Bill Text: NY S06563 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes a school ventilation and energy efficiency assessment, repair and verification program to require each school to: obtain an HVAC Assessment Report performed by qualified testing personnel documenting the functionality of the existing system or lack thereof, and obtain a report from a mechanical engineer identifying any upgrades, replacements or other measures recommended to improve the functionality, health and safety and/or energy efficiency of the HVAC system; adjust, and, if necessary, repair existing building HVAC systems, and install or replace HVAC systems, if necessary, to ensure proper and efficient operation, as well as compliance with health and safety standards; obtain an HVAC Verification Report performed by qualified testing personnel documenting any upgrades, replacements, installations or any other work performed on the HVAC system functions as designed and/or in compliance with health and safety standards; install CO2 sensors in classrooms, assembly areas, kitchen or cafeteria areas or building office spaces to provide ongoing verification that proper ventilation is maintained during operation; makes related provisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - REFERRED TO EDUCATION [S06563 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S06563-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6563 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN SENATE April 26, 2023 ___________ Introduced by Sen. COONEY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to establishing a school ventilation and energy efficiency assessment, repair and verification program The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature hereby 2 finds and declares that: 3 a. The issue of ameliorating a school's air quality has gotten a lot 4 of well-deserved attention during the spread of COVID-19 though venti- 5 lation and also with the increase of extreme heat conditions in the 6 classrooms. Cleaner air is better for a school building's population 7 and even helps with higher thinking/cognitive abilities. Although 8 schools are now fully open, a school with an outdated or inadequate 9 heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, which controls 10 the temperature, humidity, and air quality in school classrooms, leave 11 many schools susceptible to harmful airborne particles and, therefore, 12 vulnerable to any current or future contagion that plagues the state. It 13 is important for the state to establish a program which provides for the 14 safe ventilation and proper filtration of air throughout each school 15 building, so they can operate with the confidence that they have safe 16 and efficient HVAC systems in place. 17 b. The air ventilation and filtration process, essentially, seeks to 18 bring outside air into the school building and then both condition (heat 19 or cool) the outside air and remove any impure air particles as it 20 enters the building (as well as recycling the indoor air). To maintain 21 safety, air particles entering a school must meet minimum standards 22 after going through air purifiers/filters (e.g., MERV 13 filter) and 23 qualified testing personnel and engineers can assess and determine how 24 well a filtration system is working and how safe the air is. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10932-01-3S. 6563 2 1 c. A program designed to ensure proper school air quality control must 2 include professional assessment, repair and/or replacement of both the 3 HVAC system, as well as carbon dioxide monitors so that any improvements 4 to those systems meet the ventilation rates detailed in the national 5 Uniform Mechanical Code. Reports generated from the continual monitoring 6 of carbon dioxide monitors and maintenance of the HVAC system must also 7 be made available to the public, electronically. 8 d. Approximately 41% of school districts across the United States of 9 America need HVAC and carbon dioxide system improvements, repairs or 10 updates. Safe air quality levels in public schools protect the health of 11 students and staff, significantly reduce the risk of infectious airborne 12 diseases, increase attendance and improve student performance. Funds 13 allocated through the U.S. Department of Education's Elementary and 14 Secondary Schools Emergency Relief (ESSER) Programs and the Governor's 15 Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Programs and the Department of Health 16 and Humans Services' Head Start and Child Care American Rescue Plan can 17 support improvements to ventilation; repairs, upgrades, and replacements 18 in Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems; purchase 19 of MERV 13 air filters, portable air purifiers, and upper-room germici- 20 dal ultraviolet irradiation systems; as well as implementation of other 21 public health protocols and CDC guidance. 22 § 2. The education law is amended by adding a new section 409-n to 23 read as follows: 24 § 409-n. School ventilation and energy efficiency assessment, repair 25 and verification program. 1. For purposes of this section, the following 26 terms shall have the following meanings: 27 (a) "ANSI" means American National Standards Institute, or its succes- 28 sor. 29 (b) "ASHRAE" means American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air 30 Conditioning Engineers. 