Title 24

Title 24, Part 6 of the California Code of Regulations is the Energy Efficiency Standards for Residential and Nonresidential Buildings. The Energy Efficiency Standards were established in response to a legislative mandate to reduce California's energy consumption. California's building efficiency standards (along with those for energy efficient appliances) have saved more than $56 billion in electricity and natural gas costs since 1978. It is estimated the standards will save an additional $23 billion by 2013.
  
Any new homes, or the remodeled part of a home that require building permits, will be subject to the new standards.

The requirements apply only to permanently installed luminaires, i.e., luminaires that are part of the house, as opposed to portable luminaries such as torchieres or table lamps that are provided by the occupant. Permanently installed luminaires include ceiling luminaires, chandeliers, vanity lamps, wall sconces and any other type of luminaire that is a permanent part of the house.

The new requirements may be summarized as follows:

Kitchens
  • At least half the installed wattage of luminaires in kitchens shall be high efficacy and the ones that are not must be switched separately. 
Bathrooms, Garages, Laundry Rooms and Utility Rooms
  • All luminaires shall either be high efficacy or shall be controlled by an occupant sensor. 
Other Rooms 
  • All luminaires shall either be high efficacy or shall be controlled by an occupant sensor or dimmer. Closet that are less than 70 square foot are exempt from this requirements. 
Outdoor Lighting
  • All luminaires mounted to the building or to other buildings on the same lot shall be high efficacy luminaires or shall be controlled by a photocontrol/motion sensor combination. 
Common Areas of Multifamily Buildings
  • All luminaires in the common areas of multifamily buildings shall either be high efficacy or shall be controlled by an occupant sensor. 
Luminaires that are recessed into insulated ceilings are required to be rated for insulation contact ("IC-rated") so that insulation can be placed over them. The housing of the luminaire shall be airtight to prevent conditioned air escaping into the ceiling cavity or attic, unconditioned air infiltrating from the ceiling or attic into the conditioned space. 
 
The Advanced Lighting Guidelines, available from the New Buildings Institute (http://www.newbuildings.org) is an informative resource for energy efficient lighting design, luminaires, and controls.

For more information Contact Us or contact:
2525 Natomas Park Drive, Suite 130
Sacramento, CA 95833-2936 

Phone: (916) 263-0916 
Fax: (916) 263-0959 

Web Page: www.bsc.ca.gov