2022 -- H 7278

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LC003659

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2022

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- THE GREEN BUILDINGS ACT

     Introduced By: Representatives Cortvriend, Ruggiero, Bennett, Kislak, Edwards, Carson,
Speakman, Knight, Fogarty, and Potter

     Date Introduced: February 02, 2022

     Referred To: House Environment and Natural Resources

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 37-24-2, 37-24-3, 37-24-4, 37-24-5 and 37-24-6 of the General

Laws in Chapter 37-24 entitled "The Green Buildings Act" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     37-24-2. Legislative findings.

     It is hereby found and declared as follows:

     (1) Energy costs for public buildings and public projects are skyrocketing and will likely

continue to increase.

     (2) Energy use by public buildings and public projects contributes substantially to the

problems of pollution and global warming.

     (3) Public buildings, public structures, public real property and public projects can be built,

and renovated and located using high-performance methods that save and generate energy; reduce

and conserve water consumption; improve indoor air and environmental quality; and improve water

quality; reduce transportation demand and emissions; preserve the environment; and make workers

and students more productive; and improve the quality of our individual and shared human

experience and environmental justice for all citizens of the state.

     (4) The green buildings act is a strategic tool to achieve the greenhouse gas emission

reduction targets and other objectives of chapter 6.2 of title 42 the ("2021 act on climate) and the

work of the executive climate change coordinating council established in § 42-6.2-1.

     (4)(5) This law is necessary to more efficiently spend public funds.

     37-24-3. Definitions.

     For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

     (1) "Construction" means the process of building, altering, repairing, improving, or

demolishing forty percent (40%) or more of any public structures, or public buildings, public real

property or other public improvements of any kind to any public structures, public buildings or

public real property.

     (2) "Department" means the department of administration.

     (3) "Equivalent standard" means a high-performance green building standard, other than

LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES, that provides an independent, third-

party verification and certification of a rating system or measurement tool, that, when used, leads

to outcomes, similar or equivalent to, LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES

outcomes, in terms of green building, green infrastructure, and green site performance; current

accepted equivalent standards include green globes, Northeast collaborative high-performance

schools protocol; or other equivalent high-performance green building, green infrastructure, and

green site standards accepted by the department.

     (4) "LEED" also, "LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES certified standard"

means the current version of the United States U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy

and Environmental Design (LEED) green building rating standard referred to as LEED, LEED for

Neighborhood Development, and SITES certified. SITES means the U.S. Green Building Council's

SITES -- The Sustainable Sites SITES Initiative.

     (5) "Major facility project" means:

     (i) A public facility building construction project larger than five thousand (5,000) gross

square feet of occupied or conditioned space, and its public real-property site; or

     (ii) A public facility building renovation project larger than ten thousand (10,000) gross

square feet of occupied or conditioned space, and its public real-property site.

     (6) "Private major facility project" means:

     (i) A building construction project larger than ten thousand (10,000) gross square feet of

occupied or conditioned space; or

     (ii) A building renovation project larger than fifteen thousand (15,000) gross square feet of

occupied or conditioned space.

     (6)(7) "Public agency" means every state office, board, commission, committee, bureau,

department, or public institution of higher education, or any political subdivision thereof.

     (7)(8) "Public facility" means any public institution, public facility, public equipment, or

any physical asset owned, including its public real-property site, leased or controlled in whole or

in part by this state or any agency or political subdivision thereof.

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     37-24-4. Green building standards.

     (a) All major facility projects of public agencies, political subdivisions of the state, and all

private major facility projects shall be designed and constructed to at least the LEED, LEED for

Neighborhood Development, and SITES, as provided herein, certified or an equivalent high-

performance green building standard. This provision applies to major facility projects or other

public improvements of any kind to any public buildings, public structures, public real property,

and to private major facility projects, that have not entered the design phase prior to January 1,

2010 2022, for LEED, and July 1, 2017, for LEED for Neighborhood Development and SITES

through December 31, 2020 for SITES, or for up to four (4) projects, whichever comes first, unless

otherwise continued or expanded by the general assembly.

     (b) All major facility projects of a public school district, where the project receives any

funding from the state, shall be designed and constructed to at least the LEED, LEED for

Neighborhood Development, and SITES, as provided herein, certified standard, or the Northeast

Collaborative for High-Performance Schools Protocol, Version 1.1 or above. This provision applies

to major facility projects or other public improvements of any kind to any public buildings, public

structures, and to any public real property that have not entered the design phase prior to January

1, 2010, for LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES through December 31, 2020

for SITES or for up to four (4) projects, whichever comes first, unless otherwise continued or

expanded by the general assembly.

