NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF BUILDINGS. Notice of Public Hearing and Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Rules

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1 NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF BUILDINGS Notice of Public Hearing and Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Rules What are we proposing? The Department of Buildings (DOB) is proposing to amend the rules regarding the classification of certain violations. When and where is the hearing? DOB will hold a public hearing on the proposed rule. The public hearing will take place at 10am on 1/6/16. The hearing will be in the 3 rd floor conference room at 280 Broadway. How do I comment on the proposed rules? Anyone can comment on the proposed rules by: Website. You can submit comments to the DOB through the NYC rules website at . You can comments to dobrules@buildings.nyc.gov. Mail. You can mail comments to the New York City Department of Buildings, Office of the General Counsel, 280 Broadway, 7 th floor, New York, NY Fax. You can fax comments to the New York City Department of Buildings, Office of the General Counsel, at Speaking at the hearing. Anyone who wants to comment on the proposed rule at the public hearing must sign up to speak. You can sign up before the hearing by calling You can also sign up in the hearing room before the hearing begins on 1/6/16. You can speak for up to three minutes. Is there a deadline to submit comments? Yes, you must submit comments by 1/6/16. Do you need assistance to participate in the hearing? You must tell the Office of the General Counsel if you need a reasonable accommodation of a disability at the hearing. You must tell us if you need a sign language interpreter. You can tell us by mail or at the addresses given above. You may also tell us by telephone at You must tell us by 12/30/15. Can I review the comments made on the proposed rules? You can review the comments made online on the proposed rules by going to the website at A few days after the hearing, copies of all comments submitted online, copies of all written comments and a summary of oral comments concerning the proposed rule will be available to the public at the Office of the General Counsel. What authorizes DOB to make this rule? Sections 643 and 1043(a) of the City Charter and section of the New York City Administrative Code authorize DOB to make this proposed rule. Some of the amendments proposed by this rule were not included in 1

2 the Department s regulatory agenda for this Fiscal Year because they were authorized by a Local Law that was enacted after the regulatory agenda was published. Where can I find DOB s rules? DOB s rules are in Title 1 of the Rules of the City of New York. What rules govern the rulemaking process? DOB must meet the requirements of Section 1043 of the City Charter when creating or changing rules. This notice is made according to the requirements of Section 1043(b) of the City Charter. Statement of Basis and Purpose of Proposed Rule The Department of Buildings is proposing changes regarding the classification of certain violations to reflect the requirements of Local Law 77 of 2015 and the 2014 updates to the NYC Construction Codes. Local Law 77 of 2015, enacted on August 18, 2015, adds requirements for registration, discontinuance, removal, inspection, testing, cleaning, disinfecting and maintenance of cooling towers. Some of the proposed amendments to rule add new infractions to address the new cooling tower requirements. The 2014 updates to the NYC Construction Codes amended the Administrative Code of the City of New York, the New York City Plumbing Code, the New York City Building Code, the New York City Mechanical Code and the New York City Fuel Gas Code and brought these codes up to date with the 2009 editions of the International Building, Mechanical, Fuel Gas and Plumbing Codes. The updates amended some requirements, added new requirements and renumbered existing sections of these codes. Rule is being amended to reflect some of these changes by: updating sections of the Administrative Code, updating descriptions to the table of classifications, deleting some existing violations that no longer apply or could be combined with existing descriptions, and adding new violations and their classifications. These infractions relate to: - Failure to provide pedestrian protection for sidewalks and walkways. - Failure to obey a vacate order. 2

3 In addition, the description and section of law of one charge is being amended to cover all buildings or open lots which are being occupied without a valid Certificate of Occupancy. The current charge and cited section apply only to new buildings built under the 2008 Construction Codes. This description relates to: - Buildings occupied without a valid certificate of occupancy. The Department of Buildings authority for these rules is found in sections 643 and 1043 of the New York City Charter and section of the New York City Administrative Code. New material is underlined. [Deleted material is in brackets.] Shall and must denote mandatory requirements and may be used interchangeably in the rules of this department, unless otherwise specified or unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Subdivision (j) of section of Title 1 of the Rules of the City of New York is amended by adding, in numerical order, new entries relating to Sections , and of the New York City Administrative Code, and by amending the entries relating to Sections and of the New York City Administrative Code and section BC of the New York City Building Code, to read as follows: Section of Law Classification Violation Description [2]1 Class 1 [New building]building or open lot occupied without a valid certificate of occupancy. [ ] Class 1 Failure to obey a Vacate Order by the Commissioner per Class 2 Failure to register cooling tower prior to operation Class 2 Failure to notify of discontinued use or removal of cooling tower Class 2 Failure to file an annual certification of cooling tower inspection/ testing/cleaning/disinfecting/ maintenance per Adm. Code 17-3

4 BC (2008 Code) and BC (2014 Code) Class 1 Failure to provide pedestrian protection for sidewalks and walkways 4

5 NEW YORK CITY LAW DEPARTMENT DIVISION OF LEGAL COUNSEL 100 CHURCH STREET NEW YORK, NY CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO CHARTER 1043(d) RULE TITLE: Cooling Tower Violation Classification REFERENCE NUMBER: 2105 RG 115 RULEMAKING AGENCY: Department of Buildings I certify that this office has reviewed the above-referenced proposed rule as required by section 1043(d) of the New York City Charter, and that the abovereferenced proposed rule: (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) is drafted so as to accomplish the purpose of the authorizing provisions of law; is not in conflict with other applicable rules; to the extent practicable and appropriate, is narrowly drawn to achieve its stated purpose; and to the extent practicable and appropriate, contains a statement of basis and purpose that provides a clear explanation of the rule and the requirements imposed by the rule. /s/ STEVEN GOULDEN Date: November 17, 2015 Acting Corporation Counsel 5

6 NEW YORK CITY MAYOR S OFFICE OF OPERATIONS 253 BROADWAY, 10 th FLOOR NEW YORK, NY CERTIFICATION / ANALYSIS PURSUANT TO CHARTER SECTION 1043(d) RULE TITLE: Cooling Tower Violation Classification REFERENCE NUMBER: DOB-76 RULEMAKING AGENCY: DOB I certify that this office has analyzed the proposed rule referenced above as required by Section 1043(d) of the New York City Charter, and that the proposed rule referenced above: (i) (ii) (iii) Is understandable and written in plain language for the discrete regulated community or communities; Minimizes compliance costs for the discrete regulated community or communities consistent with achieving the stated purpose of the rule; and Does not provide a cure period because the violations pose significant risks to public health and safety. /s/ Francisco X. Navarro November 18, 2015 Mayor s Office of Operations Date 6