31 (c) "Certified TAB technician" means a technician certified to perform 32 testing, adjusting, and balancing of HVAC systems by the Associated Air 33 Balance Council (AABC), National Environmental Balancing Bureau (NEBB), 34 or the Testing, Adjusting and Balancing Bureau (TABB), or their succes- 35 sors. 36 (d) "HVAC" means heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. 37 (e) "Mechanical code" means the most recent version of the Mechanical 38 Code of New York State or, for the City of New York, the most recent 39 version of the New York City Mechanical Code. 40 (f) "Mechanical engineer" means a professional engineer licensed as a 41 mechanical engineer by the state of New York and who has professional 42 experience with heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. 43 (g) "MERV" means minimum efficiency reporting value, as established by 44 ASHRAE Standard 52.2-2017 -- Method of Testing General Ventilation Air- 45 Cleaning Devices for Removal Efficiency by Particle Size. 46 (h) "ppm" means parts per million. 47 (i) "Qualified adjusting personnel" means either of the following: 48 (i) A certified TAB technician; or 49 (ii) A skilled and trained workforce under the supervision of a certi- 50 fied TAB technician. 51 (j) "Qualified testing personnel" means either of the following: 52 (i) A certified TAB technician; or 53 (ii) A person certified to perform ventilation verification assess- 54 ments of heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems from an 55 organization that has been accredited under the ISO/IEC 17024 Personnel 56 Certification standard in ventilation verification assessments.S. 6563 3 1 (k) "Registered apprenticeship program" means an apprenticeship 2 program registered with the department of labor. 3 (l) "School" shall include but not be limited to a school district, 4 public school, board of cooperative educational services, special act 5 school district as defined in section four thousand one of this chapter, 6 approved preschool special education program pursuant to section forty- 7 four hundred ten of this chapter, schools and programs authorized by 8 articles eighty-one and eighty-nine of this chapter, state-supported 9 schools in accordance with article eighty-five of this chapter, or any 10 public, private or charter primary, secondary education school. 11 (m) "Skilled and trained workforce" means a workforce where at least 12 sixty percent of the construction workers are graduates of or registered 13 in and attending a registered apprenticeship program for the applicable 14 occupation. 15 (n) "TAB" means testing, adjusting, and balancing of a HVAC system. 16 2. Each school shall comply with the procedures set forth in subdivi- 17 sions three, four, five, six and seven of this section for all occupied 18 buildings under the school's control. These procedures shall be 19 completed within twenty-four months after the effective date of this 20 section and at least once every five years thereafter, as part of the 21 school's building condition survey required pursuant to section four 22 hundred nine-d of this article. 23 3. Each school shall ensure that qualified testing personnel or quali- 24 fied adjusting personnel performs the following assessments: 25 (a) Qualified testing personnel shall review system capacity and 26 airflow to determine the highest minimum efficiency reporting value 27 (MERV) filtration that can be installed without adversely impacting 28 equipment, shall replace or upgrade filters where needed, and shall 29 verify that such filters are installed correctly. Recommendations for 30 additional maintenance in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1- 2022 31 Section 8 and Table 8--1, frequency of filter replacement, replacement, 32 or upgrades to allow for more protective filtration shall be recorded in 33 the HVAC Assessment Report where filtration meeting or exceeding the 34 protection of MERV 13 filters cannot be met in the current system. 35 (b) Qualified testing personnel shall assess the ventilation rates in 36 the facility classrooms, auditoriums, gymnasiums, nurses' offices, 37 kitchen or cafeteria areas, restrooms, and other occupied areas to 38 determine whether they meet the minimum ventilation rate requirements 39 set forth in the mechanical code for new construction. Assessment shall 40 include, but not be limited to, the following: 41 (i) Calculation of the estimated minimum outside air ventilation rates 42 for each occupied area based on the anticipated maximum occupant densi- 43 ty, occupancy category, and square footage and the minimum required 44 ventilation rate per occupant. Calculations shall be based on maximum 45 anticipated classroom or other occupied area occupancy rates and deter- 46 mined by the required ventilation rates set forth in the mechanical code 47 for new construction; 48 (ii) Measurement of outside air, and verification of whether the 49 system provides the minimum outside air ventilation rates calculated in 50 subparagraph (i) of this paragraph; 51 (iii) Verification of coil velocities and unit discharge air temper- 52 atures required to maintain desired indoor conditions and to avoid mois- 53 ture carry over from cooling coils; 54 (iv) Verification that separation between outdoor air intakes and 55 exhaust discharge outlets meet the requirements of the mechanical code;S. 6563 4 1 (v) Confirmation that the air handling unit is bringing in outdoor air 2 and removing exhaust air as intended by the system design; and 3 (vii) Measurement of exhaust air volume for exhaust fans, including 4 restrooms, and verification that exhaust air volume meets system design 5 and the requirements of the mechanical code. 6 (c) For systems with economizers, qualified testing personnel shall 7 test system economizer dampers for proper operation. Economizer dampers 8 and controls that are not properly functioning shall be repaired by a 9 skilled and trained workforce. Recommendations for additional mainte- 10 nance, replacement or upgrades shall be recorded in the HVAC assessment 11 report. 