Work has begun on the 2012 edition of the National Green Building Standard. 

The seven task groups that will conduct the initial phase of the revision process met on March 29-30 at the National Housing Center in Washington, D.C., to begin reviewing submissions for potential revisions to the 2008 edition of the standard. 

Originally developed in 2007-2008 by NAHB and the International Code Council, the National Green Building Standard was approved by the American National Standards Institute in January 2009, making it the first ANSI standard for a scoring system for sustainable/green residential construction, remodeling and renovation projects and land development.

More than 2,200 projects have been certified to the standard since its approval by ANSI.

In addition to the review of submitted proposed changes, the task groups are developing their own proposed changes.

“The task groups got off to a good start in these initial meetings,” said Don Pratt, chair of the Consensus Committee and a builder and remodeler from Auburn Hills, Mich.

“We have a wide representation of interest within the task groups, and I think everyone is committed to a fair and open process that will make the National Green Building Standard even better,” he said.

“It was a very good beginning,” agreed Miles Haber, a developer from Chevy Chase, Md., and vice chair of the Task Group on Multifamily.

While multifamily building is included as part of the International Green Construction Code — which is  now being developed by the International Code Council — task force members agree that multifamily construction needs to also remain as part of the National Green Building Standard, just as initially envisioned, Haber said.

He expects the Task Force on Multifamily to concentrate on refining the language found in the original standard to make it easier to understand and to encourage more multifamily developers and builders to use the National Green Building Standard as their preferred rating system for third-party certification.

The task groups will submit their work as recommendations to the full Consensus Committee, which is responsible for developing the standard.

The full Consensus Committee’s deliberations on the proposed changes and task group recommendations will take place at public hearings scheduled for June 13-17, also at the National Housing Center.

The NAHB Research Center is again acting as the secretariat, or administrator, of the ANSI standards development process for the standard.

As an ANSI-approved standard, the document is subject to regular updates so that advances in building codes, technology and other developments can be incorporated.

ANSI's procedural standards adhere to principles such as opening the opportunity for all directly and materially affected persons to participate, not allowing any single interest to dominate and ensuring that  a consensus body has a balanced membership.

The unsurpassed credibility of the National Green Building Standard is based on this rigorous ANSI process.

The Consensus Committee is composed of a diverse group of residential construction industry stakeholders — from government officials and advocacy groups to home builders and product manufacturers.

The members of the task groups include all of the members of the Consensus Committee, and other industry stakeholders. 

“The ANSI standards development process requires that the Consensus Committee achieve balance between the three interest groups of members,” said Vladimir Kochkin, the committee's secretary.

“The task groups are not held to this rule,” he said. “We have tried to include those interested parties affected by the different aspects of the standard to participate on the task groups, including those who applied but were not appointed to the Consensus Committee.”

A number of NAHB members are involved in the task groups and the Consensus Committee, as are NAHB staff members from NAHB's Environmental Policy, Labor, Safety & Health; Land Development; and Construction, Codes and Standards departments, as well as the Multifamily Council and NAHB Remodelers.

In addition, members of the NAHB Leading Suppliers Council are involved, including the American Forest & Paper Association, American Gas Association, Carrier Corporation, E.I. Dupont De Nemours & Co., Inc., the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, North American Insulation Manufacturer Association, Owens Corning Corporation and the Plastic Pipe and Fittings Association.

The task groups are:

• Task Group on Administration (TG-1). NAHB members on this task group include Bill Beasley, a builder member from Durham, N.C.; Mathew Dobson, an associate member from Burlington, N.C.; Howard Fortunato, an associate member from New Castle, Del.; and Kirk Grundahl, an associate member from Madison, Wis.
  
  
• Task Group on Site and Lot Development (TG-2). NAHB members on this group include Diane Baum, an associate member from Baton Rouge, La.; Bruce Boncke, a builder member from Fairport, N.Y.; Matt  Clark, a builder member from Atlanta; Philip Steupfert, an associate member from Yorkville, Ill.; Peter Vargo, an associate member from Lackawaxen, Pa.; and William Donald Whyte, a builder member from South Jordan, Utah.
  
  
• Task Group on Resource Efficiency and Indoor Environmental Quality (TG-3). Tanis Marquette, an associate member from Columbus, Ohio, is the NAHB member on this task group.
  
  
• Task Group on Water Efficiency (TG-4). NAHB members on this group include Peter Fusaro, a builder member from Riverside, Conn.; and Darrel McMaster, a builder member from Boerne, Texas.
  
  
• Task Group on Energy Efficiency (TG-5). NAHB members on this group include Craig Charles Conner, an associate member from Richland, Wash.; Robert De Vries, an associate member from Jenison,  Mich.; Michael G. Hodgson, an associate member from Stockton, Calif.; and Christine A. Phillips, a builder member from Reston, Va.
  
  
• Task Group on Multifamily (TG-6). NAHB members include Steven Armstrong, an affiliate member from Greensboro, N.C.; Adrian Ross "Rusty" Ashley, Jr., a builder member from Orangeburg, S.C.; Molly A. Beard, associate member from Memphis, Tenn.; Miles Haber, a developer from Chevy Chase, Md.; Dan Simon, a builder member from Reston, Va.; Sanford Steinberg, an associate member from Houston; and Karen Lewis Welsh, an associate member from Indiana, Pa. Haber and Steinberg are also members of the NAHB Multifamily Council.
  
  
• Task Group on Remodeling (TG-7). NAHB members include Matt Belcher, a builder member from Wildwood, Mo.; Rick Bouchard, a builder member from Manchester, N.H.; Timothy Ellis, a builder member from Baldwin, Md.; Jennifer Languell, an associate member from Ft. Myers, Fla.; Shawn Nelson, a builder member from Burnsville, Minn.; Robin Pharo, an associate member from Mount Horeb, Wis.; Scott R. Sevon, a builder member from Palatine, Ill.; Paul L. Sullivan, a builder member from Newton, Mass.; and Ray Tonjes, a builder member from Austin, Texas.

Belcher is also NAHB’s representative on the ICC International Green Construction Code Committee for Energy and Water.

“This first revision of the standard is very important, especially for remodeling” said Ray Tonjes, vice chair of the Consensus Committee and a builder from Austin, Texas. “How do you structure such a diverse mix of project types into an easily applied certification process?”  

After the June meeting, the Consensus Committee members will be balloted on the formal committee actions.

The results of the balloting will produce a draft of the 2012 National Green Building Standard, which will be released for public comments, which are due by Sept. 21.

The final meeting of the Consensus Committee and task groups will be held the week of Nov. 28. At that public hearing the Consensus Committee members will consider, discuss and take formal action on the public comments submitted on the draft standard.

Once the committee has completed its work, the newly updated National Green Building Standard will be submitted to ANSI for approval in 2012.

For additional information — such as Consensus Committee and task group rosters, the proposed changes, comment deadlines, meeting dates and future updates on the 2012 standard development process — visit www.nahbrc.com/ngbs.