Key takeaways
- Buildings Bulletin 2026-014, issued September 22, 2026 and effective immediately, applies to Alteration-CO, New Building with Existing Elements and New Building filings.
- The drawings must state one of three things: an elevator is required by the Construction Codes, one is provided voluntarily, or "No elevator device is required."
- Where none is required and none is installed, a No Elevator Affirmation must be completed, signed and sealed by a Registered Design Professional, and uploaded in DOB NOW before plan approval.
- At the end of the job, the elevator information in the Elevator Occupancy Sign-Off Request must match the affirmation, and a copy goes with the CO Worksheet.
In this article
Silence used to be an answer. On these three filing types it no longer is: the drawings have to take a position on elevators, and if the position is "none", a professional has to put a seal on it.
What the bulletin requires
The document is Buildings Bulletin 2026-014, issued September 22, 2026 and effective immediately: bb_2026-014.pdf.
It sits on four code sections, each a different route by which a building can end up needing an elevator:
| Section | Why an elevator may be required |
|---|---|
| BC 3002.4 | Required on the basis of the number of stories |
| BC 1009.4 | Elevator service as part of an accessible means of egress |
| BC 1104.4 | Elevator service as part of an accessible route |
| BC 1107.4 | Elevator service as part of an accessible route |
Federal and State law can require one as well. The point of the bulletin is that a reviewer should not have to work out which of these applies by reading between the lines of a drawing set.
The three statements
The drawings on the general construction filing must say which case the project is in.
An elevator is required by the Construction Codes. Then the drawings must also show the location and construction of the elevator enclosure, as the codes require.
An elevator is provided voluntarily. Same drawing obligation: location and enclosure.
Neither required nor provided. Then the drawings must carry the sentence "No elevator device is required." — and that triggers the affirmation below.
The No Elevator Affirmation
Where the scope of work requires no elevator and none is installed voluntarily, the applicant completes the No Elevator Affirmation, which is Attachment A to the bulletin. It is a sworn statement carrying the project address, the BIN and the application number, and it must be signed and sealed by a Registered Design Professional.
It is uploaded in DOB NOW under Additional Supporting Documents required prior to plan approval. Not at permit, not at sign-off — before the plans are approved.
And again at the Certificate of Occupancy
The second half of the bulletin is the one that catches teams months later. When the Elevator Occupancy Sign-Off Request is made in DOB NOW, the elevator information entered there must match the No Elevator Affirmation. A copy of the affirmation is also attached to the CO Worksheet submitted with the Certificate of Occupancy request.
So a filing that declared no elevator and a job that quietly added one has a contradiction to resolve at the worst possible moment. If the scope changes mid-job, the affirmation has to change with it.
What to do
- Put the elevator question in the drawing checklist, next to egress and accessibility, rather than treating it as an elevator-consultant matter.
- Decide the answer before the drawings are issued, because the three cases produce different drawing content.
- Get the affirmation sealed early if the answer is "none". It is a prior-to-approval document and a Registered Design Professional has to sign it.
- Re-open the question if the scope changes. An elevator added later makes the affirmation wrong, and the mismatch surfaces at the Certificate of Occupancy.
- Keep the affirmation with the closeout set, because a copy has to go with the CO Worksheet.
None of this changes the inspection scope. Elevator devices have their own inspection regime, separate from the special inspections on the structure — the distinction we set out in progress inspections versus special inspections and in special inspection versus DOB inspection.
Frequently asked questions
Which filings does the bulletin apply to?
Alteration-CO, New Building with Existing Elements, and New Building. It applies to the general construction filing for these types.
What if the building plainly needs no elevator?
Then the drawings must say "No elevator device is required." and a No Elevator Affirmation has to be sealed and uploaded before plan approval.
Who signs the affirmation?
A Registered Design Professional. It is a sworn statement, signed and sealed.
When does it have to be uploaded?
Prior to plan approval, under Additional Supporting Documents in DOB NOW.
What happens at the Certificate of Occupancy?
The elevator information in the Elevator Occupancy Sign-Off Request must match the affirmation, and a copy of the affirmation goes with the CO Worksheet.
Conclusion
The bulletin does not change when a building needs an elevator. It changes who has to say so, in writing, and when. On a job with no elevator that is one extra sealed page early in the process — cheap, if someone remembers it, and expensive if the drawings reach review without an answer.
Written by the engineers and laboratory technicians of Metric Consulting and Inspection, a Class 1 special inspection agency with a DOB-licensed concrete testing laboratory in Hicksville, New York, serving NYC construction since 2003.