As a cooperative or condominium board member or building owner, it is important to ensure the safety and compliance of your building. NYC Local Law 157, mandating the installation of natural gas detectors in all New York City residences, requires compliance by May 1, 2025, so it is critical to plan now.

What is Local Law 157?

Local Law 157, also known as LL157, mandates the installation of natural gas detectors in New York City residential buildings. The law required New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) to create specific regulations based on national standards.

Following the adoption of the law, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) published its standards for the installation of gas detectors, and DOB has used these guidelines to prepare its new rules.

Who Needs to Comply, and Does Local Law 157 apply to condominiums, cooperatives, and multifamily rental buildings?

LL157 impacts a wide range of residential building types:

• Class A multiple dwellings – A Class A Multiple Dwelling is a multiple dwelling that is occupied only for permanent residential purposes (occupancy of a dwelling unit by the same person or family for 30 consecutive days or more). Therefore, your co-op or condo probably needs to comply with LL157. 
• Class B multiple dwellings – transient housing properties (i.e., hotels, lodging houses, and dormitories).
• Private dwellings – typical single-family homes or smaller residences.

This article will primarily focus on requirements for Class A Multiple dwellings. The requirements for Class B Multiple dwellings and private dwellings are similar but differ in some respects.

Buildings without gas lines or gas service are exempt from Local Law 157.

Who pays for gas detectors and installation costs under Local Law 157?

Boards and building owners must cover the cost of purchasing and installing natural gas detectors to meet the initial May 1, 2025, compliance deadline.

Who pays for gas detector replacements under Local Law 157?

While boards and building owners are responsible for initial installation costs, a unit owner, shareholder, or tenant can be held responsible for a portion of repair, replacement, and maintenance costs for gas detectors. However, the amount residents can be charged is limited.

In addition, for condos and co-ops, there may also be limitations on chargebacks outlined in the association’s governing documents.

Boards and building owners are also responsible for any replacements needed when occupancy changes and replacements needed due to manufacturing defects, such as:

• Replacements for new occupants – The property owner is responsible for the cost of replacing any device that has been stolen, removed, found missing, or rendered inoperable and not replaced during a prior occupancy 
• Defective devices – If a gas detector becomes inoperable within one year of installation due to a manufacturing defect at no fault of the occupant, the owner is responsible for replacement costs, and must complete replacement within 30 days of receiving written notice

Does Local Law 157 include requirements for Installation and specifications for gas detectors?

Yes, Boards and building owners should take care to comply with such requirements.
The required gas detector can be hardwired, plugged in, or battery-powered, especially for existing buildings.

Local Law 157 includes many other installation and specification requirements including the requirement that installation be performed by a New York City licensed electrical contractor who has obtained all required permits (however, this requirement does not apply to battery-powered and plug-in gas detectors, which can be installed by the building owner, building maintenance personnel, or the occupant; and others relating to the type of device and location of the device).

Local Law 157 includes other installation requirements regarding the location of the device (in proximity to the gas appliances and on or near the ceiling) and specifications.

What information should Boards and Building Owners provide to residents?

A notice must be posted in a common area of the building with information about the responsibilities of unit owners, shareholders, and tenants in the event of maintenance, repair, or replacement.

Boards and owners must provide at least one adult resident of each unit with information relating to the following:

• The risks posed by carbon monoxide poisoning and natural gas leaks.
• The testing and maintenance of smoke detecting devices, carbon monoxide detecting devices, and natural gas detecting devices (if such devices are required).
• What to do if these devices set off an alert.
• The useful life of these devices.
• The owner’s duty to replace these devices.
• The occupant’s duty to maintain and repair battery-operated devices, and to replace devices that are stolen, removed, found missing, or rendered inoperable during their occupancy.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

The DOB may impose fines for failure to comply with Local Law 157, which could be significant, and perhaps take other enforcement action such as issue stop work orders.

In addition, non-compliance can lead to severe legal consequences. If a gas-related incident occurs due to the failure or the absence of required detectors, property owners (including co-ops and condos) may face lawsuits from tenants, unit owners and other affected parties. In addition, non-compliance can also lead to higher insurance premiums and perhaps difficulties in obtaining insurance coverage.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss potential exposures, please contact me at plm@gdblaw.com or 212-935-3131.