Executive Order 2007-02S Under Executive Order 2007-005, all state agencies, boards and commissions were directed to conduct an energy audit for all owned and leased facilities by June 2007. Each entity covered by the order is required to reduce statewide energy use in their facilities by 5% during the next year, and 15% during the next four fiscal years based on the results of the audit. The order also contains provisions for reducing motor fuel use and creates the role of the Governor's Energy Adviser to coordinate state energy policy for state agencies, boards, and commissions. The order will remain in effect until it is rescinded or until Governor Strickland leaves office. On September 27, 2007, the Ohio School Facilities Commission (OSFC) passed Resolution #07-124, approving the incorporation of energy efficiency and sustainable design features into all future and some previously approved school projects. All K-12 public school projects approved by the OSFC are required to meet a minimum of LEED for Schools Silver certification, with strong encouragement to achieve the Gold level. There is additional emphasis on maximizing Energy & Atmosphere credits. The resolution directs OSFC to cover all LEED registration and certification fees and to provide a supplemental allowance to project budgets for the incorporation of sustainable, green strategies.
Changes to the Ohio Building Code are proposed by the Board of Building Standards. The Board's powers and duties include adopting rules governing the construction, repair, and rehabilitation of buildings in the state; certifying municipal, township, and county building departments to administer the code; and establishing minimum standards for construction materials. Thus, the Board is the primary state agency authorized to protect the public's safety and welfare in building design and construction. The Division of State Fire Marshal, also in the Ohio Department of Commerce, promulgates the fire code. Rules proposed by the Board are filed with the Secretary of State, the Legislative Service Commission, and a committee of the General Assembly known as the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR) at least 60 days prior to adoption. The JCARR reviews the rules to ensure that they do not exceed the scope of the agency's statutory authority, do not conflict with another rule of the same or a different agency, and are consistent with the legislature's intent. If acceptable, the rules go to public hearing at a time and place set by the agency in a public notice. The public notice must be issued at least 30 days prior to the hearing and must include a synopsis of the proposed rules. The hearing must be held within the 13th and 50th day after initial filing with the appropriate state agencies. The agency may adopt the rules consistent with the synopsis 61 days after initial filing. If, as a result of the public hearing, substantive changes are made that are inconsistent with the synopsis of the proposed rules, the rules must be refiled and a new hearing must be scheduled. However, if substantive changes are made that are consistent with the synopsis, the rules must be refiled and then undergo a 30-day review before the board can adopt them. Following adoption, the Board files the adopted rules with the appropriate state agencies. The JCARR then has authority to review the adopted rules under the same criteria used with the rules as proposed.
Building officials whose building department has been certified by the Board of Building Standards enforce the provisions of the Ohio Building Code for their jurisdiction. Plans must be submitted for all buildings within the scope of the code, as adopted by the state and local government. The jurisdiction is required to review and approve the plans and to perform inspections to determine if the work performed conforms with the approved plans. One-, two-, and three-family dwellings are reviewed by building departments only when they also have responsibility for one-, two-, and three-family dwelling plan review.
Compliance is determined through plan review and inspection at the local level by the local certified building department. If there is no certified building department within a jurisdiction, the Ohio Department of Commerce Division of Industrial Compliance reviews and approves plans for commercial construction. One-, two-, and three-family dwelling plans are not reviewed for MEC compliance at the state level.
Prior to July 1, 1979, the rules of the Ohio Board of Building Standards were compiled in a document known as the Ohio Building Code. On October 20, 1978, the Board adopted a rule, effective July 1, 1979, repealing most of the existing Ohio Building Code and adopting by reference, with special Ohio modifications, the Ohio Basic Building Code/1978, Seventh Edition (OBBC) and the Ohio Basic Mechanical Code/1978, Third Edition. The Building Officials and Code Administrators (BOCA) International and Banks-Baldwin Law Publishing Company publish the Ohio codes. The resulting collection of model code sections and superseding Ohio provisions, together with the Council of American Building Officials (CABO) Model Energy Code (MEC) and the Ohio Plumbing Code (which was retained from the former OBBC and was based upon the 1995 International Plumbing Code) comprised the OBBC.
On April 21, 1995, Ohio adopted the 1993 MEC and the code version of ASHRAE/IESNA 90.1-1989. These codes went into effect July 1, 1995. Legislation (SB118 and MB 243) was proposed in 1996 to delete some provisions of the law. It proposed to eliminate the Board of Building Standards directive for the adoption of new energy standards when technical advances would make the current standards obsolete or inadequate. The act retained a provision to base the residential energy standards on HUD requirements (1993 MEC.) It also eliminated the criminal penalty for builders that do not comply with the energy code. The session recessed in June 1996 without acting on the bill. On March 1, 1998, the 1995 MEC was adopted and became effective.
Problems associated with implementing the residential provisions of the MEC were addressed. On June 27, 1997, a Budget Bill (HB 215) was signed and included a $300,000 study of the State Building Standards Law. The Board of Building Standards funded the study. The MEC was reviewed within the context of this study. The study defined how economics, enforcement, model code adoption, and the use of new materials impact safety, quality, and cost of construction. Five public forums were held in June 1998 to hear comments about the OBBC. Findings by the Department of Commerce were reported to the Governor and General Assembly in December 1998.
However, because the publishers of the updated codes have not met their publishing deadlines, the Board of Building Standards authorized the use of the 2002 OBC as an alternate compliance method until September 1, 2005. Because the OBC references the IECC, designs using the 2005 OBC needed to use the 2003 IECC, and designs using the 2002 OBC needed to use the 2000 IECC. Mixing of the codes was not allowed, and submitted documents needed to be clearly marked with the set of codes used. ASHRAE 90.1-2004 became effective Sept. 6, 2005.
On March 31, 2008, Ohio's Governor signed an Executive Order authorizing the Ohio Board of Building Standards to file four Emergency Rules that essentially rolled back the reference to the 2003 IECC, effective immediately. This change only applied to one-, two-, and three-family dwellings. All non-residential buildings would still be required to comply with either the 2006 IECC or the 2004 ASHRAE 90.1.
On January 1, 2009, the Ohio Board of Building Standards re-adopted the 2006 IECC and added an additional prescriptive option for demonstrating energy code compliance for one-two and three family dwellings. The new prescriptive table is found in Chapter 11 (section 1104) of the Residential Code of Ohio.
On March 7th, JCARR approved the adoption of the 2009 International Building Code which included references to the International Energy Conservation Code and ASHRAE 90.1-2007. Effective November 1, 2011 established by the Board of Building Standards.