The Energy Commission adopted the 2008 changes to the Building Energy Efficiency Standards, for a number of compelling reasons:

• To respond to California's energy crisis to reduce energy bills, increase energy delivery system reliability, and contribute to an improved economic condition for the state
• To respond to the AB 970 (Statutes of 2000) urgency legislation to adopt and implement updated and cost-effective building energy efficiency standards;
• To respond to the SB 5X (Statutes of 2001) urgency legislation to adopt energy efficiency building standards for outdoor lighting
• To emphasize energy efficiency measures that save energy at peak periods and seasons, improve the quality of installation of energy efficiency measures, incorporate recent publicly funded building science research, and collaborate with California utilities to incorporate results of appropriate market incentives programs for specific technologies.

The Energy Commission adopted the 2005 Standards on November 5, 2003, and the Building Standards Commission adopted them on July 21, 2004.