01Key facts / TL;DR
No, a Title 24 Part 6 energy report does not replace CALGreen Part 11 documentation: they are different parts of California’s Building Standards Code.
Yes, the same project can need both energy compliance documents and separate green-building documentation, subject to its scope, application date and AHJ review.
No, Title 24 Lab does not prepare CALGreen documentation; our deliverables are scoped design-phase Part 6 energy compliance documents such as CF1R or NRCC records.
It depends which electrical, charging, battery and green-building provisions apply; confirm each discipline rather than treating a general “Title 24” request as one interchangeable certificate.
Decision checklist
Four steps to distinguish energy reports from CALGreen
1.Read the request by code part and discipline
Separate a request for Part 6 energy compliance documents from Part 11 CALGreen checklists, electrical plans or other permit disciplines. Ask the reviewer to clarify an unspecific request for Title 24.
2.Confirm application date and project scope
Check the recorded permit-application date, building classification and altered systems with the AHJ. The same project can require both Part 6 documents and separate CALGreen documentation.
3.Assign each deliverable to its responsible party
Identify who prepares the CF1R or NRCC package, who prepares separate CALGreen documentation and who handles installation or field verification records. Title 24 Lab prepares scoped Part 6 design documents, not CALGreen documents.
4.Upload the request and coordinated plans
Send the comment or checklist request with drawings through Get a Quote for Part 6 scope review. Field testing, acceptance testing, registry fees, CALGreen documentation and AHJ permit fees remain outside the report-preparation scope.
Educational guidance, not legal advice. Verify the application date and requirements with your AHJ.
Upload plans / Get a Quote02Side by side: one Title 24 umbrella, different responsibilities
Title 24 is not the name of one report. It contains multiple code parts, including the California Energy Code in Part 6 and the California Green Building Standards Code, CALGreen, in Part 11. The CBSC CALGreen hub and its 2025 code-change summary identify these separate parts. “The city needs Title 24” is therefore a starting question, not a complete description of the deliverable.
| Question | Part 6 — Energy Code | Part 11 — CALGreen |
|---|---|---|
| Main subject | Building energy performance and applicable envelope, lighting, mechanical, water-heating and related energy provisions. | Green-building measures, including applicable water, material/resource, environmental-quality and EV infrastructure provisions. |
| Typical evidence | Applicable design certificates such as single-family CF1R or nonresidential NRCC, plus separate later-stage records where required. | Applicable green-building checklists, specifications and supporting evidence; not a substitute CF1R form. |
| Typical coordination | Energy preparer and responsible designer coordinate the energy assumptions and drawings; installers and verifiers own their applicable later records. | The responsible design team and project participants coordinate green-building evidence and any required verification with the AHJ. |
| Our scope | Project-specific design-phase energy-document preparation and coordination, as confirmed through intake. | Not supplied by Title 24 Lab. Arrange CALGreen documentation separately with the responsible project team. |
03Who should prepare the documents?
For Part 6, the energy-document preparer needs an agreed building classification, permit scope, code edition and supported inputs. The designer coordinates what is shown on the plans; a model or certificate cannot silently change a specified window or mechanical system. Design compliance is also distinct from the installer’s certifications and any required ECC field verification or acceptance testing.
For CALGreen, ask the architect or responsible designer to identify the applicable checklist, the party assembling it and the evidence expected at each stage. Do not assume that everyone calling themselves a “Title 24 consultant” offers green-building documentation. The required signers and verification arrangements depend on the applicable provisions and project circumstances, so confirm them with the AHJ rather than inventing a universal role or credential.
- +Name the Part 6 preparer and the responsible drawing coordinator.
- +Name the separate CALGreen documentation contact; this is not a Title 24 Lab deliverable.
- +Identify electrical, installation and verification responsibilities separately.
- +Keep a document register showing which requirement each file addresses.
CF1R / CF2R / CF3R responsibilitiesCommercial document families
04When both can appear in one permit package
A newly conditioned dwelling can have an energy-document pathway and separate applicable green-building requirements. A commercial improvement can involve regulated lighting or HVAC work alongside other reviewed construction measures. The important question is not whether the project is “green enough,” but which provisions apply to the actual building and altered work and how the responsible team demonstrates each.
ILLUSTRATIVE ONLY. An office tenant proposes new lighting and changes to interior finishes. The energy team scopes the applicable nonresidential lighting certificates from the lighting schedule, controls information and tenant area. The designer separately checks whether CALGreen documentation and supporting material or construction evidence are required for that permit. An NRCC lighting package does not certify all finish selections, and a green-building checklist does not establish lighting energy compliance.
Use separate response lines when the reviewer asks for different items. For example, identify the energy certificate and corresponding drawing sheets under the energy comment, and identify the responsible party’s CALGreen evidence under the green-building comment. This keeps a missing attachment from being mistaken for a need to commission an entirely different report.
