Authorizes a city, town or village to establish a program whereby a building permit may be issued based upon certification by a registered architect or professional engineer.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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7217
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
April 4, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. MARTINEZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to building
permits; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expira-
tion thereof
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 125 of the general municipal law, as added by chap-
2 ter 439 of the laws of 1998, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 125. Issuance of building permits. 1. No city, town or village shall
4 issue a building permit without obtaining from the permit applicant
5 either:
6 [1.] (a) proof duly subscribed that workers' compensation insurance
7 and disability benefits coverage issued by an insurance carrier in a
8 form satisfactory to the chair of the workers' compensation board as
9 provided for in section fifty-seven of the workers' compensation law is
10 effective; or
11 [2.] (b) an affidavit that such permit applicant has not engaged an
12 employer or any employees as those terms are defined in section two of
13 the workers' compensation law to perform work relating to such building
14 permit.
15 2. (a) Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary a
16 city, town or village in a county with a population of one million two
17 hundred thousand or more, not wholly contained within a city, or in a
18 city with a population of between two hundred nine thousand and two
19 hundred ten thousand and in a county with a population of between nine
20 hundred ninety thousand and one million, may establish a program whereby
21 a building permit may be issued based upon a certification by a regis-
22 tered architect licensed to practice in the state of New York or a
23 professional engineer licensed to practice in the state of New York that
24 the intended work as set forth in the building permit application meets
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00874-02-5
S. 7217 2
1 the requirements of the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code,
2 excluding the approval of fire service features and compliance with fire
3 protection and life safety systems as defined by the fire code of New
4 York state, or any more restrictive local provisions relating to fire
5 services, fire protection or life safety systems. Such program shall
6 include the following requirements:
7 (i) no later than forty-five days after submission of a building
8 permit application with a certification as provided for herein to the
9 municipal building department such application shall be deemed approved
10 unless denied;
11 (ii) in the event of a denial of a building permit application with a
12 certification the building department shall set forth the reasons for
13 such denial and shall cite the applicable provisions of the law or regu-
14 lation upon which such denial is predicated; and
15 (iii) a random audit of applications for a building permit to ensure
16 compliance. Provided, however, a city, town, or village establishing a
17 program pursuant to this section shall be prohibited from reducing or
18 eliminating the position of any employee involved with the building
19 permit application process during the effectiveness of this section.
20 Any program established by a city, town or village pursuant to this
21 paragraph shall be referred to as an "independent certification
22 program".
23 (b) The wrongful or negligent certification by a licensed professional
24 pursuant to this section may constitute professional misconduct, and
25 referral can be made to the state education department office of
26 professions upon a finding of wrongdoing or negligence by the licensed
27 professional by the building department with jurisdiction over the
28 project.
29 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire and be
30 deemed repealed three years after such effective date.
