FEBRUARY 2022
Insider Update
Practical information and resources for NGBS Green Certification program partners. Find out more about the program, its tools & resources, and available marketing materials online. If you were forwarded this message or do not receive Insider Update regularly and would like to, sign up online.

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NEWS
IBS Show Homes Earn Emerald-Level NGBS Green Certification
Both The New American Home (TNAH) and The New American Remodel (TNAR) for 2022 earned Emerald-level NGBS Green certification. Both homes are also among the first to earn the NGBS Green+ NET ZERO ENERGY and WELLNESS certifications. View photos and take a 3D tour of the homes on their respective websites.

Home Innovation's Cindy Wasser presented the certifications during a media reception during IBS. Congratulations to NGBS Green Verifiers, Drew Smith and Josh Kane, of Two Trails, Inc. for providing verification services to these spectacular show homes.
Cindy presents the NGBS Green certificate to Eric Gray, Sam Ewing, and Lonnie Rodriguez of The New American Remodel team.
Steve Earl and Serena Hahn of Envy Homes describe the exceptional design features within The New American Home.
NAHB's Multifamily Pillars of the Industry Awards:
NGBS Green Partner Finalists & Winners
NAHB's Multifamily Pillars of the Industry Awards highlight creative development concepts, innovative financing strategies, great design, and superior management and marketing in the apartment and condo marketplace. The 2021 Pillars Award Winners and Finalists were announced at IBS. Congratulations to the NGBS Green Certified buildings and developer partners that were recognized!
FINALIST – Best Affordable Development (100+ Units)
WINNER – Best Overall Leasing or Sales Campaign (Multifamily Community)
WINNER – Multifamily Builder of the Year
WINNER – Property Management Firm of the Year
2024 NGBS UPDATES
About The 2024 NGBS Development Process
As an ANSI standard, the NGBS is subject to regular review and update to increase efficiency and incorporate best practices and innovations. There are three ways to contribute toward the development of the next NGBS version:

  1. Submit Proposed Changes: Submit your ideas to improve the NGBS compliance criteria. Proposed changes are accepted through April 5 at http://ngbscm.homeinnovation.com.
  2. Apply to Participate in a Task Group: The topic-specific Task Groups (TGs) review, consider, and edit proposed changes in order to provide recommendations to the Consensus Committee. 
  3. Apply to Participate on the Consensus Committee: Consensus Committee members vote on proposed changes.

The 2024 NGBS Task Group list is tentatively planned as follows:
  • Task Group 1 – Admin, Compliance (typically all TG Chairs and Co-chairs)
  • Task Group 2 – Site and Lot Development; Operation & Owner Education
  • Task Group 3 – Resource Efficiency and Indoor Environment Quality
  • Task Group 4 – Water Efficiency
  • Task Group 5 – Energy Efficiency 
  • Task Group 6 – Certified Path (Chapter 12)
  • Task Group 7 – Existing Buildings
  • Task Group 8 – Tropical Zone
  • Task Group 9 – Non-residential Space

Task Group participation time commitment varies; participants should anticipate several video calls throughout summer 2022. Individuals may serve on more than one Task Group.

For Consensus Committee members, there will be at least two two-day in-person meetings in Washington, DC. The first is tentatively scheduled for the beginning of June and the second in Fall 2022.

Applications are now being accepted for TG and Consensus Committee members.
Apply by April 5 at HomeInnovation.com/NGBS.
NGBS Green PRO
REMINDER – Showcase your expertise in sustainable buildings with a
shiny new professional designation in the new year.
Industry professionals can now earn NGBS Green PRO, a professional designation that validates your expertise in green design, construction, and building certification.

Those who successfully earn the NGBS Green PRO designation demonstrate advanced understanding of the National Green Building Standard ICC-700 and the NGBS Green certification program.

Training for the designation – consisting of four self-paced modules, each with its own mastery check – is now live and available 24/7 at the NGBS Green Pro Training site. Completion of a single NGBS Green PRO module earns 1LU Elective from AIA or 0.1 CEU credit from ICC; completion of the entire course earns 4LU Elective from AIA or 0.4 CEU credit from ICC.

