An ECB violation is a summons issued by a New York City agency, most often the Department of Buildings, that carries a monetary penalty and is decided at a hearing before the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH). The name comes from the Environmental Control Board, the tribunal that used to hear these cases before it was folded into OATH. DOB records, title searches and lenders still call them ECB violations, and you will see "ECB," "OATH" and "DOB-ECB" used interchangeably. They all mean the same thing: a ticket with a hearing date and a fine attached.
ECB violation vs. DOB violation
The two are often confused because a single inspection can produce both. A DOB violation is the department's notice that a condition does not comply with the Building Code, the Zoning Resolution or DOB rules. It stays open on the property's record until the condition is corrected and the violation is dismissed, but the DOB violation itself does not have a fine. An ECB/OATH violation is the summons that comes with a penalty and a hearing. For work without a permit, for example, the inspector typically writes a DOB violation for the condition and an OATH summons for the offense.
Resolving one does not resolve the other. Paying the OATH penalty does not close the DOB violation, and correcting the condition does not cancel the OATH penalty unless a certificate of correction is accepted and the summons is resolved at hearing.
Classes and what they mean
DOB-issued OATH summonses are classified by severity:
- Class 1, immediately hazardous. Conditions that pose an immediate danger, such as unsafe structural work, work without a permit that affects life safety, or failure to comply with a stop-work order. Class 1 summonses carry the highest penalties and require a certificate of correction to be filed with DOB and accepted, regardless of the hearing outcome.
- Class 2, major. Serious but not immediately dangerous conditions, such as many work-without-permit cases and failures to maintain building systems.
- Class 3, lesser. Administrative and record-keeping items, such as failure to post a permit or maintain required signage.
The class drives the penalty. DOB publishes a penalty schedule with a standard amount for each offense and reduced or increased amounts depending on whether the respondent appears, whether the condition was corrected, and whether it is a repeat offense. Penalties for work without a permit and illegal conversions run into the thousands of dollars per summons, with daily penalties available for continuing conditions, and repeat offenses are assessed at higher amounts.
What happens after the summons is issued
The summons lists a hearing date. The respondent (usually the owner, sometimes the contractor or a licensed professional) has three basic options:
- Correct and certify. Fix the condition, then submit a certificate of correction to DOB's enforcement unit with photographs and supporting documents. For certain classes, a timely, accepted certificate of correction reduces or eliminates the penalty. For Class 1 items it is required in all cases.
- Contest the summons. Appear at the OATH hearing, in person, by phone, online or by written submission, and present a defense. Dismissals happen when the summons was served improperly, cited the wrong section, described a condition that does not exist, or when the respondent can show compliance.
- Admit and pay. Pay the penalty before the hearing. This closes the summons but does not close a related DOB violation, and it counts as a prior offense.
Ignoring the summons is the worst option. A default results in the maximum penalty, and unpaid default judgments accrue interest, get transferred to the Department of Finance, and can be entered as liens against the property. Defaults can be reopened in some circumstances, but only within limits and with a valid reason.
How ECB violations affect a property
- Sales and refinancing. Title companies search for open summonses and judgments. Unpaid penalties show up as exceptions and often have to be paid or escrowed at closing.
- New permits. Open Class 1 items and unresolved stop-work orders can block approval of new filings, and open items in general are flagged during plan examination.
- Sign-off. A Letter of Completion or Certificate of Occupancy will not be issued while related violations remain open.
- Contractors and licensees. Summonses issued to a contractor or a professional go on their record with DOB and can affect registrations and licenses.
How to look one up
OATH summonses can be searched by address, summons number or respondent name on the city's OATH and DOB sites, and DOB's public portal lists ECB violations on the property record along with the class, status and penalty. The free open violation lookup on our home page pulls open DOB and ECB/OATH records for any NYC address from NYC Open Data, including the outstanding penalty balance, which is a useful first check before buying, financing or filing.
Clearing an ECB violation
The right path depends on the summons. In most cases it is a combination of correcting the condition (which may itself require a permit), documenting the correction properly, filing the certificate of correction, and handling the hearing. Old summonses that were corrected years ago but never closed are common on older buildings and can usually be resolved with the right paperwork. We handle the research and the resolution under our violation research and objection and violation resolution services, and we coordinate any permits the correction work needs.