Sprinklering of Office Buildings by July 2019 – Local Law 26 (LL 26) FAQ

Welcome to Part 4 of our 4-part series on the Fire Protection requirements of New York City Local Law 26 of 2004.  In this part, we cover FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS regarding Local Law 26 (LL 26) compliance.

 

Which buildings are required to comply with Local law 26 (LL 26)?

All office buildings 100-feet OR MORE in height, that were in existence as of June 24, 2004.

 

What are the due dates and deliverables?

  • July 1 2018 is the 7-year report, this is 1-page report which simply states the percentage of space in the building currently covered with sprinklers along with a plan to achieve 100%.
    No actual construction work needs to happen for this deadline.
  • July 1 2019 is the FINAL report, this is the same 1-page report required by DOB which needs to state the building is 100% sprinklered.
    Between now and this date, all owners of required buildings must perform construction work to fully sprinkler their buildings.

 

How can I get an extension?

An Owner can apply for an extension (must be submitted on or before July 1, 2018) AND they have to prove the following:

  • Undue hardship
  • Owner filed all interim reports on time
  • Owner has obtained approval of all required applications, plans and permits to the required work (to get to 100%)

The commissioner will appoint a committee to review such applications. Such committee shall issue findings and recommendations relating to the application. After reviewing such findings and recommendations, if the commissioner finds that the owner has made a good faith effort to complete the required work and has substantiated his or her claim of undue hardship, the commissioner may grant an extension of time in which to complete the work and submit the final report.

*FYI – DOB has already stated that it will reject extension requests “due to extended leases the floors and/or space cannot be sprinklered at this time.”

 

Are there exceptions to Local Law 26 (LL 26)?

Yes. If the Owner can demonstrate any of the following conditions below, such instances will be eligible for review by the commissioner for omitting sprinkler coverage:

  • Installing sprinklers in a limited portion of the building is not practical due to structural conditions
  • Spaces designated as an interior landmark by the New York city landmarks preservation commission

The commissioner may waive such limited portions from the requirements of this section but may require additional fire safety measures to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public.

 

Will the DOB extend the July 1 2019 filing deadline?

Although the DOB has historically extended deadlines for new local laws, this Local Law has been in place for 14-years so it is very unlikely that the city will extend the deadline past July 1, 2019.

 

What happens if I fail to meet the Local Law 26 (LL 26) deadline?

Your building will receive a Local  Law 26/04 violation. No monetary fine is currently associated with this violation, but that may change.

 

*IMPORTANT NOTE
It is not too late to start your full building sprinkler implementation project, but time is running out.
EP ENGINEERING provides building-wide sprinkler design and project management for multiple building owners seeking Local law 26 compliance across NYC.

Contact us today to discuss your Local Law 26 (LL 26) requirements and get your full building sprinkler implementation project on track.
For your reference, the full body of Local Law 26 (LL 26) can be accessed here.