Major Cities Require Private Buildings to Go Green

Both Los Angeles and Dallas passed legislation in April 2008 requiring privately owned buildings to meet green building standards. The Los Angeles legislation requires commercial and residential buildings larger than 50,000 ft² (4,600 m²) to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Certified standards (with expedited permitting for higher levels of performance) but does not require buildings to be certified. Instead, plans must be approved by a LEED accredited professional as well as the City before a building permit is issued. In Dallas, all new residential and commercial construction must meet energy and water conservation goals starting in October 2009 and must be LEED certifiable by October 2011. Dallas is training existing staff and adding green building experts to assist with the added work in the permitting process.