Final Rule: Part 510 of Title 21 of the Official Compilations of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York
On April 29, 2024, the NYSERDA board approved a new Part 510 of Title 21 of the Official Compilations of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York (Final Rule).
Energy used in buildings accounts for roughly 32% of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions in New York, but the State Fire Prevention and Building Code Council (Code Council) has not considered those impacts when making updates to the Energy Conservation Construction Code of New York State (Energy Code). While the Energy Law requires that Energy Code updates are “cost effective,” historically those calculations were limited to a 10-year simple payback analysis based on energy cost savings alone. The Advanced Building Codes, Appliance and Equipment Efficiency Standards Act of 2022 changed that by directing NYSERDA to develop and implement rules that the Code Council must consider in making a cost-effectiveness determination, including a full life-cycle cost analysis and the consideration of secondary and societal effects.
Following this directive and taking into account feedback received from four public stakeholder meetings and a 60-day public comment period, NYSERDA developed the Final Rule for use by the Code Council, beginning with the current code update cycle. The Final Rule allows for an Energy Code that achieves improved energy efficiency and GHG reductions in support of the Climate Act. The Final Rule was published in the New York State Register on June 18th 
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The Final Rule (1) established a methodology for determining whether the life-cycle costs for a building will be recovered through savings in energy costs over the design life of the building under a life-cycle cost analysis; (2) defined societal effects to be considered in the cost effectiveness determination; and (3) provides a method for quantifying the societal effects so that they can be included in the overall cost effectiveness analysis.