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Building Code Reference

Got a Title 24 CF1R correction?

Energy certificate of compliance

For builders in California, Greater Seattle, the Las Vegas area, the Denver area and Kansas City · CrossBeam Permits

What this code requires, how to fix it, and how cities and counties review it

What this code requires

Title 24 CF1R is the Certificate of Compliance that proves a California residential project meets Title 24 Part 6 energy code. It documents the design-level energy features — window U-factor and SHGC, insulation R-values, HVAC equipment efficiency, and duct location — and must be registered with an ECC-Provider data registry (the ECC program replaced the HERS program) when compliance requires field verification, before the city will accept your plans. Every new single-family home and most additions triggering an energy analysis are required to submit a registered CF1R.

How to fix it

  1. Confirm whether a CF1R has been registered

    Log into the ECC-Provider data registry (formerly the HERS provider registry) where your energy analyst filed the project: CalCERTS, CHEERS, or another CEC-approved provider. Search by the job address or permit number. If no registration exists, the energy analysis needs to be completed and filed before resubmitting to the city. If you can't find who ran the energy model, check the permit application for the designer of record, since they typically coordinate this step. A project with no CF1R registration at all is missing a prerequisite — the city will not complete plan check without it.

  2. Cross-check CF1R values against the window schedule

    Pull the registered CF1R alongside your architectural plan set. Go line by line through the window schedule on the plans and the fenestration table on the CF1R. Verify that every window and glazed door has matching U-factor and SHGC values. A single window showing 0.30 on one sheet and 0.32 on another is enough to fail plan check. Also check that wall, ceiling, and floor insulation R-values on the building section details match the CF1R's construction assemblies exactly. Discrepancies in thermal mass or interior finish layers can also trip the comparison.

  3. Verify HVAC equipment specs match on both documents

    Open the mechanical plans to the equipment schedule. For every piece of heating or cooling equipment listed, confirm the manufacturer model number, AFUE (for furnaces), HSPF or HSPF2 (for heat pumps), and SEER or SEER2 (for cooling equipment) match what the CF1R documents. If equipment has been substituted since the energy analysis was run, the energy analyst needs to update the compliance run and register a revised CF1R before you resubmit to the city. The model number on the mechanical sheet and the registered CF1R should be identical, not just similar.

  4. Confirm the CF1R scope matches the permit scope

    The CF1R must cover the exact conditioned floor area being permitted. If your permit is for an addition, the compliance documentation must reflect the full proposed conditioned area, not just the original house. Check the square footage on the CF1R against the area calculations on your architectural plans. Discrepancies here usually mean the energy model was run on the wrong project scope and needs to be rerun. This is a common issue on phased projects where the energy model was done early and the design grew.

  5. Get a revised CF1R registered if values don't match

    If any values differ between the CF1R and the plans, you have two paths: update the plans to match what the CF1R already shows (simpler if the CF1R values are correct and compliant), or have the energy analyst revise the compliance run and register a new CF1R to match corrected plans. The first path is usually faster when the discrepancy is just a spec callout error on the architectural sheets. The second is needed when the project conditions actually changed: different equipment, different window products, or added area. Either way, both documents must agree exactly before the city will sign off.

  6. Include the CF1R registration number on resubmitted plans

    Most jurisdictions require the CF1R registration number to appear on a plan sheet, commonly on the cover sheet or the energy notes sheet. The registration number is a long alphanumeric string issued by the ECC-Provider when the CF1R is filed. If it isn't on the plans, the plan-checker may kick the resubmittal even if the values now match. Check the corrections letter for whether the city specified where the registration number should appear.

  7. Resubmit with the updated CF1R and revised plan sheets together

    Gather the registered CF1R printout downloaded from the ECC-Provider portal, any revised architectural sheets with corrected window or insulation callouts, and any revised mechanical sheets with corrected equipment specs. Flag which sheets were revised in your resubmittal cover letter so the plan-checker can spot the changes without hunting through the whole set. A cover letter that lists the correction item number from the original letter and describes exactly what changed gets processed faster. Corrections cycles on energy compliance items can run 4 to 8 weeks; a clean, organized resubmittal shortens that.

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Why you got flagged

Plan-checkers flag CF1R issues for a handful of reasons, and most of them come down to the form not matching the plans or not being registered at all.

