What's happening
This bill lets applicants for residential or mixed-use building permits hire private professionals to speed up permit reviews if the city or county takes longer than thirty business days.
Why it matters
Reduces permitting delays for residential and mixed-use developments. by allowing applicants to bypass slow municipal reviews, which can help accelerate housing construction and address supply shortages.
Empowers applicants to use licensed private professionals. for technical plan reviews if cities or counties cannot meet a 30-business-day review window, potentially streamlining the process and fostering competition in permit services.
Imposes new accountability on local building departments. by requiring them to set estimated review timeframes and process applications swiftly after receiving a private professional’s report, which could improve bureaucratic efficiency and transparency.
May impact local government resources and oversight. by shifting some responsibilities to private sector experts, raising questions about quality control, consistency of enforcement, and the potential for conflicts of interest in the permitting process.
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Who cares
Developers and Real Estate Investors
Care because the new law would set enforceable timelines for building permit reviews and provide an option to use private professionals if government review is slow, reducing delays and uncertainty in residential and mixed-use construction projects.
Architects and Licensed Design Professionals
Care because they could see increased demand for their services as private qualified professionals tasked with compliance reviews when city or county timelines exceed 30 business days.
Local Building Departments and Government Agencies
Care because the law places new obligations on them to provide estimated review timelines and may increase pressure to expedite permit processing or coordinate with outside professionals.
Prospective Homebuyers and Renters
Care because faster and more predictable permitting may accelerate the delivery of new housing, potentially increasing housing supply and stabilizing prices.
Headline styles
Speed Up Building Permits
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to rules
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Set Building Permit Deadlines
In Assembly Committee · Governmental Operations · Sponsor Tony Simone
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
10695
IN SENATE
September 11, 2026
Introduced by Sen. BOTTCHER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the executive law and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to time limitations for application review and issuance of residential and mixed-use building permits
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 381 of the executive law is amended by adding a new subdivision 7 to read as follows:
7. Upon an application for a residential or mixed-use building permit which is deemed complete, the building department of a local government or county government, if applicable, shall provide the applicant with an estimated timeframe in which the department will determine if the complete application is compliant with permit standards. If the estimated timeframe exceeds thirty business days, the applicant may retain, at the applicant's sole expense, a private qualified professional licensed pursuant to article one hundred forty-five and/or one hundred forty-seven of the education law, as appropriate, to examine the plans and specifications for their compliance with the requirements imposed pursuant to this article and by any local ordinances adopted pursuant to this article. The building department shall process the permit application within twenty business days of the submission of a report submitted by a qualified professional and issue or deny the application within such timeframe.
§ 2. Section 28-105.5 of the administrative code of the city of New York, as amended by section 1 of part A of local law number 126 of the city of New York for the year 2021, is amended to read as follows:
§ 28-105.5 Application for permit. All applications for permits shall be submitted on forms furnished by the department. Applications shall include all information required by this code, other applicable law or the rules of the department. The applicant shall list any portions of the design that have been approved for deferred submittal in accordance with section 28-104.2.6. The application shall set forth an inspection program for the project. An application for a permit shall be submitted
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16114-02-6
no later than 12 months after the approval of all required construction documents (other than those documents approved for deferred submittal). The department shall provide written notification to owners of adjoining property at the time such application is submitted. Upon an application for a residential or mixed-use building permit which is deemed complete, the department shall provide the applicant with an estimated timeframe in which the department will determine if the complete application is compliant with permit standards under this code. If the estimated timeframe exceeds thirty business days, the applicant may retain, at the applicant's sole expense, a private qualified professional licensed pursuant to article one hundred forty-five and/or one hundred forty-seven of the education law, as appropriate, to examine the plans and specifications for their compliance with this code. The building department shall process the permit application within twenty business days of the submission of a report submitted by a qualified professional and issue or deny the application within such timeframe.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the executive law and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to time limitations for application review and issuance of residential and mixed-use building permits
Purpose or general idea of bill
To streamline permitting processes for residential and mixed-use build- ings in NYS and NYC by allowing for developers to retain licensed, qual- ified third-party reviewers to expedite the permitting processes in the event of a building department backlog while still maintaining the building departments final authority
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1: Amends Section 381 of the Executive Law by adding a new subdivision 7 that outlines a process by which the building department would be required to give a timeline for review of permitting compli- ance. If the timeline is over 30 days, it allows for licensed 3rd-party reviewers to be retained to conduct a review and submit a report to the building department for expedited review. The building department would be required to review these reports within 20 days.
Section 2: Amends Section 28-105.5 of the Administrative Code of the City of New York regarding permit application procedures and timing requirements following construction document approvals.
Section 3: Sets the effective date.
Justification
Permitting delays are a key driver of costs and delays for the develop- ment of affordable units. While building departments face backlogs, project delays tie up capital, increase financing costs, and slow down the delivery of desperately needed affordable units.
This bill establishes a process to expedite reviews and offload respon- sibility from overburdened municipal building departments by allowing licensed engineers and architects to submit supplemental reports for expedited review. This process will only take effect if a building department is backlogged and will maintain the building department as the final authority.
Legislative history
New bill.
Fiscal implications
N/A
Effective date
90 days after becoming law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.