The pilot program in Kitsap County was started two years ago in response to the local landfill facing closure. The second program, in Clark County, is also founded by the local building industry through the NAHB, but this time in response to a booming market facing potential growth management regulation.
Builders pay to join the program and then rate their own structures.
Many people in the audience asked about how to get a similar program going in King county. Kathleen responded that like the other programs, it would have to be driven by local concerns. The cost and complexity depended on how much a home builder group wanted to create it own program and how much it was willing to copy from the existing programs. Following Kathleen, Lucia Athens from the Seattle Public Utilities spoke about the Evergreen Builders Guide for the Issaquah Highlands development. Wanting to make it easy for builders to get a foot in the door and get comfortable using the program, they made is easy to participate by making the bronze level be equivalent to meeting code, but with the additional requirement that the home buyer be given the checklist information about what is in the house.