05Mandatory CALGreen is not the same as its voluntary appendices
CALGreen is not wholly optional. The CBSC describes it as a mandatory green-building standards code and publishes mandatory and voluntary resources separately. The CEC’s CALGreen proceeding discusses voluntary energy-efficiency provisions in Appendices A4.2 and A5.2. That narrower description does not turn all of Part 11 into voluntary guidance.
Likewise, a reference to an optional tier or an energy-efficiency measure does not prove that it applies statewide to every project. Ask the responsible designer and AHJ which adopted requirements and project conditions govern. This guide does not assign a local tier, list an unverified ordinance or promise that meeting Part 6 satisfies a stricter adopted requirement.
06Application date and edition: confirm before selecting forms
Current guidance uses the 2025 California Energy Code for building-permit applications on or after January 1, 2026. CBSC also identifies the 2025 CALGreen edition as effective January 1, 2026. Confirm the AHJ-recorded application date, applicable editions and project circumstances; a drawing date, construction start or later review comment is not a substitute for that conversation.
An existing permit or a revised scope needs context. Do not replace an older-cycle document merely because the current calendar year changed. Keep the edition visible in the file register and ask the AHJ how amendments, an expired permit or a new application affect the applicable requirements. This is educational information, not legal advice or an interpretation of a particular department’s filing rules.
2022 versus 2025 application-date guideWhich energy forms do I need?
07EV chargers, batteries and lighting: avoid a category mistake
A charger installation raises electrical questions; applicable EV infrastructure measures may also be addressed through CALGreen. A standalone wall charger does not automatically require a whole-house Part 6 performance model. Identify the actual permit scope, building and parking work before commissioning energy documentation. Readiness, installed equipment and electrical capacity are not interchangeable descriptions.
Battery and solar work can interact with Part 6 requirements for a broader building project, but energy modeling does not replace electrical, fire or other applicable reviews. Similarly, commercial lighting energy certificates do not replace an entire CALGreen package. Ask which specific records are needed for each discipline; do not purchase a generic report based only on the equipment’s marketing description.
EV charger decision guideBattery-storage decision guideLighting-only TI decision guideCommercial permit-scope guide
08What our report price excludes—and what to upload
Published pricing is for the agreed design-phase energy-document scope, not every code discipline on a permit. CALGreen documentation is expressly outside our services, not an assumed attachment to an energy report. The following remain separate:
For a useful quote, send the project address, AHJ, recorded application date if known, current plans and any complete correction letter. Identify the building use, affected area, units and existing versus proposed work. Keep energy and CALGreen requests distinguishable in your notes. Our PDF/DWG/ZIP upload supports scoping the energy-document portion; it is not an order for green-building documentation.
- +ECC field verification and field testing.
- +Nonresidential acceptance testing.
- +Registry and document-registration fees.
- +CALGreen Part 11 documentation—we do not prepare it.
- +AHJ plan-check and permit fees.
09Six questions about Part 6 and CALGreen
Does a CF1R prove CALGreen compliance?
No. CF1R is a single-family design energy-compliance document family, not a CALGreen certificate. Confirm the separate green-building documentation required for the actual project with the responsible designer and AHJ. Other building classifications can use different energy form families.
Will Title 24 Lab prepare my CALGreen checklist?
No. We prepare scoped design-phase Part 6 energy documents, not CALGreen documentation. Arrange the green-building checklist and supporting evidence separately. Upload the complete request if a reviewer has combined several code disciplines under one general “Title 24” comment.
Is all of CALGreen voluntary?
No. CBSC identifies mandatory measures and separate voluntary resources. CEC’s discussion of voluntary energy provisions in CALGreen appendices is not a statement that all of Part 11 is optional. Confirm applicable adopted requirements and project conditions with the AHJ.
Does installing an EV charger always need an energy model?
No automatic conclusion follows from the charger alone. Separate electrical and applicable CALGreen questions from any Part 6 work in the permit. New construction or a broader alteration can have additional documentation needs; confirm scope and application date with the AHJ.
Can a commercial TI need both NRCC and CALGreen documents?
Yes, depending on the building and actual regulated work. NRCC addresses the applicable energy design scope; it does not replace a green-building checklist or acceptance testing. Ask the design team to identify each required record and the party responsible for producing it.
What should I send if I cannot tell which report the city wants?
Upload the complete comment letter, current drawings, building/project type and recorded application date if known. Include existing energy records and identify the drawing revision. We can scope Part 6 documentation; ask the AHJ or responsible designer to clarify separate CALGreen requirements.
Sources
- CEC: 2025 Energy Code and January 1, 2026 effective date
- CBSC: CALGreen Part 11, current editions, guides and checklists
- CBSC: 2025 Title 24 code changes, including Part 6 and Part 11
- CEC: 2025 CALGreen voluntary energy-efficiency appendices
- CEC: 2025 single-family CF1R, CF2R and CF3R forms
- CEC: 2025 NRCC, NRCI, NRCV and NRCA forms
- CEC: Energy Code Compliance (ECC) Program and transition questions