Local Law 84 — energy and water benchmarking basics
Local Law 84 requires covered buildings to benchmark energy and water use annually through ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. Here is who is covered, the annual deadline, and how late-filing penalties work.
Educational information only — not legal advice
Building Status NYC is educational and informational. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and using it does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Before acting on any violation or deadline, consult a licensed NYC expediter or attorney.
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Quick facts
- Agency
- NYC Department of Buildings (DOB)
- Applies to
- Buildings of 25,000 gross square feet or more (NYC Admin Code § 28-309)
- Annual deadline
- May 1 each year, for the prior calendar year's data
- Tool
- U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager
- Typical penalty
- $500 per quarter for each quarter missed, up to $2,000 per year (NYC Admin Code § 28-309.1)
- Professional help
- Benchmarking consultant for first-time filers or portfolios
Local Law 84 — energy and water benchmarking basics
Local Law 84 of 2009 (amended by LL133/2016 and subsequent legislation) requires owners of covered NYC buildings to benchmark their annual energy and water use through the U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager tool and submit the report to DOB each year by May 1. The purpose is public transparency — the aggregated data is published by DOB and used to track energy intensity across the city's building stock (NYC Admin Code § 28-309).
This guide explains who is covered, the annual filing, and how late-filing penalties work. Educational only — not legal advice or a filing manual.
What this means
Benchmarking is a data-reporting obligation, not a performance obligation — LL84 does not require a building to hit a specific energy-use target. (That is what Local Law 97 does.) LL84 simply requires that the data be collected and reported annually.
Key definitions:
- Covered buildings. Buildings of 25,000 gross square feet or more, as reflected in DOB's annual covered-buildings list (NYC Admin Code § 28-309).
- Whole-building data. Energy and water use for the entire building, including tenant spaces. NYC's utility aggregation programs (ConEd, National Grid) exist to help owners assemble whole-building data without individually collecting tenant bills.
- Portfolio Manager. The EPA's free benchmarking tool. DOB ingests submissions through Portfolio Manager's NYC reporting link.
Lender and insurer interest. Benchmarking scores — specifically the ENERGY STAR score — and the underlying energy-use intensity show up in diligence. A building with a low score or a late-filing record may face tougher refi or insurance conversations; one more reason to file on time.
Common causes
- Missing the May 1 filing deadline
- Incomplete energy or water data in Portfolio Manager
- Errors in property-use details (e.g., square footage, occupancy)
- Not updating the benchmarking contact or account access after ownership change
- Failing to report whole-building data due to missing tenant consents
Timeline
- Reporting year. Calendar year (January 1 – December 31).
- Annual deadline. May 1 of the following year.
- DOB publication. DOB publishes benchmarking data periodically on its open-data portal.
- Late filing. Penalties accrue per quarter missed until the owner files.
Penalties
LL84 uses a per-quarter late-filing penalty structure.
- Per-quarter penalty: $500 per quarter for each quarter the report is late (NYC Admin Code § 28-309.1 — verify current schedule).
- Annual cap: typically $2,000 per year, per building, for late filing.
- False information. Providing false or misleading benchmarking data carries separate penalties.
- Portfolio effect. For a large portfolio, missed filings compound across buildings.
How it typically gets resolved
- Confirm coverage using the annual DOB covered-buildings list (available on DOB's website each year).
- Set up Portfolio Manager. If the building is not already in Portfolio Manager, create the property record. If it is, verify the account access and the property-use details.
- Collect 12 months of whole-building data. Use ConEd / National Grid utility aggregation programs for whole-building electric and gas data; collect water directly from DEP records.
- Submit via Portfolio Manager to NYC's reporting link by May 1. Retain the submission confirmation email.
- If late, file immediately. Per-quarter penalties accrue; filing stops the accrual and creates the record for mitigation.
- For portfolio owners, consider a benchmarking consultant to standardize the first-year setup across many buildings.
When to hire a pro
- Benchmarking consultant — worth it for portfolios or for first-time covered buildings that do not have the Portfolio Manager setup.
- Energy consultant — if the benchmarking results show persistently low ENERGY STAR scores, an energy consultant can identify the building-level causes (boiler, distribution, envelope, metering).
- Expediter — generally not needed for LL84 itself; useful if the benchmarking violation is bundled with other DOB filings.
- Attorney — only if the violation is contested, accompanied by false-information allegations, or joined with a broader enforcement matter.
Related guides
- Local Law 87 — energy audits + retro-commissioning
- Local Law 97 — Climate Mobilization Act emissions limits
- DOB Class 2 — major