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Incentives · 2026

Lighting Controls Incentives in New York: What's Still on the Table.

New York's statewide commercial lighting rebates ended with 2025, and what remains shifts by utility, building type, and program year. How the landscape works now, and the documentation that keeps a project incentive-ready.

What Changed

For years, lighting incentives in New York mostly meant prescriptive rebates: install a listed fixture, collect a fixed amount. The statewide commercial lighting rebates retired at the end of 2025, and fixture rebates have largely disappeared from utility prescriptive lists since. Where lighting incentives remain, they mostly ride custom tracks, paid on the energy a project demonstrably saves. Controls projects are typically where those savings are found.

You won't find a program list on this page, on purpose. What's offered differs by utility territory and building type, some programs are neighborhood-specific, and funding windows open and close mid-year. A list that's accurate today can be stale by the next program cycle. The reliable way to know what applies to your building is your utility's current business-incentives page, or asking us: checking program fit is part of how we scope a proposal.

One pattern has held so far: where a controls incentive exists, programs generally pay only for DLC-qualified systems that are properly installed and commissioned.

Why Commissioning Matters More on Custom Programs

A prescriptive rebate paid for installed hardware. A custom incentive pays on demonstrated savings, which makes configuration and documentation part of eligibility. Savings that were never configured, like sensors at defaults or schedules never set, can't be demonstrated. If that sounds like your building, the occupancy sensor guide covers what recovery looks like.

That is the job of a lighting controls commissioning report. Ours follows ANSI/NEMA C137.9 configuration reporting: a standardized record of zones, sequences, sensor settings, schedules, and trim that a program, an auditor, or your own engineer can verify the system against. Design, functional testing, and that documentation are the core of our NLC design & commissioning service, with incentive support as an add-on where a program applies. The same measured kilowatt-hours also feed the emissions math of Local Law 97.

Do lighting rebates still exist in New York at all?
Some do, but the map is genuinely unstable. The statewide commercial lighting rebates retired at the end of 2025. What remains differs by utility territory and building type, some offerings are neighborhood-specific, and funding windows open and close mid-year. The durable trend is fixture rebates giving way to custom incentives paid on measured savings, with controls at the center. Confirm the current program year with your utility before counting on anything.
What's the difference between a prescriptive and a custom incentive?
Prescriptive pays a fixed rate per installed measure, but only for measures on the program's list. Custom pays on the annual energy your project demonstrably saves. Lighting controls now mostly sit on custom tracks, and that changes what matters: under a custom program, savings that can't be measured and documented can't be paid.
What documentation does a custom controls incentive need?
Programs generally pay only for systems that are properly installed, commissioned, and verifiable. In practice that means a real commissioning process, with sequences verified against the design, sensors calibrated, and schedules configured, plus standardized reporting of what the system is doing. ANSI/NEMA C137.9 configuration reporting, the format we produce on every commissioning engagement, is that documentation.
How do I find out what actually applies to my building?
Start with your utility's business or multifamily incentives pages for the current program year. Eligibility often keys on account type, demand, building type, and sometimes neighborhood, and incentives are typically first-come, first-served against program funding. Or ask us: checking current program fit is part of the feasibility memo, and incentive support is an add-on on commissioning engagements where a program applies.
Measured savings

Custom Incentives Pay on Measured Savings.

Tell us what's installed and what you're planning. We'll come back with a feasibility path, including which programs could apply. No obligation; we respond within one business day.

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Penalty figures and compliance details reflect DOB's published rules and can change. This page is general information, not legal or financial advice; confirm specifics with DOB, your utility, and your own professionals.

Last updated: July 2026. NYC building compliance rules, deadlines, and DOB procedures may change.

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