The Daily Dirt: A break from Local Law 97  

Roughly one year after releasing the initial rules to implement Local Law 97, the Adams administration has unveiled a break for landlords.

We’ve known for some time that this was coming. In fact, we were expecting the second set of rules a bit earlier. Back in July, a coalition of environmental advocacy groups, along with several City Council members, accused the administration of dragging its feet in releasing the rules. They feared the proposals would be too generous to landlords.

Local Law 97 states that when calculating penalties for buildings exceeding carbon emission caps, the city must consider property owners’ “good faith efforts to comply … including investments in energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions reductions.”

So, giving property owners a break is in the law, but it is up to the Department of Buildings to define what “good faith efforts” entails.

This week, the agency proposed rules that describe such efforts as meeting benchmarks for energy and water use, and then meeting one or more other criteria, including demonstrating that work to comply with Local Law 97 is underway or providing a decarbonization plan by May 1, 2025. That latter option would require laying out steps to being net carbon neutral by 2050.

By demonstrating such good faith, property owners can lower their penalties and get two more years to meet emission caps.

Those who opt for the decarbonization plan cannot use renewable energy credits to offset their emissions. The first set of rules, finalized last year, limited the use of credits to offsetting greenhouse gas emissions attributed to utility-supplied electricity.

Environmental groups have blasted the proposed rules as a giveaway to property owners that weakens Local Law 97.

A coalition that includes Food & Water Watch, New York Communities for Change, New York Public Interest Research Group and Treeage believe the rules do not go far enough in restricting the use of RECs. The coalition has pushed for a cap on energy credits at 10 percent of a building’s pollution or 30 percent of the emission volume above a building’s cap.

A hearing on the proposed rules is slated for next month.

What we’re thinking about: Will the mayor exempt housing agencies from agency budget cuts? Should he? What would further cuts mean for HPD? Send a note to kathryn@therealdeal.com.

A thing we’ve learned: A new social media trend poses a question: How often do you think about ancient Rome? TikTok videos feature women posing this question to men, who invariably respond with an alarming number, according to the Washington Post. Because ancient Rome comes up not infrequently in my household, I asked my husband after reading this and he said: “I don’t know. Today, and also yesterday.”  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

Elsewhere in New York…

— Gov. Kathy Hocul on Thursday signed into law a measure that prevents employers from demanding social media account information from their workers, Bloomberg Law reports. The measure bars companies from demanding that job applicants or employees provide passwords, usernames and other details of their accounts.

— The MTA estimates that vandals caused $500,000 in damage when they smashed 97 windows across 45 subway trains, the New York Times reports. The damage occurred while the trains were moving along the N, W, Q, B, D and F lines on Tuesday and Wednesday.

— The City Council on Thursday introduced a bill that would require delivery apps to pay for delivery workers’ certified e-bikes and e-scooters, the New York Daily News reports. The measure, proposed by Bronx Council member Oswald Feliz, would establish civil penalties for companies that fail to comply. The objective is to reduce battery fires.

Closing Time

Residential: The priciest residential closing Thursday was $10.25 million for a townhouse at 64 West 87th Street on the Upper West Side.

Commercial: The most expensive commercial closing of the day was $14.5 M for a school building at 4706 10th Avenue in Brooklyn.

New to the Market: The priciest residences to hit the market Thursday was a condo at 1110 Park Avenue in Carnegie Hill asking $35 million. Douglas Elliman has the listing.