A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to protect North Carolina timber producers by requiring that sustainable building standards not disadvantage or forbid the use of building materials produced in this state.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 143‑135.37(b) reads as rewritten:
"§ 143‑135.37.  Energy and water use standards for public major facility construction and renovation projects; verification and reporting of energy and water use.
…
(b)	Energy‑Efficiency Standard. – For every major facility construction project of a public agency, the building shall be designed and constructed so that the calculated energy consumption is at least thirty percent (30%) less than the energy consumption for the same building as calculated using the energy‑efficiency standard in ASHRAE 90.1‑2004. For every major facility renovation project of a public agency, the renovated building shall be designed and constructed so that the calculated energy consumption is at least twenty percent (20%) less than the energy consumption for the same renovated building as calculated using the energy‑efficiency standard in ASHRAE 90.1‑2004. To achieve sustainable building standards, a construction project may utilize a nationally recognized high-performance environmental building rating system, provided that any such rating system (i) does not use a material or product‑based credit system disadvantaging materials or products manufactured or produced in this State; (ii) gives certification credits equally to forest products grown, manufactured, and certified under the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, the American Tree Farm System, and the Forest Stewardship Council; (iii) must be developed in conformity with American National Standards Institute procedures; and (iv) must either be approved by the American National Standards Institute or developed by a designator audited by the American National Standards Institute. For the purposes of this subsection, any exception or special standard for a specific type of building found in ASHRAE 90.1‑2004 is included in the ASHRAE 90.1‑2004 standard."
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to construction and renovation projects for which the bidding process is initiated on or after that date.