The most common trigger: the CF1R hasn't been submitted. Contractors or designers sometimes complete the energy analysis in software like EnergyPro or CBECC-Res but forget that the output must be formally registered through an ECC-Provider such as CalCERTS or CHEERS before it is a valid CF1R. Handing the city a printout from your energy modeling software without a registration number is not a CF1R; it gets kicked back immediately.

A second common catch: the values on the CF1R don't match the architectural or mechanical plans. If the CF1R lists a window with a U-factor of 0.30 but the window schedule on the architectural sheets calls out a different product with a U-factor of 0.35, the plan-checker flags it as a discrepancy. Same goes for insulation — the R-values on the energy form and the insulation notes on the building sections have to be identical.

HVAC equipment mismatches are another consistent offender. When the mechanical plans show a specific furnace or heat pump model, that model's AFUE or HSPF rating has to match what the CF1R assumes. If the contractor substituted equipment after the energy analysis was run, a revised CF1R is needed. Corrections letters often read: mechanical equipment on Sheet M1 does not match CF1R registered values, resubmit with updated compliance documentation.

Finally, some projects get flagged because the CF1R covers a different scope than the permit. An addition that adds conditioned floor area changes the energy budget. If the CF1R was sized for the original house and the permit application covers a larger addition, the compliance documentation needs to be rerun for the correct square footage and reregistered.

The official code

California Title 24 Part 6 — Building Energy Efficiency Standards (California Energy Commission)

Read the source →

Common questions

What is a CF1R and why do I need it for my permit?
The CF1R is the Certificate of Compliance for California's Title 24 Part 6 energy code. It documents the energy features your building is designed to include: window performance ratings, insulation levels, and HVAC equipment efficiency. The city's building department requires a registered CF1R to verify that your project will meet state energy standards before issuing a permit. Without it, you can't get plan check approval. The form must be registered through a CEC-approved ECC-Provider, not just printed from your energy modeling software. The registration creates a permanent record with a unique ID that the plan-checker can look up.
Who registers the CF1R, me or my architect?
The person responsible for the Certificate of Compliance, usually the energy analyst who prepared it, registers the CF1R with an approved ECC-Provider data registry such as CalCERTS or CHEERS. Your architect may coordinate this if they use energy compliance software like EnergyPro, but the actual registration is done by whoever ran the energy model. On smaller projects, some contractors hire an independent energy analyst just for this step. Confirm before you submit who is responsible. A missing registration is one of the top reasons plans come back on the first review, and tracking down who should have done it adds days to an already slow corrections cycle.
My CF1R values don't match my plans. Do I need to redo the energy model?
Not necessarily. If the values on your plans are wrong but the CF1R is correct and compliant, you can revise the plan sheets to match the CF1R. That is usually faster than rerunning the energy model. But if the project itself changed — different windows, different HVAC equipment, or added square footage — you do need the energy analyst to update the compliance run and register a revised CF1R. The two documents have to agree exactly. Even a small difference in a window U-factor between the CF1R and the window schedule will fail plan check.
Does a room addition require a new CF1R?
Yes, if the addition adds conditioned floor area. California's Title 24 energy compliance is based on the total conditioned area of the building, and an addition that increases that area changes the energy budget. The CF1R must reflect the full proposed conditioned area: the original house plus the addition combined. If the original CF1R was filed for just the base house, it can't be used to cover the addition permit. Small remodels that don't add conditioned area may be exempt, but check with your building department or energy analyst before assuming no CF1R is needed.
Can I swap out HVAC equipment after the CF1R is registered?
You can substitute equipment, but the CF1R has to be updated to match. If you switch to a different furnace or heat pump model, have your energy analyst revise the compliance run using the new equipment's ratings and register an updated CF1R. Then submit the revised CF1R along with updated mechanical sheets. Swapping to higher-efficiency equipment usually isn't a problem since it improves the energy score. Dropping to lower-efficiency equipment may require the analyst to check whether the project still passes before registering the update.
Where does the CF1R registration number go on my plan set?
Most cities want the registration number on the cover sheet or the energy compliance notes sheet. Check your corrections letter for the specific requirement, since some jurisdictions have a designated block on their standard cover sheet format. The registration number is issued by your ECC-Provider when the CF1R is filed. If you're not sure what number to use, log into the provider portal and look up the project by address. The confirmation page shows the registration ID. Some cities also require the ECC-Provider name alongside the number.

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