Int. No. 1097
By Council Members Williams and Narcisse
A Local Law in relation to requiring the department of buildings to submit a report on the racial, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities in the enforcement of building violations
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section 1. a. No later than 1 year after the effective date of this local law, the commissioner of buildings, in consultation with the commissioner of finance, the commissioner of housing preservation and development, and other relevant officers and agencies as needed, shall study and submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council a report on the racial, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities associated with the enforcement and compliance outcomes of violations enforced by the department of buildings as well as disparities associated with property foreclosures. Such report shall:
1. Provide data regarding racial, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities in connection with violations issued by the department of buildings, penalties assessed by such department, compliance rates, tax lien sales, and property foreclosures.
2. Determine the reasons for such racial, geographic, or socioeconomic disparities in violations issued by the department of buildings, penalties assessed by such department, compliance rates, tax lien sales, and property foreclosures, if applicable.
3. Provide data on building inspection rates by community district, disaggregated by whether the inspection is an initial inspection or a reinspection.
4. Analyze the disparities in the department of buildings’ timeline for approving plans to correct homeowner violations in different community districts.
5. Analyze instances in which the department of buildings has issued a notice of violation based on a complaint made via the 311 customer service center and provide information on the prevalence of such instances in each community district.
6. Provide recommendations for policy or operational changes that can be implemented to address any racial, geographic, or socioeconomic disparities found in the study.
b. All relevant information provided in the report required by this local law shall be based on data collected over a period of not less than the preceding 10 years from the date this local law takes effect and shall be disaggregated by property type, borough, community district, and race, to the extent possible. The commissioner of buildings shall include in such report a description of the methodology used to conduct such assessment.
c. The department of finance shall provide the department of buildings with data regarding property tax liens and other relevant information for the report required by this local law.
d. The department of housing preservation and development shall provide the department of buildings with data regarding rates and patterns of housing foreclosure and other relevant information for the report required by this local law.
§ 2. This local law takes effect immediately.
TIW
LSR #22453
7/1/2026 3:18PM