2015 year in review: compliance updates for your portfolio
TRANSCRIPT
2015 YEAR-IN-REVIEW COMPLIANCE UPDATES FOR YOUR PORTFOLIO DECEMBER 10, 2015
Presentation Overview
n Cooling Towers n Water Tanks
n Benchmarking n End-of-Year Checklist
n Elevators n Boilers n Facades n Annual Tenant Mailings
n HPD n Local Law 65 – The Three Strikes Law n Local Law 45 – ABCs of Housing n HPD Violation Classes – Class I
Breaking News: Inspection Ready
n Inspection Ready is the new DOB Inspection Request Portal n New request and tracking system hosted by the DOB
o Went live this past Monday (December 7, 2015) o Must register for an Inspection Ready account to use
n Owners/licensed professionals will be required to use portal to request development inspections for electrical, signs, fire suppression, and more o Contact [email protected] for questions about
registration, types of inspections covered in the system, and more
Cooling Towers
n Local Law 77: Cooling Tower Registration n Owners were required to register cooling towers by 9/17/15
with NYC o Cooling towers currently require separate registration with NYS
Department of Health o NYC registration is completed with the DOB; inspection, testing,
cleaning, and disinfection is performed in accordance with DOHMH regulations
n DOHMH inspection and regulation requirements o Towers must be inspected and tested every three months while in
use
Cooling Towers
n Local Law 77: Cooling Tower Registration n Enforcement
o Both DOB-ECB and DOHMH-ECB violations have been issued for failure to register or failure to inspect/remediate cooling towers, respectively
o DOB issued violations are Class 2 infractions with a face amount for $800
o DOHMH violations are for failure to submit inspection, disinfection, and remediation records. They carry a mail-in penalty of $1100 and a maximum penalty of $2000
n Key Dates o March 1st – Adopt a Maintenance Program and Plan o November 1st – Annual Certification begins o Inspections at intervals not exceeding 90 days while in use
Water Tanks
n Chapter 31 Amendments – Water Tank Inspections n Enforcement
o Buildings with a water tank as part of its drinking water delivery system must have the tank inspected at least once a year, and report the inspection annually to the DOHMH
o Inspection results must be recorded per Commissioner’s orders, and maintained for at least 5 years
o The DOHMH will make filed inspection documents available to the public
o Results must be submitted online or via a printable form (digitally filled in or typed out)
n Key Date o Annual drinking water tank inspection results must be submitted no
later than January 15th of the following calendar year for which the inspection is due (1/15/16 for the 2015 calendar year)
Benchmarking
n Local Law 84 Violations n Quarterly Issuance
o Previously, the DOB only issued one violation per year for failing to file the annual benchmarking report.
o In 2015, the DOB issued an initial violation dated May 2015 and a second round violation in August 2015 for continued failure to file.
o Both violations carried a $500 penalty each n Key Notes
o A third round has recently been issued by the DOB on 11/24, backdated to 11/2
o File report as soon as possible to avoid potential future penalties, and file your 2015 report before May 1, 2016
Benchmarking
n Local Law 87 Violations n EARCX
o The DOB released thousands of violations for failure to file Energy Efficiency Reports for the 2013 cycle of Local Law 87: Energy Audits and Retro-Commissioning (10-year EER submission)
o These violations carry an initial civil penalty of $3,000 each for the first year of non-submittal, and $5,000 for each additional year – the DOB has stated that the penalties are cumulative
n Correction o Submit a copy of the mailed Notice (or printout from BIS) with
payment to the DOB – Sustainability Enforcement unit
Elevators PVTs DOB (ECB)
Violations AEUHAZ1 ADMINISTRATIVELY ISSUED INSPECTION VIOLATIONS
LL 10/81 VCAT1 EVCAT1 ACC1
Issued by private inspector
Issued by DOB inspector
Issued for failure to immediately certify correction of Class 1 ECB Violation
Issued for failure to file Annual Inspection (2008 cycle and earlier)
Issued for failure to file Annual Inspection (2009 cycle)
Issued for failure to file Annual Inspection (2010 cycle and later)
Issued for failure to file Affirmation of Correction (beginning with 2009 cycle)
$40 AOC filing fee
Penalty imposed after ECB hearing
$1,500.00 $1,030/device $1,030/device $3,000/device $3,000/device
No hearing ECB Hearing No hearing No hearing No hearing No hearing No hearing
Dismissed with copy of violation and completed Affirmation of Correction OR administratively dismissed with subsequent, processed Cat-1 compliance
Cured if correction is filed before cure date, or closed after Certificate of Correction is filed. Hearing penalties may still be outstanding even if violation is closed.
Dismissed after fine paid when Certificate of Correction for original DOB (ECB) violation is submitted.
