LEED Green Associate Exam Study Guide
Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
What are the five AP specialty designations? - CORRECT ANSWER - BD&C (Building
Design and Construction)
ID&C (Interior Design and Construction)
O&M (Operations and Maintenance)
Homes
ND (Neighborhood Development)
Describe the responsibilities of GBCI and USGBC with respect to LEED. - CORRECT
ANSWER - GBCI-Administers the LEED credentials, oversees evaluation of project
applications and determinations of LEED certifications
USGBC-Responsible for development of LEED rating systems, publication of the LEED
reference guides, and educational programming
What are the LEED rating systems and how should they be applied to projects? - CORRECT
ANSWER - LEED for New Construction and Major Renovations (LEED NC)- applies to
entire commercial buildings such as offices, retail store, hotels, institutional facilities (such as
libraries and churches), and residential buildings with four or more habitable stories.
LEED for Core & Shell Development (LEED CS)- designed to complement the LEED for
Commercial Interiors rating system (It covers core building elements such as structure, building
envelope, and HVAC systems)
LEED for Schools (LEED S)-used for certification of K-12 educational facilities and can also be
used for prekindergarten or post-secondary buildings
LEED for Healthcare (LEED HC)- used for inpatient, outpatient, and long-term care facilities
LEED for Retail: New Construction (LEED R-NC)- adapted to the needs of the retail
environment
,LEED for Commercial Interiors (LEED CI)- used for certification of tenant spaces in
commercial and institutional buildings
LEED for Retail: Commercial Interiors (LEED R-CI)- interior retail spaces
LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED EBO&M)- designed to
encourage sustainable maintenance, cleaning, and operation of existing commercial structures.
LEED for Homes (LEED H)- applies to single family homes and low-rise residential
construction (fewer than 4 stories)
LEED for Neighborhood Development (LEED ND)- emphasizes the elements of site selection,
design, and construction that create vibrant, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods
What are the seven credit categories of the LEED rating systems? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Sustainable Sites (SS)
Water Efficiency (WE)
Energy and Atmosphere (EA)
Materials and Resources (MR)
Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)
Innovation in Design/Operations (ID or IO)
Regional Priority (RP)
Which credit category offers the most points in the LEED rating systems? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Energy and Atmosphere
How many points must a commercial project achieve to become Certified? Silver? Gold?
Platinum? - CORRECT ANSWER - Certified: 40-49 points
Silver: 50-59 points
, Gold: 60-79 points
Platinum: 80+ points
In the LEED EBO&M rating system, if data can not be obtained from all tenants in a multitenant
building, up to ___% of the gross floor space may be excluded. - CORRECT ANSWER -
10%
How many points can a project earn for Innovation in Design? - CORRECT ANSWER -6
points total
Who determines applicable Regional Priority credits for a project? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Regional Council
What are Minimum Program Requirements? - CORRECT ANSWER - *Comply with
environmental laws.
*Be a building.
*Use a reasonable site boundary.
*Comply with minimum FTE and floor area requirements.
*Comply with minimum occupancy rates.
*Comply with reasonable timetables and rating system sunset dates for registration and
certification activity.
*Allow USGBC access to whole-building energy and water usage data.
*Meet a minimum building area to site area ratio.
Briefly describe how LEED credits are weighted. - CORRECT ANSWER - Prerequisites
and credits that address what USGBC has determined to be the most pressing environmental
concerns or those that have the greatest potential for positively impacting the environment are
worth the most points.
Which LEED rating system includes a minimum occupancy requirement? Why? - CORRECT
ANSWER - LEED EBO&M-the project must be fully occupied for at least one year before
Exam Questions and CORRECT Answers
What are the five AP specialty designations? - CORRECT ANSWER - BD&C (Building
Design and Construction)
ID&C (Interior Design and Construction)
O&M (Operations and Maintenance)
Homes
ND (Neighborhood Development)
Describe the responsibilities of GBCI and USGBC with respect to LEED. - CORRECT
ANSWER - GBCI-Administers the LEED credentials, oversees evaluation of project
applications and determinations of LEED certifications
USGBC-Responsible for development of LEED rating systems, publication of the LEED
reference guides, and educational programming
What are the LEED rating systems and how should they be applied to projects? - CORRECT
ANSWER - LEED for New Construction and Major Renovations (LEED NC)- applies to
entire commercial buildings such as offices, retail store, hotels, institutional facilities (such as
libraries and churches), and residential buildings with four or more habitable stories.
LEED for Core & Shell Development (LEED CS)- designed to complement the LEED for
Commercial Interiors rating system (It covers core building elements such as structure, building
envelope, and HVAC systems)
LEED for Schools (LEED S)-used for certification of K-12 educational facilities and can also be
used for prekindergarten or post-secondary buildings
LEED for Healthcare (LEED HC)- used for inpatient, outpatient, and long-term care facilities
LEED for Retail: New Construction (LEED R-NC)- adapted to the needs of the retail
environment
,LEED for Commercial Interiors (LEED CI)- used for certification of tenant spaces in
commercial and institutional buildings
LEED for Retail: Commercial Interiors (LEED R-CI)- interior retail spaces
LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED EBO&M)- designed to
encourage sustainable maintenance, cleaning, and operation of existing commercial structures.
LEED for Homes (LEED H)- applies to single family homes and low-rise residential
construction (fewer than 4 stories)
LEED for Neighborhood Development (LEED ND)- emphasizes the elements of site selection,
design, and construction that create vibrant, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods
What are the seven credit categories of the LEED rating systems? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Sustainable Sites (SS)
Water Efficiency (WE)
Energy and Atmosphere (EA)
Materials and Resources (MR)
Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ)
Innovation in Design/Operations (ID or IO)
Regional Priority (RP)
Which credit category offers the most points in the LEED rating systems? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Energy and Atmosphere
How many points must a commercial project achieve to become Certified? Silver? Gold?
Platinum? - CORRECT ANSWER - Certified: 40-49 points
Silver: 50-59 points
, Gold: 60-79 points
Platinum: 80+ points
In the LEED EBO&M rating system, if data can not be obtained from all tenants in a multitenant
building, up to ___% of the gross floor space may be excluded. - CORRECT ANSWER -
10%
How many points can a project earn for Innovation in Design? - CORRECT ANSWER -6
points total
Who determines applicable Regional Priority credits for a project? - CORRECT
ANSWER - Regional Council
What are Minimum Program Requirements? - CORRECT ANSWER - *Comply with
environmental laws.
*Be a building.
*Use a reasonable site boundary.
*Comply with minimum FTE and floor area requirements.
*Comply with minimum occupancy rates.
*Comply with reasonable timetables and rating system sunset dates for registration and
certification activity.
*Allow USGBC access to whole-building energy and water usage data.
*Meet a minimum building area to site area ratio.
Briefly describe how LEED credits are weighted. - CORRECT ANSWER - Prerequisites
and credits that address what USGBC has determined to be the most pressing environmental
concerns or those that have the greatest potential for positively impacting the environment are
worth the most points.
Which LEED rating system includes a minimum occupancy requirement? Why? - CORRECT
ANSWER - LEED EBO&M-the project must be fully occupied for at least one year before