     (c) A major facility project does not have to meet the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood

Development, and SITES certified standard or an equivalent high-performance green building

standard if:

     (1) There is no appropriate LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES

standard or other high-performance green building standard for that type of building or renovation

project or other public improvements of any kind to any public buildings, public structures, and

public real property. In such case, the department will set lesser green building standards that are

equal to the standards specified in § 37-24-4(a) and (b) and are appropriate to the project.

     (2) There is no practical way to apply the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development,

and SITES standard or other high-performance green building standard to a particular building or

renovation project or other public improvements of any kind to any public buildings, public

structures, and public real property. In such case, the department will set lesser green building

standards that are equal to the standards specified in § 37-24-4(a) and (b) and are appropriate to the

project.

     (d) The provisions related to LEED for Neighborhood Development and SITES shall

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continue through December 31, 2020, for up to four (4) projects selected by the department, subject

to evaluation and continuation by the general assembly thereafter. All private major facility projects

where the project receives any economic benefit from the state including, but not limited to, tax

credits, incentives, rebates, tax deductions, tax increment financing, low interest financing,

exclusions from income for the purpose of calculating taxable income, or preferential tax rates or

valuations, including projects on public real property shall be designed and constructed to at least

the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES, as provided in this section, certified

or an equivalent high-performance green building standard, and shall comply with the provisions

set forth in §§ 37-13-4, 37-13-7, 37-13-14 and 37-13-16.

     (e) The provisions and requirements of this chapter are applicable to all public agency and

all public facility projects, in accordance with § 37-24-4 (a) and (b). Where those public agency

and public facility projects receive any and all economic benefit from the state for major public

facility projects, and those public agencies and public projects do not comply with the provisions

and requirements of this chapter, those public agencies and public projects shall not receive any

and all economic benefits from the state, for the major public facility projects.

     37-24-5. Administration and reports.

     (a) The department shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary to enforce this

section. Those regulations shall include how the department will determine whether a project

qualifies for an exception from the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES

certified or equivalent high-performance green building standard, and the lesser green building

standards that may be imposed on projects that are granted exceptions. Regulations for LEED for

Neighborhood Development and SITES shall be promulgated by September 1, 2022 after

December 2020 based on the assessment by the department of up to four (4) eligible state projects

selected by the department, and upon continuation of the use of LEED for Neighborhood

Development, and SITES by the general assembly.

     (b) The department shall monitor and document ongoing operating savings and greenhouse

gas emission reductions, that result from major facility projects designed, constructed and certified

as meeting the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES certified standard and

annually publish a public report to the general assembly and the executive climate change

coordinating council, the advisory board of the executive climate change coordinating council, and

the science and technical advisory board of the executive climate change coordinating council, of

findings and recommended changes in policy. The report shall also include a description of projects

that were granted exceptions from the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES

certified standard, the reasons for exception, and the lesser green building standards imposed. The

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report shall include at a minimum, information and data regarding the performance of the projects

in the categories of energy saved and generated; the quantity and type of water saved and recycled;

the reduction in transportation trips and vehicle miles travelled; the quantity and type of waste

eliminated, redirected, recycled, and re-used; the quality of life and the human experience enhanced

and improved including environmental justice; and the amount of greenhouse gas emissions

reduced toward meeting the greenhouse gas emission reduction targets of chapter 6.2 of title 42 the

("2021 act on climate"). The report shall be publicly available and accessible in print and digital

media, and available and accessible on an active digital dashboard that is linked to other national

digital dashboards in order to provide comparative visual and narrative information and data of the

state’s current status, the state’s ongoing progress, and the state’s comparison of performance to

other government and private entities.

     (c) In order to understand the capacity and cost, the department shall test the application of

LEED for Neighborhood Development and SITES for up to four (4) state projects. The department,

with the assistance from the department of environmental management, shall assess the costs and

benefits in accordance with subsection (d) of this section and report to the general assembly on or

before December 31, 2020. A green buildings advisory committee shall be created composed of

nineteen (19) members. The advisory committee shall have eleven (11) public members and eight

(8) public agency members. Five (5) of the public members shall be appointed by the governor;

three (3) of the public members shall be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;

and, three (3) of the public members shall be appointed by the president of the senate.

     (1) The eleven (11) public members of the advisory board shall be composed of nine (9)

representatives from the architecture, engineering, landscape architecture, energy, labor through

the Rhode Island AFL- CIO, general construction contracting, building product and building

materials industries who are involved in, and have recognized knowledge and accomplishment in

their respective professions, of high-performance green building standards, relating to the standards

set forth in § 37-24-4; in addition to two (2) public members, one representing an urban

municipality from Providence, Cranston, Warwick, Pawtucket, Woonsocket, Newport, or

Westerly, and one public member representing the other thirty-two (32) municipalities in the state.

