225 CMR, § 22, ch. 4, § R405 - TOTAL BUILDING PERFORMANCE

R405 Replace Section R405 in its entirety as follows:

Section R405 Passive House Building Certification Option.

R405.1 Compliance. Projects may document compliance with either Phius certification in accordance with R405.2.1 or PHI certification in accordance with R405.2.2 or follow R405.3. Buildings shall be pre-certified as meeting the Phius CORE 2021 or Phius ZERO 2021 Passive Building Standard - North America, or newer, demonstrated using approved Passive House certification software and program criteria by PHIUS, where design-certification is demonstrated by Phius and a Certified Passive House Consultant (CPHC); or, Projects meeting the Certified Passive House standard using the approved Passive House certification software and program criteria by the Passive House Institute (PHI), where PHI certification is demonstrated by a PHI-accredited Certifier.

R405.2 Documentation. Compliance with Phius or PHI shall be in accordance with R405.2.1 or R405.2.2.

1. Prior to the issuance of a building permit, the following item(s) must be provided to the Building Official:

a. A Passive House Verification report with results from the approved Passive House certification software which demonstrates project compliance with Phius CORE 2021 (or newer), or Phius ZERO 2021 (or newer) performance requirements.

b. A statement from the CPHC that the verification report results accurately reflect the plans submitted.

c. Evidence of project registration from Phius.

OR

a. A Design Certification Letter from Phius.

2. Prior to the issuance of a final certificate of occupancy, the following item(s) must be provided to the building official:

a. Design Certification Letter from Phius.

b. An updated Passive House Verification Report with results from the approved Passive House certification software which reflects "as-built" conditions and test results (blower door and ventilation results) that demonstrate project compliance with Phius performance requirements.

c. A statement from the CPHD Certified Passive House Consultant or Certified Passive House Designer that the project test results meet the model performance requirements, all the mandatory limits and any other mandatory requirements.

d. A copy of the Passive House Verifier/Rater's test results;

e. A copy of the Phius workbook listing all testing results and as-built conditions.

OR

a. A Final Certification Letter, provided by Phius.

AND

f. Verification of compliance with R404.4 EV ready, and Appendix RB: Solar Ready Provisions.

R405.2.2 Passive House Institute (PHI) Documentation.

1. Prior to the issuance of a building permit, the following items must be provided to the Building Official:

a. A PHPP (Passive House Planning Package) compliance report with results from the approved Passive House certification software which demonstrates project compliance with current PHI performance requirements;

b. A statement from the PHI-accredited Certifier that the approved Passive House certification software results and compliance report accurately reflect the plans submitted;

c. Evidence of project registration from a PHI-accredited Certifier.

OR

a. A Design State Conditional Assurance Letter from a PHI-accredited Certifier.

2. Prior to the issuance of a final certificate of occupancy, the following items must be provided to the building official:

a. A Design State Conditional Assurance Letter from a PHI-accredited Certifier.

b. An updated compliance report with results from the approved Passive House certification software which reflects "as-built" conditions and test results (blower door and ventilation results) that demonstrates project compliance with PHI performance requirements;

c. A statement from the Certified Passive House Consultant or Certified Passive House Designer that the project test results meet the model performance requirements, all the mandatory limits and any other mandatory requirements.

d. A copy of the Passive House Verifier/Rater's test results;

OR

a. A Final Certification Letter from a PHI-accredited Certifier.

AND

e. Verification of compliance with R404.4 EV ready, and Appendix RB: Solar Read Provisions.

R405.3 Documentation of projects that pursued Phius or PHI certification that did not achieve final certification.

R405.3.1 Compliance. Buildings shall be pre-certified per Section R405.1. If, at construction completion, final certification cannot be received from either Phius or PHI, this compliance pathway may be followed to receive a certificate of occupancy based on compliance with R405.3.2 Documentation. Compliance via R405.3.2 is not equivalent to either Phius or PHI Certification and will not designate the project as a certified passive house.

R405.3.2 Near Passive House Documentation. The following materials are required:

a. Statement from the Phius certified consultant or PHI-accredited verifier confirming project has completed all interim, final, and corrective testing and modeling requirements, including a summary of deviations from certification requirements.

b. Copy of executed contracts with Phius consultant or PHI rater/verifier covering all required inspections and testing requirements for certification.

c. Design phase pre-certification/approval, in the form of a statement issued from Phius or PHI-accredited verifier confirming design certification or pre-certification was achieved.

d. Report from rater/verifier demonstrating as-built conditions, including those that comply with Phius or PHI requirements, and those that do not.

i. If the initial whole building blower door tests do not meet the Phius or PHI airtightness requirement, a statement must be provided to reflect evidence of a re-test. Statement shall include an explanation for sources of leakage and attempted remediation efforts. Final test results shall not exceed Phius or PHI airtightness thresholds by more than 30%.

ii. If the mechanical ventilation flow rates and balance do not meet the requirements of Phius or PHI, report must show that installed ventilation system demonstrates compliance with the mechanical code in accordance with Section C403.

e. For projects with Phius design certification, provide final Energy Star and Zero Energy Ready Homes certificates.

f. A letter from a licensed professional engineer that states that the potential hygrothermal or moisture risk of the as-built assemblies, with the measured blower door test result, is acceptably low.

Notes

225 CMR, § 22, ch. 4, § R405

Adopted by Mass Register Issue 1541, eff. 2/14/2025.