Local Law 97: Important Dates and Filing Guide

The second annual emissions report deadline for Local Law 97 is less than a month away! Here’s a comprehensive guide to all the dates you should be aware of and what you need to prepare for each one.

What is Local Law 97?

In 2019, New York City passed Local Law 97 (LL97) as part of the Climate Mobilization Act. LL97 is a piece of legislation that establishes carbon limits for the city’s largest buildings, with the goal of bringing these buildings to net zero emissions by 2050.

In order to track compliance across the city, building owners are required to file building reports, and those deadlines are just around the corner.

Do you need to file for Local Law 97?

If any of these are true for you, you must file a report this year.

The building you own is:

• A single building over 25,000 square feet
• Multiple buildings on the same tax lot totaling more than 50,000 square feet
• Multiple buildings owned by a condo association and governed by the same board whose combined size exceeds 50,000 square feet

Note: If you became an owner of a qualifying building in the last 12 months or less, you are exempt from filing for this year.

Important Dates:

May 1: Filing Deadline
This is the latest you can file your emissions report on time, before the 60-day grace period kicks in.

To file your report, here is everything you will need:

• Pull your building(s)’s energy usage data from your ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager
  • Make sure your utility provider is linked to the profile so that the utilities can automatically upload energy consumption data to your profile
  • ESPM will use your utility data to calculate emissions for you
• Pay your filing fee through DOB NOW
  • If you do not have a DOB NOW account, create one. This is where you will pay the filing fee, as well as any other accrued fees or penalties.
• Create or log into your BEAM account to submit your ESPM data
  • BEAM is where the data gets validated and where you can check your compliance status
  • For data convenience, make sure that your BEAM account is made using the same credentials as your DOB NOW and ESPM account

In short:
ESPM: Used to collect utility data and calculate energy usage and GHG emissions
DOB NOW: Used to register filing, pay filing fees, and to track compliance status
BEAM: Used to upload the ESPM data, compliance info, and submit the final report. BEAM then validates the data, determining your compliance status. If your building is noncompliant, it will generate penalties.

For a more detailed step-by-step guide, check out this link here.

Building owners have until May 1 to meet the deadline. Because this is a newer system, there is a 60-day grace period before owners start accruing penalties.

June 30:
This is the end of the 60-day grace period and the last chance to submit corrected files, supporting documents, or file a “good faith” compliance positioning.

If you miss this deadline and don’t have an approved extension, you will receive late penalties and your building will fall into non-compliance.

August 29: Deadline to file for extension
This is the absolute last chance to file for an extension. If you still have not submitted your carbon emissions and do not have an approved extension, you are open to enforcement and ongoing monthly penalties.