12 (d) If installed, demand control ventilation systems shall be verified 13 by qualified testing personnel for proper operation. Demand control 14 ventilation systems that are not properly functioning shall be repaired 15 by a skilled and trained workforce. If the demand control ventilation 16 system is recommended to be disabled or is unable to provide recommended 17 ventilation rates, the HVAC system must be configured to meet the mini- 18 mum ventilation rate requirements without use of the demand control 19 ventilation and tested and adjusted to achieve design minimum outside 20 air value. Recommendations for additional maintenance, replacement or 21 upgrades shall be recorded in the HVAC assessment report. 22 (e) (i) Qualified testing personnel shall: (A) perform survey readings 23 of inlets and outlets to verify all ventilation is reaching the served 24 zone and that there is adequate distribution; (B) verify if inlets and 25 outlets are balanced within tolerance of the system design; and (C) 26 document read values and deficiencies. If the original system design 27 values are not available, qualified testing personnel shall document 28 available information and note unavailability of system design values in 29 the HVAC assessment report. 30 (ii) Qualified testing personnel shall verify building and space pres- 31 sure to ensure: 32 (A) Pressure differential is within tolerance of design, if known. 33 (B) Building is not over or under pressurized. 34 (C) If applicable, rooms designated for temporary occupation by sick 35 students or staff shall maintain a negative pressure, or as otherwise 36 designed. 37 (f) Qualified testing personnel shall verify coil condition, conden- 38 sate drainage, cooling coil air temperature differential (entering and 39 leaving dry bulb), heat exchanger air temperature differential (entering 40 and leaving dry bulb), and drive assembly condition. Recommendations for 41 additional maintenance in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1- 2022 42 Section 8 and Table 8--1, replacement or upgrades shall be recorded in 43 the HVAC assessment report. 44 (g) Qualified testing personnel shall review control sequences to: 45 (i) verify systems will maintain intended ventilation, temperature, 46 and humidity conditions during school operation; and 47 (ii) verify a daily flush is scheduled per applicable local or state 48 guidance. 49 (h) (i) Verification that all classrooms, assembly areas and office 50 spaces intended for more than ten permanent occupants are equipped with 51 a carbon dioxide monitor that: 52 (A) Is hardwired, plug-in, or battery-operated and mounted to the wall 53 between three and six feet above the floor and at least five feet away 54 from the door and operable windows;S. 6563 5 1 (B) Displays the carbon dioxide readings to the teacher through a 2 display on the device or other means such as a web-based application or 3 cell phone application; 4 (C) Notifies the teacher and other appropriate school personnel 5 through visual indicator on the monitor (e.g., indicator light) or other 6 alert such as e-mail, text, or cell phone application, when the carbon 7 dioxide levels in the classroom have exceeded 1,100 ppm; 8 (D) Maintains a record of previous data which includes at least the 9 maximum carbon dioxide concentration measured; 10 (E) Has a range of 1-5000 ppm; and 11 (F) Is certified by the manufacturer to be accurate within 75 ppm at 12 1,000 ppm carbon dioxide concentration and is certified by the manufac- 13 turer to require calibration no more frequently than once every five 14 years. 15 (ii) The technical specifications for carbon dioxide monitors set 16 forth above may be amended by regulation as necessary to reflect avail- 17 able technology and to achieve the intent of this subdivision. 18 (iii) Classrooms, assembly areas, kitchen or cafeteria areas, and 19 office spaces intended for more than ten permanent occupants that are 20 not equipped with a carbon dioxide monitor meeting the above require- 21 ments shall be retrofitted to include such a monitor as part of this 22 assessment. 23 (iv) Where an existing carbon dioxide monitor is more than five years 24 old, a qualified testing technician shall verify that the carbon dioxide 25 monitor is accurate within 75 ppm at 1,000 ppm carbon dioxide, and shall 26 recalibrate or replace the carbon dioxide monitor where needed to meet 27 the required accuracy. 