It’s your monthly NYC compliance roundup, this time for February 2025. Here’s some updates that came out this month (in addition to big news on Facade Cycle 9 holdovers, linked here):

Boiler Inspection Bulletin

The DOB released a bulletin in February, clarifying the “external inspection requirements for boilers and all their parts during an External Annual Boiler Inspection, and to clarify the key responsibilities of the owner and qualified boiler inspector in the context of such inspection.”

As a reminder, qualified boiler inspectors are required to perform annual external inspections for both high-pressure boilers and low-pressure boilers. High-pressure boilers also undergo internal inspections.

The bulletin outlines a checklist that can be used to prepare the annual external inspection report. It also clarifies the responsibilities of the qualified inspector (and what it means to be one), and the owner. The owner is responsible for hiring the inspector to conduct said inspections, and submitting the annual inspection per the agency guidelines – currently via DOB NOW. Additionally:

The owner shall be responsible for maintaining the boiler and appurtenances, maintaining, and testing all controls and safety devices, servicing the boiler in accordance with manufacturer’s specifications and preparing the boiler for inspection.

You can get a refresher of the step-by-step submission process here, on the city’s website. 

Retaining Walls – Increased Penalties Approved

Increased penalties were recently approved for failing to file retaining wall inspections. We wrote about the proposed changes last year, as part of the DOB’s effort to increase enforcement here.

Beginning March 23, 2025, penalties are as follows:

• $5,000/year for failure to file an initial compliance report, issued immediately at the end of the compliance window (filing timeframes here)
• Additionally, $1,000/month for a late filing fee, starting on the day following the filing deadline and stopping on the day an acceptable report is filed

There are also penalties of $1,000/month for failure to correct unsafe conditions, and a one-time penalty of $2,000 for failing to correct SREM conditions.

Don’t wait to submit your retaining wall inspections – reach out to your Customer Success Manager if you have any questions about what’s required here.

DOHMH Proposed Fine Adjustments

DOHMH is proposing a fixed penalty schedule for specific violations of law enforced by their agency.

You can view the full schedule here, set for a hearing on March 10th.

Most relevant to property owners and managers are penalties to pools, saunas, and steam rooms. Other key penalties are related to specific businesses or medical use cases.

Click here to view more information about the upcoming hearing, or learn where you can share comments.

Local Law 152 Notices of Deficiency

Instead of violations, the DOB is issuing Notices of Deficiency for buildings that failed to file Cycle 1 inspections or certifications for gas piping systems. Per the Department,

Owners will not be required to pay a penalty for the NOD. However, the NOD will not be dismissed until a GPS2 is submitted for Cycle 2 or a challenge request is approved. Failure to submit a GPS2 by the applicable deadline for Cycle 2 and future four-year cycles will result in a violation being issued and a civil penalty of $1,500 for 3-family residential buildings and $5,000 for all other buildings.

Cycle 2 due dates for your properties can be found on the Local Law 152 page in your account. You can also view information about whether or not your building is required to file based on its class. Don’t hesitate to reach out to your Customer Success Manager or support@sitecompli.com if you have any questions.

Local Law 97 Filing Portal Open

The BEAM filing portal is now open for Local Law 97 filings.

Per the DOB’s service notice, filings are due for covered buildings on May 1st, but a grace period will be given until June 30th.

June 30th is also the deadline for applying for extensions, granted through August 29th. You can learn more about extensions here, on the DOB’s site.