and that’s a good thing,” McAllister said. “The winds are blowing through California. They start here and blow elsewhere.”
The code’s most significant provisions require developers of new single-family homes to install either an electric heat pump water or space heater.
The current market share for heat pumps in California is less than 6% in new home construction; the requirement is expected to greatly increase demand and make heat pumps more affordable and widely available.
“This will juice the market for heat pumps,” McAllister said.
The updated code also requires new commercial structures such as hotels and office buildings to have solar arrays paired with battery storage that meet certain minimum requirements. The mandate also includes new grocery stores, restaurants and high-rise apartment buildings.
The CEC projects that the requirement will add 400 MW of battery storage and 280 MW of solar generation statewide.
Another component requires new homes to be wired for all-electric appliances including stoves and ovens, clothes dryers and water and space heating.
The requirements will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 10 million electric tons, the equivalent of 2.2 million internal combustion passenger vehicles, in the next 30 years, the CEC forecasted. Reductions in energy consumption will save consumers $1.5 billion in the same time frame, it said.
The five commissioners’ unanimous adoption of the 2022 update to the state’s building energy efficiency standards came after more than two hours of often impassioned public comment from residents, environmentalists and industry advocates.
“Mothers are asking for a strong code for our children’s health,” resident Jenny Green said, echoing other commenters.
A number of speakers said the update does not go far enough and said they hoped the commission will require new buildings to be all-electric in the CEC’s next three-year update for 2025.
The natural gas industry opposed the mandates to bolster electric appliances, Hochschild noted. The chair, however, contended the changes were appropriate given the state’s energy and climate crises. He called the update “bold” but “pragmatic.”
“We’re going to see amazing buildings that are healthy, that people want to live in,” he said.
“This is a landmark code,” Hochschild said. “In my judgement, the code we’re going to adopt today is the most significant we’ve done.”
The 2022 update must still be approved the California Building Standards Commission, which is scheduled to consider it in December. If approved by the CBSC, as expected, it will take effect on Jan. 1, 2023.