Confirm the edition, whether the project is residential or nonresidential, and any local tier the city adopts, then check that every measure marked on the CALGreen checklist, such as EV charging spaces, water efficiency, construction waste management, and indoor air quality, appears in the drawings or specifications it points to. AI can flag conflicts; the design team and the building department decide compliance.
What does CALGreen cover?
CALGreen, the California Green Building Standards Code, is Part 11 of Title 24. The Building Standards Commission calls it the first-in-the-nation mandatory green building standards code. The Department of Housing and Community Development organizes the residential measures into five divisions: planning and design, energy efficiency, water efficiency and conservation, material conservation and resource efficiency, and environmental quality. The nonresidential chapter follows the same five divisions. Voluntary Tier 1 and Tier 2 measures sit in appendices that a city can adopt.
The Building Standards Commission lists the 2025 CALGreen as effective January 1, 2026, and HCD’s 2025 residential mandatory measures and tier checklists carry the same date. The Commission proposes nonresidential standards and publishes nonresidential mandatory, Tier 1, and Tier 2 checklists; HCD develops the residential provisions for new residential buildings and for additions and alterations that increase conditioned area, volume, or size. All checked October 7, 2026. Many cities adopt a tier or local green ordinance; record which applies.
Voluntary energy measures connect to the California Energy Code guide, and the building code to the California Building Code guide. San Francisco and other cities layer their own green building codes on top; see the California page.
Gather the checklist and the sheets each measure points to
Collect the CALGreen checklist or mandatory measures sheet with its responsible-party and sheet references, the site and parking plans with EV charging and EV-ready spaces, the electrical plans and panel schedules for EV infrastructure, the plumbing fixture schedule, the landscape and irrigation plans, the construction waste management plan, the mechanical schedules and filtration notes, the finish schedule and low-emitting material specifications, and the general notes.
A checklist often cites a sheet number that changed in a later issue. Upload the sheet index so each reference can be followed.
Follow each checked measure into the set
| Review question | Sources to compare | Decision to record |
|---|---|---|
| Edition and tier | Checklist, general notes, local ordinance | Confirm the edition, the residential or nonresidential chapter, and any adopted tier. |
| EV charging | Checklist, parking plan, electrical plans, panel schedules | Match the EV spaces and infrastructure the checklist claims to the site and electrical drawings. |
| Water efficiency | Checklist, plumbing fixture schedule, irrigation plans | Check fixtures and irrigation against the measures marked. |
| Construction waste | Checklist, waste management plan, specifications | Confirm a waste management plan and specification section exist where the checklist relies on them. |
| Indoor environmental quality | Checklist, finish specifications, mechanical filtration notes | Find low-emitting materials or filtration claimed on the checklist but missing from the specifications. |
| Sheet references | Checklist, sheet index, drawings | Identify checklist references to sheets that no longer show the measure. |
EV and power infrastructure continues in the electrical drawing checklist, fixtures in the plumbing fixture specifications guide, and the site in the civil and site checklist.
Example: EV spaces on the checklist but not on the parking plan
Hypothetical example. The nonresidential CALGreen checklist marks the EV charging measure as met and references the site plan. The current parking plan shows the striping but no EV-capable or charging spaces, and the electrical panel schedule shows no circuits or spare capacity for them.
The CALGreen checklist marks EV charging as met and references the site plan, while the current parking plan shows no EV spaces and the panel schedule shows no related circuits or capacity. Please confirm the EV spaces and coordinate the site and electrical drawings with the checklist.
The architect and the electrical engineer add or locate the spaces and infrastructure and update the checklist reference. The building department decides compliance.
Review CALGreen measures with Groundbook
Upload the current drawings and specifications to Groundbook, and state the edition, amendments, and review scope in your instructions. Upload the 2025 CALGreen from a copy you are licensed to use, where the license permits uploading it, with the Commission’s or HCD’s published checklists and any local green ordinance. See how Groundbook works with local and licensed codes.
Compare the CALGreen checklist and its sheet references with the site and parking plans, electrical plans and panel schedules, plumbing fixture schedule, landscape and irrigation plans, construction waste management plan, mechanical filtration notes, finish and material specifications, and sheet index. Flag measures marked as met that the referenced sheets do not show, references to sheets that changed, and measures missing from the specifications. Use the supplied 2025 CALGreen and local amendments and cite both sources.
Groundbook links each potential finding to the checklist line and the sheet or specification involved.
Document review does not verify installed measures, calculate water use or waste diversion, or replace the design team or the building department.