     (2) The advisory committee shall have eight (8) public agency members representing

personnel from affected public agencies, and cities and towns, that oversee public works projects

and workforce development, who shall be appointed by the directors or chief executive officers of

the respective public agencies which shall include the department of administration; the department

of environmental management; the department of education; the department of transportation; the

department of labor and training; the office of the state building code commissioner; the Rhode

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Island infrastructure bank, and the Rhode Island league of cities and towns.

     (3) The chairperson of the green buildings advisory committee shall be a public member

chosen by the green buildings advisory committee.

     (4) From the initial eleven (11) public member appointments, five (5) of the public

members shall have three (3) year terms and three (3) shall have two (2) year terms. The

appointments of the three (3) year terms and the two (2) year terms shall be determined from the

respective appointments of the governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the

president of the senate, proportionally in accordance with the five (5) appointments made by the

governor, the three (3) appointments made by the speaker of the house, and the three (3)

appointments made by the president of the senate.

     (5) From the initial eight (8) public agency members, five (5) of the members representing

the department of administration, the department of environmental management, the department of

education, the department of transportation, and the state building code commissioner shall have

three (3) year terms. From the initial eight (8) public agency members, three (3) of the members

representing the department of labor and training, the Rhode Island infrastructure bank, and the

League of Cities and Towns shall have two (2) year terms.

     (6) Thereafter, all public members and public agency members shall be appointed to three

(3) year terms.

     (d) The annual LEED reports for 2017 through 2020 required under subsection (b) of this

section shall include any assessment of costs and benefits of the LEED for Neighborhood

Development and SITES standards. The purpose of the assessment is to determine whether the

department shall require LEED for Neighborhood Development and SITES standards for major-

facility projects beyond December 31, 2020, along with determining any exceptions from the

standards that may be required. The green buildings advisory committee shall:

     (1) Make recommendations regarding an ongoing evaluation process to help the

department and the executive climate change coordinating council implement this chapter;

     (2) Identify the needs, actions, and funding required to implement the requirements set

forth in this chapter, in achieving high-performance green building projects for our public

buildings, public structures, and our public real properties; and

     (3) Establish clear, measurable targets for implementing the standards, defined in this

chapter, for all public and private major facility projects including timeline, workforce needs,

anticipated costs and other measures identified by the green buildings advisory committee and

required by chapter 6.2 of title 42 ("2021 act on climate").

     (e) The department shall create a green buildings advisory committee composed of

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representatives from the design, construction, lumber, and building materials industries involved

in public works contracting; personnel from affected public agencies and school boards that oversee

public works projects; and others at the department's discretion to provide advice on implementing

this section. The advisory committee shall make recommendations regarding an education and

training process and an ongoing evaluation or feedback process to help the department implement

this section.

     (f) The provisions related to LEED for Neighborhood Development and SITES shall

continue through December 31, 2020, for up to four (4) projects selected by the department, subject

to evaluation and continuation by the general assembly thereafter. All requests for proposals,

requests for information, requests for bids, requests for design/build, requests for construction

managers, and any requests relating to obtaining the professional services, pricing, and construction

for major facility projects by a public agency for a public facility, and for private major facility

projects, shall include the notice of the statutory requirements of chapter 24 of title 37 ("the green

buildings act").

     (g) The green buildings advisory committee shall have no responsibility for, and shall not

develop requests for proposals, requests for information, requests for bids, requests for

design/build, requests for construction managers, and any requests relating to obtaining the

professional services, pricing, and construction for major facility projects by a public agency for a

public facility; and the green buildings advisory committee shall have no responsibility for, and

shall not select any vendors for any requests for proposals, requests for information, requests for

bids, requests for design/build, requests for construction managers, and any requests relating to

obtaining the professional services, pricing, and construction for major facility projects by a public

agency for a public facility. Nothing shall prohibit public members of the green buildings advisory

committee from responding to, and being involved with, any submittals of requests for proposals,

requests for information, requests for bids, requests for design/build, requests for construction

managers, and any requests relating to obtaining the professional services, pricing, and construction

for major facility projects by a public agency for a public facility.

     37-24-6. Protection from liability.

     No person, corporation or entity shall be held liable for the failure of a major facility

project, private major facility project, public facility project, public agency or political subdivision

of the state to meet the LEED, LEED for Neighborhood Development, and SITES certified standard

or other standards established for the project as long as a good faith attempt was made to achieve

the standard set for the project.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC003659

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS -- THE GREEN BUILDINGS ACT

***

     This act would expand the definition of public buildings under the green buildings act and

would include those buildings in any subdivision of the state; would include private major facility

projects, if those projects received any economic benefit from the state; would mandate public

reports for all such projects; and would authorize the establishment of a green buildings advisory

committee.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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