Bipartisan infrastructure law (BIL): south-central energy code optimization project (SC ecop) many large south-central communities have adopted the 2021 I-codes; however, many others enforce older…

Bipartisan infrastructure law (BIL): south-central energy code optimization project (SC ecop) many large south-central communities have adopted the 2021 I-codes; however, many others enforce older or amended versions of the international energy conservation code (IECC). Motivations vary as to why communities do not adopt the latest energy code, but a lack of training, education, and workforce are key factors. The south-central energy code optimization project (SC ecop) will be a collaborative effort between new buildings institute (NBI) and south-central partnership for energy efficiency as a resource (SPEER), with input from local jurisdictions and state agencies. The project will focus on building energy codes and resilience policies, and the project team will develop and deploy training resources focused on increasing advanced code adoption and compliance in communities across the states of texas and oklahoma. This effort contributes to the larger goal of improving construction practices across texas and oklahoma, resulting in more energy efficient and climate resilient buildings, while preserving affordability and regional characteristics. This project will ensure equitable public engagement, more robust local adoption processes in a home-rule state, and expansion of building code curriculum across areas in texas and oklahoma. Expanded building code curriculum, especially in the often-underserved lower RIO grande valley, will increase access to building-related job opportunities for marginalized communities and address the labor shortage by developing a stronger pipeline of construction and trades workers. IT is important to note that the geographic area of texas (TX) and oklahoma (OK) is roughly 335,000 square miles, more than any other regional energy efficiency organization (REEO)'S area, and more than some REEO's total combined square mile area. The project team will conduct an analysis of the region-specific climate resilience issues and establish a network to begin identifying potential solutions and pathways to address them. The team will develop a set of resources, policy guidance documents, and other tools that will help guide any future resilience code adoption efforts in the region while also encouraging a continuation of the network building efforts among the collaborative members.