28 (i) In facilities where there is limited or no existing mechanical 29 ventilation, the assessment shall focus on documenting existing condi- 30 tions and providing the mechanical engineer with the information needed 31 to provide mechanical ventilation upgrade recommendations if needed to 32 ensure proper ventilation and indoor air quality. Classrooms or other 33 rooms being occupied within a school with limited or no existing mechan- 34 ical ventilation shall be required to comply with the requirement to 35 install carbon dioxide monitors. 36 4. (a) A qualified testing personnel or qualified adjusting personnel 37 shall prepare an HVAC assessment report for review by a mechanical engi- 38 neer. The HVAC assessment report shall be documented utilizing the 39 sample ventilation verification test sheets listed in the prerequisite 40 section, additional guidance, of ASHRAE Technical Committee 9.7, Educa- 41 tional Facilities Design Guidance for Education Facilities: Prioritiza- 42 tion for Advanced Indoor Air Quality, 2023 publication. 43 (b) The HVAC assessment report shall include, but not be limited to, 44 the following information: 45 (i) Name and address of school facility and person or contractor 46 preparing and certifying the assessment report; 47 (ii) Description of assessment, maintenance, adjustment and repair 48 activities and outcomes; 49 (iii) Documentation of HVAC equipment model number, serial number, 50 general condition of unit, and any additional information that could be 51 used to assess replacement and repair options given potential for 52 increased energy efficiency benefits; 53 (iv) Either verification that filters that meet or exceed the 54 protection of MERV 13 filters have been installed or verification that 55 the maximum MERV-rated filter that the system is able to effectively 56 handle has been installed and what that MERV-rating is;S. 6563 6 1 (v) Verification that all requirements of the program have been satis- 2 fied, including installation of carbon dioxide monitors; 3 (vi) The verified ventilation rates for facility classrooms, auditori- 4 ums, kitchen or cafeteria areas, gymnasiums, nurses' offices, restrooms, 5 offices, and other occupied areas, and whether those rates meet the 6 requirements set forth for new construction in the mechanical code; 7 (vii) The verified exhaust for facility classrooms, auditoriums, 8 gymnasiums, nurses' offices, restrooms, and other occupied areas and 9 whether those rates meet system design and the requirements of the 10 mechanical code; 11 (viii) Documentation of system deficiencies and recommendations for 12 additional maintenance in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1- 2022 13 Section 8 and Table 8--1, replacement or upgrades to improve energy 14 efficiency, safety, or performance, if any; and 15 (ix) Verification that all work has been performed by qualified 16 personnel, including the provision of the contractor's name, qualified 17 testing personnel or qualified adjusting personnel name or names and 18 certification number or numbers, and verification that all construction 19 work has been performed by a skilled and trained workforce. 20 5. (a) A mechanical engineer shall review the HVAC assessment report, 21 verify or adjust the estimated minimum outside air ventilation rates and 22 determine what, if any, additional adjustments, repairs, upgrades or 23 replacements would be necessary to meet the minimum ventilation and 24 filtration requirements and provide a cost estimate for all recommended 25 work. 26 (b) If the mechanical engineer's cost estimate for additional adjust- 27 ments, repairs, upgrades, or replacements necessary to meet minimum 28 ventilation and filtration requirements exceeds two hundred thousand 29 dollars, the mechanical engineer shall also provide a recommendation for 30 adjustments, repairs, upgrades or replacements that would best improve 31 ventilation and filtration conditions at a cost not to exceed two 32 hundred thousand dollars. 33 6. (a) All HVAC repairs, upgrades, or replacements shall be performed 34 by a skilled and trained workforce. All HVAC adjustments shall be 35 performed by qualified adjusting personnel. 36 (b) Adjustments, repairs, upgrades, or replacements recommended by the 37 mechanical engineer shall be completed to the extent the cost does not 38 to exceed two hundred thousand dollars. If recommended adjustments, 39 repairs, upgrades, or replacements exceed two hundred thousand dollars 40 in costs to ensure classrooms meet minimum ventilation and filtration 41 requirements, the school may authorize expenditure of additional avail- 42 able funds and/or shall seek additional funds, if necessary, to make the 43 recommended adjustments, repairs, upgrades, or replacements. 44 7. (a) The school shall prepare an HVAC verification report within 45 thirty days of completion of all work pursuant to this section. 