All,

At this morning's meeting with our Building Officials, the following information has been relayed on two important energy items:

HVAC SEER standards
Effective January 1, 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy is increasing the minimum efficiencies for central split system air conditioners and heat pumps. You can read the full NAHB notice here.

SNHBA has worked diligently over the last few months with our national partners, requesting a grace period of six months, in line with other regions in the nation, to phase out equipment already available. We were unfortunately unsuccessful.

Because of that, we have asked our building officials their anticipated responsibility of enforcement and grandfathering of existing plans/permits beginning in January 2023:

For all plans approved and permits pulled prior to 1-1-23, SNBO will enforce what is on the plan and will allow change outs without requiring revisions to plans/permits.

Please note that 15 SEER equipment must be installed prior to 1-1-23 in order to comply with federal law. We strongly urge you to reach out to your HVAC contractor to be sure you are in compliance with federal law.

2021 IECC implementation
SNICC is beginning the process to form a Regional Code Committee to review the 2021 IECC and adopt Southern Nevada Consensus Amendments related to our unique climate conditions.

We anticipate Clark County and the City of Henderson will be adopting the 2021 IECC in Q1 2023, with an effective date of at least six month after. Other jurisdictions (CLV, NLV, Mesquite and Boulder City) have indicated they will be participating in the committee process but do not currently have an anticipated adoption date.

We will continue to educate you all as more information is available. We encourage you to reach out to your energy rater to see how this new code adoption may impact your construction schedules for homes in 2023.