CPBD application and certification fees to increase

At their monthly board meeting last week, the National Council of Building Designer Certification voted to double application the application fee and increase the annual certification fee by $15.

The current $50 application fee is increasing to $100 on July 1, 2019. The fee has been at its current level since it was established in July 2012. The Council used the Consumer Price Index (CPI), according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, justify a portion of the increase. The purposes of the hike are to offset marketing costs of the CPBD program, write and deliver a practice exam, develope an online application and evaluation platform, and creating candidate handbook tutorials.

The current annual certification fee of $150 is stepping up to $165 for those who renew on June 30, 2019, and immediately for those have just earned their CPBD designation. The fee has been at its current rate since February 2015 and the Council’s decision was based purely on the increase in CPI over the past four years, as well as estimated increased over the next four.