LOCAL LAW 26 - Sprinkler Compliance

Next Due Date: July 1, 2011

Applies to: Buildings 100-feet in height or greater. An owner cannot convert a building that is 100 feet or greater in height to an office building or for use in occupancy group E without installing sprinklers.

Required: Report certifying the building is 100% sprinklered and code compliant. If building is not fully sprinklered, report must indicate what percentage is sprinklered and what steps will be taken to achieve full compliance by 2019. The building owner must document this with a Local Law 26/04 Sprinkler Report Form submitted to the NYC Local Law Enforcement Unit.

Exemptions:Only for office buildings, when the owner can demonstrate that it is not practical to install sprinklers in a limited portion of the building, due to structural conditions or status as an interior landmark space. The Commissioner may require additional fire safety measures.

Penalties for non-compliance: No penalties are explicitly stated in the codes.

LOCAL LAW 84 – Energy and Water Benchmarking

Next Due Date: August 1, 2011 (Extended to December 31, 2011)

Applies to: Buildings more than 50,000 gross square feet. Two or more buildings on the same tax lot that together total more than 100,000 gross square feet. (The Department of Finance should notify those owners that are required to comply, but compliance is expected regardless of notification.)

Required: Report using the EPA Portfolio Manager, which documents energy and water usage for the building over the past year. Building owners must also gather usage data for tenants who are separately metered by the utility company. As a service and for a fee Con Edison can provide aggregated electrical data to building owners, which can then be used to benchmark.

Exemptions: Water benchmarking is not required unless the building has been equipped with an automatic meter reader for the entire year of benchmarking. This information should be directly uploaded to the Portfolio Manager by DEP.

Penalties for non-compliance: $500 per building.

LOCAL LAW 87 – Energy Audits and Retro-Commissioning of Base Building Systems

Energy Efficiency reports are required according to the following:

Applies to: Buildings over 50,000 gross square feet. Two or more buildings on the same tax lot that together total more than 100,000 gross square feet. Two or more buildings held in a condo form ownership governed by the same board that together total more than 100,000 gross square feet.

Required: For all building systems both an energy audit and energy efficiency reports must be submitted. Building systems include all HVAC systems, lighting systems, domestic hot water, conveying systems and building envelope. A building audit targets systems that can be improved with upgrades and summarizes a capital cost breakdown, with payback periods. . Retro-commissioning is a fine-tuning of all existing base building systems to improve performance and energy usage. Retro-commissioning shall be performed prior to filing the building’s energy efficiency reports.

(All capital improvements that can yield a seven-year payback or better must be performed within one year of the report. City buildings shall be required to submit annual reports to the Mayor detailing the accuracy of the energy audit and savings achieved, subsequent to the filed EER.)

Exemptions: No energy audit is required if the covered building has an Energy Star label for at least two of the three years before the filing of the building’s energy efficiency report (note that an energy efficiency report is still required). For buildings that have no Energy Star available, a registered design professional can submit documentation attesting that the building rated 25 points better than the average same type of building for at least two of the three years prior to filing the building’s energy efficiency report. No energy audit is required if the covered building has LEED 2009 certification within four years of filing the building’s energy efficiency report.

The first required energy audit can be exempted for simple buildings that meet six of the following seven criteria:

• The building has individual heating controls for all heating units inside the dwelling. Buildings with central heaters must incorporate sensors (between 10 and 30) in at least 10% of the dwellings and heated spaces.
• Common area and exterior lighting comply with the 2010 NYCECC.
• Faucets and shower heads are low-flow type (as defined by NYC PC 2010)
• Exposed pipes that convey heat or hot water are insulated to the 2010 NYCECC requirements.
• Domestic hot water tanks are insulated to R-8 minimum.
• All common area washing machines are front loading type.
• The building has a cool roof.

No retro-commissioning is required if the covered building is LEED 2009 certified for existing buildings within two years prior to filing the building’s energy efficiency report. The building must have earned the LEED points for building commissioning investigations and implementation.

Non-city buildings that are less than 10 years old or have undergone substantial rehabilitation when their first Energy Efficiency Report is due, and meet 2010 NYC ECC or better, can defer 10 more years.

The Commissioner may grant annual extensions (no more than two) to file the building’s Energy Efficiency Reports, provided the owner can demonstrate good faith efforts and financial hardship as defined in the law.

Penalties for non-compliance: No penalties are explicitly stated in the codes.

LOCAL LAW 11 – Facade Inspection and Report, Cycle 7 (2010 to 2015)

Chart of Due Dates

Buildings with Tax Block 4, 5, 6 or 9: 2/21/2012 (no sooner than 2/21/2010)
Buildings with Tax Block 0, 7, 8: 8/21/2012 (no sooner than 2/21/2011)
Buildings with Tax Block 1, 2, 3: 2/21/2013 (no sooner than 2/21/2012)

Applies to: Buildings more than six stories high

Required: An inspection by a qualified architect or engineer and an accompanying signed and sealed report . The inspection determines the existing integrity of the building facade and to make recommendations of any necessary repairs. The report classifies buildings as Safe, Safe with Repair or Unsafe. Unsafe status is triggered by window air conditioners that are not properly secured, uncorrected items from Cycle 6 report and new conditions observed at the time of the new inspection. Unsafe conditions require immediate notification to the DOB. Building owners will have 30 days from filing to correct any unsafe conditions. A follow up report is required within two weeks after the repairs have been made. Extension requests can be granted initially for 90 days and subsequently for nine months if the building owner qualifies for the Alternative Filing Program.

Exemptions: Inspections are not required if the facade is less than 12 inches from the exterior wall of an adjacent building. “Exterior walls facing an open space having an area of less than 900 square feet and which is bound by exterior walls or by exterior walls and lot lines”

Penalties for non-compliance: Failure to correct any unsafe conditions can result in a fine of $1,000/month. Late filing of the initial report can result in a fine of $250/month. Failure to file the initial report can result in a fine of $1,000/year

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