Green Roof Reno
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June 5, 2008
Yes We Can
Alright . . . I feel inspired by yesterday’s historic day. I would like to talk Green Roof Policy in NY. A good friend of mine in the policy world has been doing me a favor and following the progress of green roof bills in Albany. It’s really amazing how no one seems to have access to this information. There is such an amazing lack of transparency into our government – especially Albany. Case in point, the closed door vote made by our representatives on the congestion pricing bill - this is a maneuver enacted by our politicians to ensure that no one knows how their representative voted on the bill. There is no record or accountability. One unfortunate aspect of that bill being rejected was that a green roof initiative was pork-barreled onto it. The initiative was from Bloomberg’s PlanNYC and sought to provide a 35% tax abatement on small-scale green roof projects. My green roof policy expert reports below:
On March 31st, the NYC City Council approved the congestion pricing plan by a 30 to 20 vote, sending the bill to the state legislature for approval. On April 7th, the deadline when NYC would lose out on $354 million of federal money for mass transit improvements, the state Assembly, led by Speaker Sheldon Silver (D-64th AD, Lower East Side), killed the bill by deciding behind closed doors not to bring congestion pricing to the floor for a public vote.
The good news is that a couple of other bills have been sponsored in Albany – one of which looks particularly promising. Bill number A5449 is the one to watch. Write an email to the committee chairs to keep this moving forward.
Assemblyman Herman D. Farrell, Jr, Chair, Ways and Means Committee
See link: http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/?ad=071&sh=con
Or email: farrelh@ assembly.state.ny.us
State Senator Carl L. Marcellino, Chair, Environmental Conservation Committee
See email: marcelli@senate.state.ny.us
Below is a description of the three bills currently sponsored.
1. Bill Number: A5449, introduced by Assembly Member Dinowitz of the West Bronx (the companion bill in the senate is S4362, sponsored by Sen. Marcellino of NW Long Island).
General Description: (1) Requires the commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation to develop a program to evaluate and set standards for green roof construction and certification. (2) The bill amends the tax law by providing a tax credit for the installation of roof garden of 55% of the installation cost that shall not exceed $5,000.
Current Status: On January 9, 2008 the bill was referred to the Environmental Conservation Committee. On April 15th, it was amended to its current form and recommitted to the same committee. On May 13, 2008 the bill was reported out of Environmental Conservation and referred to the Ways and Means committee. The progress and movement of the bill is promising.
This bill has a companion bill in the Senate (and I’m told you need both houses to pass bills successfully before they can go to the governor for his approval), so . . . this bill currently has the best chances of being passed into law. We are definitely exited about this although, I can’t help but wondering if $5,000 is enough? First of all, in order to get a credit, you‘ll have to enter into the permit process at the DOB which should cost x amount of dollars and cause x amount of headaches. The bill is definitely intended only for the residential green roof owner - no commercial developer is going to give a hoot about a 5K tax abatement. But, hey . . we’ll take it. It’s a step in the right direction. Another incentive that seems to have been effective elsewhere is a fast-track DOB permitting process for green roof projects (see Portland, Oregon’s Office of Sustainable Development).
2. Bill Number: S6390, introduced by State Senator Serrano who represents N. Bronx, E. Harlem and Roosevelt Island. This has no companion bill in the assembly.
General Description: Any taxpayer shall be allowed a credit for the installation of a green roof. The amount of the credit shall be 55% of qualified green roof installation expenditures, but shall not exceed the maximum credit of $10,000.
Current Status: On January 9, 2008 the bill was referred to the Environmental Conservation Committee, where it still sits. The lack of progress of the bill likely means it will not move forward, possibly because of the larger maximum credit. It also currently has no companion bill in the assembly, which is necessary to be passed into law.
3. Bill Number: A10234, introduced by Assemblyman Ruben Diaz, Jr, who represents the 85th AD in the Southeast Bronx. This has no companion bill in the senate.
General Description: Amends property tax law to : (1) Provide a tax abatement for $6.75 per square foot of installation of a green roof or maintenance of a green roof, not to exceed $100,000 or the tax liability of the eligible building, whichever is less. (2) Provide requirements for maintaining a green roof as a condition of receiving the tax abatement for three years, which can be revoked if proper maintenance isn't followed.
Current Status: On March 11, 2008 the bill was referred to the Real Property Taxation Committee, where it still sits. It also currently has no companion bill in the senate, which is necessary to be passed into law.
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Comments
where is your project at this point? did your co-op board approve?
Posted by: guest at June 5, 2008 12:00 PM
Nice lobbying up there in Albany, Green Roof Guy.
Can you tell me if I'll have to use a pre-selected vendor or banker to avail myself of this subsidy as is the case with the NYSERDA deals? Will you now be charging more because the NYS taxpayer will be picking up part of the tab?
Posted by: guest at June 8, 2008 3:32 PM
Things have been a bit topsy-turvy as of late in having to negotiate between our co-op board, the engineers and our own wishes.
In reality, everything would’ve/could’ve happened much sooner if we weren’t trying to do this in the most inexpensive way possible - and procrastinating because of it . . . The project would be already be installed if we were only going for the green roof - our structural engineer said that the roof could hold the additional weight of a lightweight green roof application – about 12–15 lbs/ sq ft.
Unfortunately, we're in a holding pattern right now because of a few things beyond our control. Our goal is to get everything back up and running after this weekend.
Posted by: Green Roof Guy at June 9, 2008 8:38 PM
Doing my best to get the word out about the policy issues . . . Policy is really the only force that is going to enable New York to go green on a substantial scale.
I thought your questions were great. And to be honest, a lot of people in the industry are asking the same things. This is what I can tell you for sure:
1. In order to qualify for a rebate, you will need to file your green roof project with the DOB (or potentially a state-certified independent inspector). I don't believe that there will be a vendor list (i.e. like the solar process).
2. There will be a Green Roof accreditation test offered in 2009 by an independent non-profit organization. At some point down the line (5-7 years?) this could be adopted as a national standard and Green Roof Professionals could be organized much like ALSA or AIA are for landscape architects and architects.
3. Initially, contractors might charge more if they know the consumer is getting a rebate but as more and more green roof businesses emerge, competition will be a bigger factor than it is now. Eventually as the industry gets standardized and green roofs are more widely understood, I think you can expect the price of materials and installation to go down.
Posted by: Green Roof Guy at June 9, 2008 8:59 PM
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