Learn more and get started today – download the Overview document and discuss the benefits of this professional development opportunity with your supervisor and colleagues.
AXIS NGBS GREEN PORTAL
Give Us Your AXIS Feedback
Complete a 1-minute NGBS Green AXIS Feedback Survey.
POLICY
QAP Watch
The following states have or will revise their Qualified Allocation Plans (QAP) for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program (LIHTC). The summaries below indicate if NGBS Green certification is incentivized and provide information on how to submit comments or stay informed. If you're aware of any current QAP activity in your state or locale not listed here or included in our online QAP Round-Up, please contact us.
North Dakota: The North Dakota Housing Finance Agency (NDHFA) posted its 2023 Draft QAP for public comment. A QAP hearing will be held March 2, 2022 at 10AM CST in-person at 2624 Vermont Avenue, Bismark, ND 58502 and virtually via Teams. The Draft QAP would award 1-5 points for meeting a certain number of Enterprise Green Communities criteria or 7 points for NGBS Green, Enterprise Green Communities, or LEED certification. These points are available for both new construction and rehabilitation projects. Partners are encouraged to commend NDHFA for continuing to incentivize third-party green certifications.
You Win Some, You Lose Some...Quick QAP Recap Blog
View Cindy's blog for an update on Home Innovation's green advocacy efforts throughout Fall-Winter 2021.
PRODUCTS
Product Spotlight
In each issue of Insider Update, Home Innovation profiles products that can help builders achieve points toward NGBS Green Certification. To browse all NGBS Green Certified products, visit the online directory.
Cosmo Cabinets Kitchen and Bath Cabinets
Cosmo Cabinets specializes in frameless full access kitchen and bath cabinets featuring shaker and slab doors with a waterproof leg system best suited for multifamily projects.

Cosmo Cabinets are certified under 2020 NGBS 602.1.15, as the cabinets are certified in accordance with ANSI/KCMA A161.1 performance standards.
NGBS Green Partner Niagara Nominated for Green Products Accolades
Green Product Award 2022 Nominees – Niagara Shadow 0.8 GPF

The Green Product Award distinguishes products and services that deliver in sustainability, innovation, and design. Niagara’s Shadow™ 0.8 GPF toilet is nominated for a 2022 award within the Interior & Lifestyle category. The Shadow 0.8 PGF utilizes Niagara’s patented vacuum-assist Stealth Technology®, which redesigned the flush using an air transfer tube instead of a flapper—reducing maintenance requirements. The Shadow 0.8 PGF previously won several EPA WaterSense awards for performance, maintenance, and water efficiency. Visit the Green Product Award website to view all the nominees and place your vote.
2022 Edison Best New Product Award Finalists – Niagara Toilets

The Edison Best New Products Awards is an annual competition awarding excellence in new product and service development, marketing, human-centered design, and innovation. The Finalists for the 2022 Edison New Product Awards were recently announced, and Niagara’s water-efficient toilets were recognized for their patented, vacuum-assist technology and superior water efficiency. Winners will be announced in late April 2022.

Congratulations to Niagara, and good luck!

View NGBS Green Certified Niagara water-efficient toilets here.
RESOURCES
As an accredited laboratory and third-party certification agency focused on the home building industry, Home Innovation Research Labs is uniquely suited to manage a residential green certification program, and quality assurance is central to NGBS Green certification. Over the next several Insider Update editions, we'll highlight key tenets of Home Innovation's quality assurance program.
Quality Assurance Highlights: Desktop Audits
Desktop audits are a spot check on a Verifier's performance. Desktop audits are a documentation review of the information that the Verifier collects and reviews to verify[ENSURE?] compliance. Once a project is selected for a Desktop Audit, the Verifier receives a list of NGBS practices for which they must submit the documentation collected during their verification [PROCESS]. The documentation is reviewed along side the final verification report, and the audit results are factored into the performance grade for the final verification report review.

Our goal is to conduct Desktop Audits on approximately 10% of projects seeking certification. We aim to audit 10% evenly for both single-family and multifamily, even through multifamily certifications represent a higher percentage of overall certifications.

Project selection is largely random, but newer Verifiers and Verifiers with performance issues are selected at a higher frequency than experienced Verifiers and those with exceptional performance reviews.
Quick Links to Marketing Materials & Guidance One-pagers
Recently, we've been posting case studies on some unique and exemplary NGBS Green Certified projects. If you haven't had a chance to check them out yet, be sure to go to our Resources page – there are several there already and we're adding more each month. While on the page, be sure to check out the wide range of guidance documents, comparisons, and other helpful resources we've created for our NGBS Green Partners, including:










And, you can also find LOTS of great resources by visiting the following pages – #BookmarkWorthy:



Let Us know How We're Doing?
Take this 1-minute survey and let us know what you think of our delivery of NGBS Green certification and our customer service.
UPCOMING EVENTS
As we strive to keep up with events of interest around the country,
we welcome your input!
If you know of a program that may be of interest to our NGBS Green program partners, please let us know.

And, if you or a client are interested in scheduling virtual (or, eventually, live) training on the 2020 NGBS, contact us – we have an AIA and ICC-approved program that we'd be happy to deliver.

Join these upcoming events:

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