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Energy Reporting: It’s the Law (New York City Local Law 84)

Since 2009, New York City Local Law 84 has mandated that owners of large building measure and report energy and water use. Known as “Benchmarking” the law is one of four that comprise the New York City Greener, Greater Building Plan (GGBP) enacted to
reduce energy use, increase energy efficiency and promote clean energy 30 percent by 2030. The law’s primary purpose is to standardize that process for capturing and reporting on the data needed to measure its success in achieving these and other goals
set forth in the unprecedented citywide green initiative, PlaNYC .

The GGBP Targets Large Buildings

The GGBP suite of laws, including LL 84, specifically target the largest New York City buildings. The law doesn’t exempt any property types. Large buildings constitute half of the City’s built square footage and 45 percent of citywide energy use and produce
about 75 percent of New York City’s green house gas (GHG) emissions come from energy used in buildings.

According to the site metered.nyc, LL84 applies to, “all private buildings larger than 50,000 square feet (about a 50-unit apartment building) and all properties with two or more buildings that combined are larger than 100,000 square feet, with a small
threshold for city-owned properties.”

You can find a listing of buildings that fall under the jurisdiction of the GGBP and LL84 at Covered Building List.

Annual Reporting Is Required

An annual report for the previous year’s energy and water consumption must be submitted to a free online benchmarking tool by May 1st. Building owners who fail to complete submission on subsequent deadline dates (Aug. 1, Nov. 1 and Feb. 1) will incur
additional penalties of $500 per quarter up to a maximum of $2,000.

The Submission Process

In New York City building owners or their hired consultants log into Portfolio Manager, enter defining characteristics for a building, and provide data from a calendar year’s worth of energy bills. The tool, developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, applies calculations and algorithms to the data to generate information about a building’s energy use per square foot, carbon emissions , and for some, a 1-to-100 score that can be used to compare it against similar buildings across the nation.

Submission instructions for owners is provided on the How to Comply page at NYC.gov or you can enlist the help of Scott Henson Architect to manage
your energy use reporting and compliance. We can also provide consulting and expertise on improving energy results, year-over-year.

For more information about our LL84 usage reporting services, reach out to us.

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