What it is — and is not
The rule directs DOB to consider specific mitigating factors when a building exceeds its annual limit. A Good Faith Efforts submission documents them, filed alongside the annual report. Two honest framings up front:
It is not a waiver. Eligibility and any penalty reduction are DOB's determination, reached through its enforcement and mediated-resolution process (1 RCNY §103-14(j)). The statute separately lists mitigating factors a hearing tribunal "shall give due regard to" (§28-320.6.1).
It does not change the emissions math. The building's reported emissions, limit, and estimated maximum exposure are what they are; mitigation operates on the penalty afterward. Supporting documents, however voluminous, cannot substitute for a missing mandatory item below.
The three mandatory prerequisites
All three are required — the rule's structure is conjunctive (1 RCNY §103-14(i)(2)(i)–(iii)):
| 1. Annual report filed | The building emissions report for the previous calendar year was submitted, including compliance with any applicable adjustment (§103-14(i)(2)(i)). |
|---|---|
| 2. LL84 benchmarking | The building's Local Law 84 benchmarking for the previous calendar year was uploaded (§103-14(i)(2)(ii)). |
| 3. LL88 + submetering | Local Law 88 lighting upgrades and the Article 311 submeter attestation (§103-14(i)(2)(iii)). DOB has confirmed a filed LL88 compliance plan also satisfies this prerequisite for GFE filers (DOB Service Notice 6/16/2025). |
These are the housekeeping laws that predate LL97 — which is the point. The rule reserves mitigation for owners who were already doing the required things.
The qualifying pathways
On top of all three prerequisites, at least one pathway must apply (1 RCNY §103-14(i)(2)(iv)):
- Work is underway — an approved application for work needed to come under the limit, with the work in progress.
- Electric readiness — the building is waiting on the utility for more power to complete electrification work.
- A prior under-limit report — the building filed a compliant report for an earlier year in the 2024–2029 period.
- Critical facility status.
- An applied §28-320.7 adjustment.
- A decarbonization plan — this pathway's election gate was May 1, 2025; it remains relevant as follow-through evidence for owners who filed one.
Financing efforts, construction constraints, and delays outside the owner's control belong in the submission as context — the statute's mitigating factors and the rule's "other demonstrated efforts" language cover them (§28-320.6.1; §103-14(j)(3)) — but context cannot stand in for a missing prerequisite or pathway.
Mechanics, deadlines, and fees
The submission rides with the annual report: mitigating factors are filed with the May 1 filing (1 RCNY §103-14(i)), through DOB's BEAM portal, and an approved filing extension covers the mitigation ticket as well (DOB LL97 Processing FAQs, Q8). The package requires review by a registered design professional, whose license and attestation accompany the filing (DOB Penalty Mitigation User Guide v3).
DOB's fee for a Good Faith Efforts report is $950 (1 RCNY §101-03), additive to the annual report fee — $1,160 total with a simple report, $1,565 with a complex one (DOB Processing FAQs, 4/15/2026). The separate Unexpected or Unforeseeable Event filing (§103-14(i)(1)) is $60 and may be filed on its own.
The practical takeaway: a defensible GFE submission is mostly assembled before filing season — benchmarking current, LL88 done or planned, work documented as it happens. The owners who get value from this provision are the ones whose evidence trail already exists on May 1.