New York City Energy Conservation Legislation

On Wednesday the New York City Council enacted legislation to dramatically reduce the energy use and carbon footprint of buildings. These bills are a cornerstone of PlaNYC, because building energy use is responsible for nearly 80% of total CO2 emissions.

Three out of the four bills only apply to buildings over 50,000 square feet, and do not apply to individual residences within those buildings. While it might seem fairer to enact bills that affect all building sizes and types equally, such legislation would be virtually unenforceable. Although only 2% of buildings in New York City are over 50,000 square feet they account for 45% of the total energy used by all buildings, so just focusing on these buildings for most of the legislation actually makes a great deal of sense.

The bills include:

1. Int. 564-A. This is the only one of the bills that applies equally to buildings of all sizes and types. It creates a New York City Energy Conservation Code that is more stringent than the current New York State Energy Code. This bill closes a significant loophole in the New York State Energy Code by requiring that all renovations must comply with the Code and meet greater efficiency requirements, not just those that impact at least 50% of a building subsystem. It is extremely important, since most renovations in New York City typically happen on a piecemeal basis, rather than building-wide.

2. Int. 0967. This requires auditing and retro-commissioning of buildings over 50,000 square feet every ten years. Buildings that have demonstrated superior efficiency, such as Energy Star Buildings, will be exempt, and tenant spaces within residential buildings will not be included in the auditing and retro-commissioning. This bill is effective immediately, but the first reports are not due until 2013. Energy audits are comprehensive evaluations of energy efficiency, broken down by system, and normally include recommendations for cost-effective changes. Retro-commissioning is a process of testing building systems and controls and identifying those that are not functioning properly. Retro-commissioning identifies maintenance and operations issues, and making the recommended changes often results in a significant payback in a matter of months.

3. Int. 0973. This requires buildings of 50,000 sq. ft. or more to upgrade lighting systems to meet energy code standards and to install sub-metering when non-residential tenant spaces 10,000 square feet or greater are renovated. The bill does not require sub-metering to be used as that basis of allocating energy costs, but a tenant who will be sub-metered and who will be incorporating energy efficiency measures into the new space will be likely to want to be billed for electricity based upon actual usage, rather than on a square foot basis. Lighting retrofits typically pay for themselves within two years. Lighting of all areas other than those occupied by residential tenants must meet energy-efficiency requirements by the end of 2022.

4. Int. 0476-A. This requires owners of buildings 50,000 sq. ft. or more to conduct an annual benchmark analysis of energy and water consumption and to report the results. The primary tool used for benchmarking will be the Environmental Protection Agency's Portfolio Manager. While the potential impact of this bill may not be immediately apparent, the City of New York will make the results available to potential tenants, purchasers, and lenders. So this fairly innocuous looking piece of legislation may make energy retrofits a financial, if not a legal, necessity.