Best Policy Practices
Best Policy Practices
Best Policy Practices
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<strong>Best</strong> <strong>Policy</strong> <strong>Practices</strong><br />
Applying voluntary consensus standards<br />
United States<br />
The text refers to certification systems;<br />
if you want to learn more, please click<br />
www.usgbc.org/LEED/ or see also<br />
Chapter 10 in this publication.<br />
The National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act<br />
(NTTAA) requires Federal agencies to “use technical standards<br />
that are developed or adopted by voluntary consensus<br />
standards bodies” in both their procurement and rulemaking<br />
unless such use is inconsistent with applicable law or otherwise<br />
impractical. In cases where no voluntary consensus<br />
standards exist, agencies can also use other technical standards.<br />
There was great wisdom in the NTTAA. Consumers benefit<br />
from standards in that they provide confidence in the quality,<br />
safety, and reliability of a product or service. Businesses<br />
benefit from standards in that they reduce cost, provide interoperability,<br />
promote regulatory compliance, reduce liability exposure,<br />
and provide organizations with a competitive advan-<br />
tage. Governments benefit from standards in that they achieve<br />
public policy objectives for a host of environmental concerns,<br />
lower regulatory and procurement costs, promote exports,<br />
trade, and economic growth, and comply with the World Trade<br />
Organization (WTO).<br />
Green building standards are at the forefront of environmental<br />
preferability standards in many ways: taking a holistic,<br />
systems approach; pushing the science of life cycle assessment;<br />
asking the tough questions about chemicals of concern;<br />
and balancing environmental, economic, and social considerations.<br />
And, the leaders in developing green building standards<br />
are engaging stakeholders in a very open, transparent process.<br />
These standard methodologies, rating systems, and other<br />
metrics provide a larger framework in which to organize and<br />
implement green programs at the national level. The use of<br />
green building standards fits well in the government context,<br />
considering the Federal government’s massive size, hierarchical<br />
structure, and typical way of doing business. The use of<br />
green building standards will also make the job of implementation<br />
easier, reducing the duplication of background research<br />
by the many parties working on green building, and giving an<br />
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