The 2025 NYC Energy Conservation Code (NYCECC) tightens lighting efficiency and control requirements, aligns more closely with the latest NY state energy code, and retains or strengthens prior NYC‑specific lighting provisions. NYC Department of Buildings (DOB) is expected to begin enforcing the new code on March 30, 2026 when updated compliance software is fully available. Filings submitted before that date must comply with the 2020 NYC Energy Code.
Higher lighting efficiency
The 2025 NYCECC adopts “enhanced lighting efficiencies” as part of the statewide baseline, which means lower allowable lighting power densities (LPDs) for many space types and building categories compared with the previous NYC code cycle (2020). In practical terms, designs that previously passed with efficient fluorescents now almost always need high‑efficacy LED systems to comply, especially in nonresidential interiors and exterior lighting.
For residential/common areas, the emphasis remains on high‑efficacy sources, but the new code reflects updated technology assumptions, so LEDs are treated as the default path to compliance. High‑efficacy thresholds that were once difficult for legacy sources are now considered minimum expectations for general illumination in most occupancies.
Controls and automatic shutoff
NYC keeps and strengthens its focus on lighting controls, in line with its statement that city‑specific amendments cover “lighting wattage and controls” and should be retained if not superseded by the state stretch code. Existing requirements such as space‑by‑space occupancy sensors in enclosed offices, classrooms, conference rooms, storage rooms, etc., continue to apply and are generally tightened by updated statewide provisions on automatic shutoff, partial‑off, and daylight‑responsive controls.
For many commercial spaces, the 2025 code increases reliance on automatic controls rather than relying solely on lower LPDs, so compliant designs typically combine very efficient luminaires with multi‑level or continuous dimming, occupancy sensing, and daylight controls as appropriate to the space. This combination aims to reduce both installed wattage and actual operating hours, supporting NYC’s broader energy and emissions goals.
Existing buildings and 2026 deadlines
Local Law 88 requires large existing buildings to upgrade lighting systems and sub‑metering by January 1, 2025, and those upgrades must bring systems up to NYCECC “new construction” standards rather than older code levels. As a result, building owners still retrofitting for LL88 are effectively pushed into the 2026 expectations of high‑efficacy lighting and robust controls, rather than just swapping lamps on a one‑for‑one basis.
These lighting upgrades interact with other local requirements, such as energy benchmarking and building energy grades, where LED and advanced controls help reduce reported energy use and improve grades. For owners, the main change is that compliance is no longer narrowly about fixture type; it is about meeting integrated performance targets combining power, controls, and documentation.
Documentation and enforcement context
Urban Green Council notes that NYC’s 2025 Energy Code adopts statewide provisions and layers “more ambitious city‑specific amendments,” which include enhanced lighting efficiency along with envelope and HVAC measures. NYC’s own 2025 Energy Code Revision Handbook highlights that prior NYC‑specific amendments on lighting wattage and controls are intended to be kept or strengthened, signaling continued strict enforcement of lighting performance and control criteria.
At the same time, other policy drivers such as Local Laws 33 and 97 make code‑compliant lighting a key part of broader compliance strategies, since efficient lighting reduces total energy use and emissions that feed into grades and carbon caps. Overall, the 2025 NYCECC makes lighting design in NYC more explicitly performance‑driven, LED‑centric, and controls‑heavy than under the prior code cycle.
More information is available here.
Image above: Pixabay.com
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