Dismissed with penalty payment
Dismissed with penalty payment
Dismissed with penalty payment
Dismissed with penalty payment
Boilers
n Annual year-end inspection n Due 12/31/15
o BO-9 form must be submitted 45 days after test date o If corrections are required, a BO-13 must be filed within 45 days of
the initial test date o Late paperwork carries penalties of $50/month, applicable to filings
within 12 months of the inspection o Failure to file annual inspection report or late filings after 12
months result in LBLVIO/HBLVIO violations, carrying a $1,000 penalty per infraction
o High pressure boilers require both internal and external inspections n Decommissioning
o Confirm removal of obsolete boilers by making sure an OP-49 form is on file with the DOB
Facades
n End of Cycle 7; transition to Cycle 8 n Cycle 7 Amnesty
o Façade division granted amnesty for owners who did not file Cycle 7 FISP report by 2/20/15 deadline
o Owners could file Cycle 8 report early to avoid additional penalties and fines for both Cycles 7 and 8
o Amnesty filing period was extended from May 1 to July 17, 2015 o According to the DOB, any Cycle 7 reports remaining unfiled
would be forced to wait until their Cycle 8 Subcycle period and accumulate monthly fines in the interim
o This is another example of rapidly increased enforcement from the DOB, resulting in exponential fines
NYC Residential Compliance
NYC requires that all tenants receive the following annually: n Fire Safety Guides n Window Guard Notices n Lead Paint Notices
You are responsible for: n Ensuring all tenants are sent the required forms and information n Tracking and storing all tenant responses and follow-up efforts n Any work to be completed as responses are received: inspections for
lead paint and any required window guard installations n Notifying the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) in
any case where you are unable to determine if a child lives in a unit n Maintaining records of sent mailings, follow-up efforts and tenant
responses for 10 years to avoid penalties and criminal liability
What are Annual Safety Notice Mailings?
HPD: Local Law 65 n Local Law 65: The Three Strikes Law
n Outlines HPD fees for new complaint-based inspections of individual units with a “hazardous” HPD violation history.
n Newly enacted, but in the works for some time
n When does this affect buildings? n When HPD has performed two or more complaint-based inspections in the same
unit within a 12-month period; and n When each inspection resulted in the issuance of a Class B or Class C violation;
and n When not all such violations have been certified as correct n Then HPD will impose a fee of $200 upon the third inspection and any
subsequent complaint-based inspection it performs in the same unit within the same 12 month period that results in Class B or C violations being issued
HPD: Local Law 65
Tenant calls 311 and files HPD Complaint
• HPD inspection: B and C violations issued
Tenant calls 311 again within 12-month period
• Second complaint-based inspection: B and C violations issued and older B and C violations still open
Tenant calls 311 for the third time within 12-month period
• Third complaint-based inspection: B and C violations issued, older B and C violations still open, and $200 fee assessed
Important: The $200 fee applies to the third and all subsequent inspections with the same conditions (New B/C violations and
open B/C violations on the same unit within a 12 month period)
HPD: Local Law 65
n Are there any exemptions? n Properties enrolled in the Alternative Enforcement Program (AEP) n Properties subject to a court order for an Article 7 proceeding n Violations caused by the act of negligence, neglect, or abuse of
another not in the employ or subject to the direction of the owner n Inspections resulting exclusively in hazardous or immediately hazardous
violations for the common 6 HPD issues (carbon monoxide and smoke detectors, illegal locks, etc.)
n When the department has received and reviewed objection based on owner’s attempted access for the purpose of making repairs to the unit
HPD: Local Law 45
n Local Law 45: Housing Guide Notice n Notice regarding the availability of the city’s housing information
guide, “The ABC’s of Housing” n The notice must be posted in English and Spanish n HPD has a sample notice available n Owners are required to post the notice in a conspicuous place within
view of the area where mail is delivered n Failure to post the same will result in a Class A violation, and may result
in a $250 civil penalty n If there are multiple areas of mail delivery at the property, the notice
must be posted near all mail delivery locations
HPD: Violation Classes
Class Designation Correction Timeframe Penalties
C Immediately Hazardous
• 24 hours from the NOV mailing Certificate is required 5 days after correction date
• Class C Lead and Window Guard violations must be corrected in 21 days from the NOV mailing
• Heat and Hot Water Violations are $250 per violation per day
• HPD may seek to correct the violating conditions through the Emergency Repair Program
B Hazardous • 30 days from NOV mailing • Certificate is required 5 days after
correction date
• HPD violations can have civil penalties for failure to correct
• HPD can seek enforcement of these penalties in Housing Court through the Housing Litigation Division.
A Non-Hazardous
• 90 days from NOV mailing • Certificate is required 14 days after
correction date
• HPD violations can have civil penalties for failure to correct
• HPD can seek enforcement of these penalties in Housing Court through the Housing Litigation Division
I Hazardous (Order to Correct)
Time frame varies for each: • AEP Notice • Vacate Order • Failure to Register
• HPD violations can have civil penalties for failure to correct
• HPD can seek enforcement of these penalties in Housing Court through the Housing Litigation Division
