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New York's new energy code requires lighting that dims.
New work and relights now need occupancy shutoff, dimming to 10% and daylight dimming, and many new buildings need lighting that answers a utility signal. We design it, supply it and test every room.
The 2025 code covers permits filed from December 31, 2025 statewide, and New York City filings from March 30, 2026. Sources
Utility lighting rebates ended with 2025.
Utility rebates for commercial lighting and lighting controls ended across New York on December 31, 2025, under a state Public Service Commission order. Long Island's utility stopped them too, and new construction gets no lighting rebate anywhere in the state.
One narrow exception is left: Con Edison's small-business program in parts of Southeast Queens still pays for LED fixtures and sensors. NYSERDA's FlexTech program still shares the cost of an energy study. As of October 2026.
So in New York, the reasons to do it are the code and the bill.
What the 2025 code requires.
New York's 2025 energy code applies to permits filed from December 31, 2025 across the state, and to New York City filings from March 30, 2026. It requires occupancy sensors that turn lights off within 20 minutes (15 in NYC), dimming to 10% in offices and similar rooms or a locked high-end trim, and daylight dimming near windows from just 75 W of lighting. Garages get their own rules: each fixture steps down when its zone sits empty, and fixtures near open sides dim in daylight.
Relights count too. Replace 10% or more of the fixtures in a space, or change its controls, and that space has to meet these rules, with the controls tested before final inspection. Swapping only lamps or ballasts is a repair.
New buildings and additions with 10,000 sq ft or more of office, school, retail and storage space also need lighting that dims to 80% or less when the utility sends a demand-response signal. In New York City that holds on every compliance path; elsewhere it depends on the path your engineer picks. Our designs include it either way.
See how a project runs- GaragesStep down when a zone sits empty, after 15 minutes in NYC and 20 elsewhereCovered
- DimmingOffices dim to 10%, or run at a locked high-end trimCovered
- Demand responseNew buildings dim on a utility signalCovered
New York City's building laws.
Local Law 88 required buildings over 25,000 sq ft to bring their lighting up to the energy code and submeter large tenant spaces by January 1, 2025. Buildings that haven't filed owe $1,500 a year until they do. Local Law 97 caps emissions for most of the same buildings; the limits started in 2024, tighten in 2030, and fines run up to $268 for every metric ton over the cap. Lighting controls cut electricity use, which brings that number down.
Outside the city, the state energy code is the rule that matters; we found no county or town lighting laws in Westchester or on Long Island.
We're based in New York City.
We work on site across the city, Westchester, Long Island and Rockland County. We design the controls, ready for your engineer's stamp, and help you pick products from several brands. Every device arrives set up on our bench, labeled and bagged by room. Your electrician installs it, then we test every room and hand the records to your engineer.
Elsewhere in New York, we design remotely and ship the kit set up and labeled by room. A local electrician installs it, and we test on site or remotely.
Recent work.
Questions owners ask.
Are there still rebates for lighting controls in New York?
Almost none. Utility rebates for commercial lighting and controls ended on December 31, 2025 under a Public Service Commission order, and PSEG Long Island stopped them as well. The exception is Con Edison's small-business program in parts of Southeast Queens. Nothing pays for lighting in new construction. As of October 2026.
Does the 2025 code apply to my fit-out or relight?
If the work replaces 10% or more of the fixtures in a space, or changes its lighting controls, yes. That space needs the current controls, and they get tested before final inspection. Swapping only lamps or ballasts doesn't trigger it, and projects filed under the 2020 code stay on it.
Does my new building need demand-response lighting?
If it has 10,000 sq ft or more of office, school, retail and storage space combined, most likely. Lighting across at least 75% of that area has to dim to 80% or less within 15 minutes of a utility signal. It covers new buildings and additions; fit-outs and garages are exempt. In New York City it applies on every compliance path; elsewhere your engineer's choice of path decides.
Who signs off on code compliance?
Your engineer of record. In New York City an independent inspector also checks the controls before the final electrical inspection. We test every room and hand over the records they rely on; we don't sign the compliance or inspect our own work.
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