New York Permit Fines

New York City is home to more than one million buildings that—when taken together—make up the city’s unmistakable skyline. Although skyscrapers may dominate the skyline, they are only a fraction of buildings in the city. From lofts in the East Village and walk-ups in Chinatown to Brownstones in Brooklyn and single-family homes on Staten Island, residential buildings make up the lion’s share of the city’s structures.

New York City’s Department of Buildings (DOB) oversees all of these buildings, commercial and residential alike. It issues permits, inspects buildings, oversees construction-related licenses, enforces the building and construction codes, and imposes fines for violations. The DOB’s mission is to ensure the safety of the Big Apple and all its inhabitants.

But the DOB often loses sight of this charge. Instead, it penalizes property owners over and over again for sometimes trivial issues, leaving them owing the city thousands of dollars while navigating an incredibly complex system that lacks the hallmarks of due process. Ultimately, the DOB assesses immense fines that property owners can never challenge in a court of law, instead simply demanding compliance and payment.

Caught up in all of this is Queens resident Joe Corsini. Joe, like many New Yorkers, is a pigeon keeper. Keeping pigeons is the city-equivalent of having a backyard rabbit hutch in the suburbs. As Joe’s hobby grew, he decided to build a small pigeon coop on the roof of his home. Unfortunately, he did not realize he needed to obtain a building permit for the small structure. Shortly after the coop went up, he received $3,000 in fines from the DOB and an order that he bring his coop into compliance by getting a permit. Round and round he went with the DOB, until he gave up and took it down.

He received additional violations while he was engaging with the DOB. He ultimately amassed approximately $11,000 in fines and—after hiring an attorney— was able to negotiate a reduced penalty of $7,800 to resolve the penalties.

This did not sit well with Joe, who has now teamed up with the Institute for Justice to fight back.

It is perfectly reasonable for a city to ensure safety in construction by focusing on actual safety concerns. But hitting a homeowner over and over again with fines that can range up to $25,000 per violation—even while they are trying to comply—and failing to provide a legitimate recourse to appeal to a neutral party, does not advance any legitimate safety interests. All it does is rack up money for the government and deprive property owners of their due process rights. Joe is fighting to change this system and ensure that homeowners are treated with dignity and due process.