Under New York City’s Facade Inspection Safety Program, every Cycle 9 filing window closed on a February 21: sub-cycle 9A on February 21, 2022, sub-cycle 9B on February 21, 2023, and sub-cycle 9C on February 21, 2024. These are the Local Law 11 Cycle 9 dates. If your building missed its window, the filing obligation hasn’t gone away, and late penalties have been running every month since the day after your deadline.
The Three Cycle 9 Deadlines
The Department of Buildings splits each five-year cycle into three two-year sub-cycles so reports arrive in staggered waves rather than all at once. Your sub-cycle is set by the last digit of your building’s tax block number, and the groupings have stayed the same from one cycle to the next.1NYC Buildings. Facade Compliance
- Sub-cycle 9A — blocks ending in 4, 5, 6, or 9: window ran February 21, 2020 through February 21, 2022.
- Sub-cycle 9B — blocks ending in 0, 7, or 8: window ran February 21, 2021 through February 21, 2023.
- Sub-cycle 9C — blocks ending in 1, 2, or 3: window ran February 21, 2022 through February 21, 2024.
You can find your block number on your property tax bill or through the city’s online property records. The rule itself — a Qualified Exterior Wall Inspector (QEWI) examines the facade and files a report through DOB NOW: Safety — applies to any building taller than six stories.2NYC Buildings. Facade and Local LawFacade Filing Requirements Building professionals still call the program “Local Law 11” after the 1998 law that created it, though the rules have been updated several times since.3New York City Department of Buildings. Local Law 11 of 1998
If You Missed Your Cycle 9 Window
A missed Cycle 9 deadline doesn’t convert into a Cycle 10 obligation. You still owe the Cycle 9 report, and penalties keep accruing until the DOB receives an acceptable filing. Submitting the report late will not erase the penalties already charged, but it stops the monthly meter and heads off more aggressive enforcement, which can include ECB violations and, with prolonged non-compliance, a lien on the property.
The practical first step is to engage a QEWI who can inspect the building and file through DOB NOW: Safety. Only an architect or engineer on the DOB’s approved QEWI list can submit the report, and both the QEWI and the owner need eFiling accounts because the owner’s account is used to consent to the QEWI’s submissions.4NYC Department of Buildings. Facade Inspection and Safety Program FISP Filing Instructions The report has to be filed within 60 days of the physical inspection, and the DOB charges a $425 filing fee.5NYC Department of Buildings. Facade Fees and Penalties
What the Late Penalties Look Like
Facade penalties run on two separate tracks that can stack. The civil penalty schedule in 1 RCNY 103-04 accrues automatically based on time elapsed. The Environmental Control Board (ECB) violation schedule in 1 RCNY 102-01 adds fines on top of that.
Civil Penalties
For a building that never filed, two charges run in parallel from the day after the deadline:6New York City Department of Buildings. 1 RCNY 103-04 — Periodic Inspection of Exterior Walls and Appurtenances of Buildings
- Failure to file: $5,000 per year.
- Late filing: an additional $1,000 per month until the DOB receives an acceptable report.
If the inspection, once it happens, turns up an unsafe condition that then goes uncorrected, a separate penalty track opens: $1,000 per month in Year 1, plus a sidewalk-shed surcharge that climbs each year a shed stays up. The surcharge is $10 per linear foot per month in Year 2, $20 in Year 3, $30 in Year 4, and $40 in Year 5. There is also a $2,000 penalty if a condition reported as Safe With a Repair and Maintenance Program (SWARMP) in a prior cycle shows up as unsafe in the next report.
ECB Violations
On top of the civil penalties, the DOB can issue ECB violations with their own fines:7NYC Department of Buildings. 1 RCNY 102-01
- Failure to submit a required facade report: standard penalty of $2,500, up to $10,000 in default.
- Failure to secure public safety (unsafe facade): standard penalty of $10,000, up to $25,000 in default or aggravated circumstances.
- Failure to file an amended report after correcting unsafe conditions: standard penalty of $1,250, up to $10,000.
Owners who don’t respond at all go into default and are hit with the maximum automatically. Where a sidewalk shed is also in place, the monthly rental cost (which can run into the hundreds of dollars per linear foot) runs alongside everything above.
How Cycle 10 Fits In
Cycle 9 is closed, but Cycle 10 is already underway and covers February 21, 2025 through February 20, 2030.8NYC Department of Buildings. Facade Inspection and Safety Program FISP Cycle 10 The sub-cycle structure is identical to Cycle 9:9NYC Department of Buildings. Facades Inspection and Safety Program FISP Cycle 10
- Sub-cycle 10A — blocks ending in 4, 5, 6, or 9: February 21, 2025 through February 21, 2027.
- Sub-cycle 10B — blocks ending in 0, 7, or 8: February 21, 2026 through February 21, 2028.
- Sub-cycle 10C — blocks ending in 1, 2, or 3: February 21, 2027 through February 21, 2029.
An owner catching up on a missed Cycle 9 filing still needs to plan for Cycle 10 on its own schedule. The two obligations are separate reports with separate deadlines, and completing a late Cycle 9 filing does not satisfy the next cycle. Owners of blocks already in the 10A window should be lining up a QEWI now rather than waiting for the final months, when inspectors book up quickly.