Sec. 388.004.  ENFORCEMENT OF ENERGY STANDARDS OUTSIDE OF MUNICIPALITY.  (a)  For construction outside of the local jurisdiction of a municipality:
(1)  a building certified by a national, state, or local accredited energy efficiency program shall be considered in compliance;
(2)  a building with inspections from private code-certified inspectors using the energy efficiency chapter of the International Residential Code or International Energy Conservation Code shall be considered in compliance;  and
(3)  a builder who does not have access to either of the above methods for a building shall certify compliance using a form provided by the laboratory, enumerating the code-compliance features of the building.
(b)  A builder shall retain until the third anniversary of the date on which compliance is achieved the original copy of any documentation that establishes compliance under this section.  The builder on receipt of any compliance documentation shall provide a copy to the owner of the building.
(c)  A single-family residence built in the unincorporated area of a county the construction of which was completed on or after September 1, 2001, but not later than August 31, 2002, shall be considered in compliance.
Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 967, Sec. 1(b), eff. Sept. 1, 2001.  Amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1331, Sec. 16, eff. June 20, 2003.