The Assembly Governmental Organization Committee advanced SB 1398 on June 24, moving the bill that would add Green Globes as an alternative certification pathway to LEED for state green-building projects.
The measure drew a policy dispute over who should decide whether the certification is equivalent. Supporters said California agencies should have more than one comparable green-building option. The U.S. Green Building Council objected that the bill should not bypass the Department of General Services’ equivalency review process.
According to the committee hearing summary, the Department of General Services is the agency that determines certification equivalency. The same summary says SB 1398 would recognize Green Globes as an alternative pathway for state projects, while supporters argued for more flexibility in state certification options.
The committee action sent the bill forward, but the available record does not include the final vote tally or whether amendments were adopted before passage out of committee.