46 (b) The HVAC verification report shall include, but not be limited to, 47 the following information: 48 (i) Name and address of school and each building; 49 (ii) Name of person or contractor preparing and certifying the report; 50 (iii) Description of assessment, maintenance, adjustment, repair, 51 upgrade, and replacement activities and outcomes; 52 (iv) Verification that all requirements of this section have been met; 53 (v) Verification that either filters meeting or exceeding MERV 13 54 protection have been installed or verification that the maximum 55 MERV-rated filter that the system is able to effectively handle has been 56 installed and what that MERV-rating is;S. 6563 7 1 (vi) The verified ventilation rates for facility classrooms, assembly 2 areas, kitchen or cafeteria areas, offices, restrooms, and other occu- 3 pied areas and whether those rates meet the requirements set forth for 4 new construction in the mechanical code. If ventilation rates do not 5 meet these requirements, then an explanation for why the current system 6 is unable to meet those rates shall be provided; 7 (vii) The verified exhaust for facility classrooms, auditoriums, 8 gymnasiums, nurses' offices, kitchen or cafeteria areas, restrooms, and 9 other occupied areas and whether those rates meet system design and the 10 requirements of the mechanical code; 11 (viii) Documentation of repairs, upgrades or replacements performed 12 pursuant to the HVAC assessment report and mechanical engineer recommen- 13 dations, including all work performed; 14 (ix) Documentation of recommendations for additional maintenance in 15 accordance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1- 2022 Section 8 and Table 8--1, 16 repairs, replacement, or upgrades to improve energy efficiency, safety, 17 or performance; 18 (x) Documentation of initial operating verifications, adjustments, and 19 final operating verifications, and document any adjustments or repairs 20 performed; 21 (xi) Verification of installation of carbon dioxide monitors, includ- 22 ing the number verified and installed, make, and model of monitors; and 23 (xii) Verification that all work has been performed by qualified 24 personnel, including the provision of the contractor's name, qualified 25 testing personnel or qualified adjusting personnel name or names and 26 certification number or numbers, and verification that all construction 27 work has been performed by a skilled and trained workforce. 28 (c) The school shall maintain a copy of the HVAC verification report 29 for a minimum of five years and make it available to any member of the 30 public, electronically, upon request. 31 8. (a) At least once every five years following initial inspection in 32 accordance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1- 2022 Section 8 and Table 8--1, a 33 qualified testing personnel shall perform the assessment, maintenance, 34 adjustment, controls, carbon dioxide monitoring and verification pursu- 35 ant to subdivisions three, four, five, six and seven of this section. 36 (b) Upon conclusion of the periodic inspection, qualified testing 37 personnel who performed the periodic inspection shall offer onsite 38 training with appropriate school staff on the findings of the 39 inspection. The training shall include equipment identification and 40 operations, safety protocols, review of periodic inspection findings, 41 and preventative maintenance recommendations. School HVAC system techni- 42 cians or similarly titled school staff or staff who volunteered to be 43 trained and certified in HVAC maintenance, and who are under any collec- 44 tive bargaining agreement, are required to create a preventative mainte- 45 nance plan in accordance with ASHRAE 180 and ASHRAE 62.1, chapter 8. 46 Qualified adjusting personnel shall perform adjustments and measurements 47 within the preventative maintenance plan. Nothing in this section shall 48 be deemed to supersede or diminish the terms, rights, privileges, or 49 remedies of any employee under any collective bargaining agreement or 50 employment contract. 51 (c) (i) If a classroom, auditorium, gymnasium, nurses' office, kitchen 52 or cafeteria areas, restroom, office, and other occupied area's carbon 53 dioxide concentration alarm set point is exceeded for more than fifteen 54 minutes more than four times in a month, the classroom, auditorium, 55 gymnasium, nurses' office, kitchen or cafeteriia areas, restroom, 56 office, and other occupied area's ventilation rates shall be adjusted orS. 6563 8 1 a direct outside airflow measurement device installed and its accuracy 2 verified, to ensure peak carbon dioxide concentrations in the classroom, 3 auditorium, gymnasium, nurses' office, kitchen or cafeteria areas, rest- 4 room, office, and other occupied area remains below the set point. 5 Adjustments shall be performed by qualified adjusting personnel as 6 defined in paragraph (i) of subdivision one of this section. 7 (ii) Each school shall record incidents where the set point was 8 exceeded for more than fifteen minutes more than four times in a month. 9 Five years of such records shall be kept for each classroom, auditorium, 10 gymnasium, nurses' office, kitchen or cafeteria areas, restroom, office, 11 and other occupied area and made available to the public at least on a 12 quarterly basis. 13 9. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations as may be 14 necessary and appropriate to implement the provisions of this section. 15 § 3. Severability. If any provision of this act, or any application of 16 any provision of this act, is held to be invalid, that shall not affect 17 the validity or effectiveness of any other provision of this act, or of 18 any other application of any provision of this act, which can be given 19 effect without that provision or application; and to that end, the 20 provisions and applications of this act are severable. 21 § 4. This act take effect immediately.
