New York State quietly scaled back its climate commitments in this year’s budget, and now there is growing pressure to ease NYC’s building emissions law to match. Whether that reform happens before the penalties start is an open question. The experts quoted in a Habitat Magazine report published June 30 say co-op and condo boards should not count on it.
Gov. Kathy Hochul reset the state’s benchmarks under the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, the climate law New York passed in 2019. The original CLCPA required the state to cut greenhouse gas emissions to 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030 and at least 85 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Hochul’s budget replaced both targets with a single new goal: 60 percent below 1990 levels by 2040. She argued the original timeline imposed unrealistic and costly burdens on building owners, according to Habitat Magazine.
Geoffrey Mazel, a founding partner at the law firm Hankin and Mazel, told Brick Underground that the change “gives the New York State electricity providers a reprieve for 10 years to convert the grid to renewable sources.” He predicted the shift would immediately fuel lobbying to bring NYC’s Local Law 97 into alignment with the weakened state targets. “There will be significant advocacy to reform Local Law 97 to fit in or mirror the CLCPA,” Mazel said.
Tom Wright, president and CEO of the nonprofit Regional Plan Association, said the rollback squandered an opening. “State leaders weakened the law while missing an opportunity to speed the transition to more affordable, reliable, and clean energy sources,” Wright said, according to Habitat Magazine.
Local Law 97 sets building-level emissions caps for most large NYC properties and charges per-ton fines to buildings that exceed them. Benchmarking data cited by Habitat Magazine shows most co-op and condo buildings currently meet the law’s thresholds, but the caps tighten significantly beginning in 2030 and get stricter from there. Penalties are calculated using an emissions coefficient, a number that adjusts as the grid’s energy mix shifts over time.
Mazel said: “The argument is, why would [buildings] convert to electricity if the source of the electricity is fossil-fuel burning?”
The Urban Green Council, an energy nonprofit, addressed the question. Its analysis found that replacing most fossil-fuel heating systems with electric heat pump technology cuts a building’s emissions regardless of how the grid currently generates power, according to Habitat Magazine.
Marc Zuluaga, co-founder of climate-tech consultancy Cadence OneFive, told Habitat Magazine that the practical decision for most boards depends on each building’s specific conditions, not grid policy. “You’re going to do heat pumps if you’re comfortable with the technology, have an old boiler, have reserves, and believe it will have comfort benefits,” Zuluaga said. He pointed to the newly revived J-51 tax abatement program as a more immediate financial incentive than any shift in the emissions coefficient. “That’s a way bigger deal than some abstract grid coefficient,” he added.
Michael Scorrano, founder and managing director of engineering firm EN-POWER GROUP, told Habitat Magazine that electrification is one approach, not a universal solution. “Electrification is an important part of decarbonization, but it cannot be treated as the end-all solution for every building,” Scorrano said. “The right path starts with understanding a building’s actual emissions, infrastructure, budget, and capital plan, then using a strategic, phased approach to prioritize the most practical and cost-effective measures.”
For now, Local Law 97’s emission caps remain unchanged. Habitat Magazine notes that delaying efficiency upgrades or electrification projects could leave boards with fewer compliance options as the 2030 targets get closer.
Featured image: Courtesy urbangreencouncil.org
