Summary

This legislation amends the Executive Law to prohibit municipalities from issuing permits for the construction of new buildings under seven stories that are not all-electric if the initial application for a permit is submitted after December 31, 2023, and for buildings over seven stories if the initial application is submitted after July 1, 2027, unless certain circumstances apply.

Explanation

This legislation requires all new single-family and low-rise buildings be emissions free by 2024 and all remaining new construction by 2027, with limited exemptions when electrification is not technically feasible. The timeline is consistent with the zero-emissions new construction timeline with New York City’s local law banning gas hookups for new construction starting in 2024. The Climate Action Council Scoping Plan recommends the state fire prevention and building code council adopt a zero-emission code on a 2025 and 2028 timeline. This bill would accelerate that process by one year. 

The more than six million residential and commercial buildings in New York are the largest source of emissions in the state. Fossil fuels burned in buildings for heating, hot water, and cooking account for approximately one-third of our greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, heating and cooking with fossil fuels, like natural gas, quietly impact our indoor air quality, contributing to cases of asthma and heart disease. 

 If New York is to meet its 2030 and 2050 emission reduction mandates under the state’s climate law, all buildings, both new and existing, will have to be zero-emissions structures. Electrifying new construction and modernizing the energy code is essential to meeting the emissions reduction goals. This legislation will jumpstart that process while incorporating protections for electricity affordability for New Yorkers.  

Download PDF