Are you required to report?
New York City (NYC) Local Law 84 of 2009 (LL84) enacted requirements to benchmark the energy and water use of city buildings. LL84 applies only to covered buildings, defined by NYC as “… (i) a building that exceeds 50,000 gross square feet, (ii) two or more buildings on the same tax lot that together exceed 100,000 gross square feet, or (iii) two or more buildings held in the condominium form of ownership that are governed by the same board of managers and that together exceed 100,000 gross square feet.”
How do I know if my building falls on the list of covered buildings?
Each reporting year, the NYC Department of Buildings (NYCDOB) posts a complete list of covered buildings to its website, which includes section/block/lot and address identifiers. Additionally, it is noted for each covered building if automated water usage data is required to be uploaded by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYCDEP).
How is data entered and shared with NYC?
Data is required to be entered through the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (USEPA) Portfolio Manager on-line software. This software enables energy and water use data for the covered building to be entered on an annual basis. From this data, the Portfolio Manager software calculates the Energy Use Intensity (EUI) for the building, which is a measurement of energy delivered to the building divided by the building’s area. If applicable, an Energy Star® rating is also calculated.
Once all applicable data is entered, the user can easily generate a report with the template provided, and ultimately submitted to the NYCDOB for review and processing.
What happens if I miss the annual May 1st deadline?
Benchmarking reports that are not properly submitted by May 1st will result in a $500 fine for the building owner, and a revised submission deadline of August 1st of the same year (three months from original due date). If still not properly submitted by then, $500 fines will continue to be issued every three months until an acceptable submission is received by NYCDOB, with a maximum penalty of $2,000 annually.
Walden can assist building owners and property managers by completing the required benchmarking reporting on an annual basis. Please give us a call today at 516-588-6859 to further discuss your needs!