NYC's Local Law 97 Update: PACE Yourself

The first compliance period under New York City's Local Law 97 (LL97) begins on January 1, 2024, and a January 2023 REBNY-commissioned study concluded that over 3,700 properties could be out of compliance and face over $200 million per year in penalties, even after significant investment efforts. With a list of covered buildings now available and NYC's Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) lending program open for business to finance qualifying improvements, owners, investors, and lenders alike are well-advised to take the necessary steps to ensure compliance.

As we first reported in a prior client alert, NYC passed the Climate Mobilization Act (CMA) in April 2019 as part of its $14 billion Green New Deal, to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40% by 2030 and by 80% by 2050, by placing carbon caps on most buildings over 25,000 square feet, with exceptions for city-owned buildings, places of worship, hospitals, and buildings with more than