Since late June 2026, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) has issued two enforcement discretion letters concerning climate regulations. The regulations at issue—6 NYCRR Part 253 for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reporting and 6 NYCRR Part 494 for prohibition of certain hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants—are both subject to pending litigation in state courts. These challenges are based on the regulated community’s significant concerns regarding statutory authority as well as the agency’s overreach. Tellingly, these latest actions by the NYSDEC follow numerous prior enforcement discretion letters and variances.
NYSDEC Regulation of GHG Emissions
Effective December 25, 2025, Part 253 requires industrial and commercial entities to track and annually report their GHG emissions to the NYSDEC through its New York State Greenhouse Gas Reporting Tool. These reporting entities include, among others, owners and operators of facilities “within New York” that meet or exceed 10,000 metric tons or more of carbon dioxide equivalent per year and suppliers of natural gas, liquid fuels, and petroleum products that supply any quantity of product in the state. As currently written and enforceable, Part 253 requires the reporting of upstream out-of-state emissions, including from the extraction and transmission of fossil fuels imported into the state. Large reporting entities are further required to provide the NYSDEC with third-party verification of their annual GHG emissions, including where the upstream out-of-state emissions data is outside their custody and control.
As stated in the NYSDEC’s rulemaking proceeding, Part 494 was amended in December 2024 to achieve the GHG emission reduction goals of the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). Amended Part 494 phases out the sale of high global warming potential (GWP) HFCs through restrictions on bulk virgin HFC sales and newly manufactured commercial heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration products. Amended Part 494 also requires commercial equipment registration, leak monitoring, and repair controls.
CLCPA Amendments Impact NYSDEC’s Authority to Regulate
After the adoption of amended Part 494 and Part 253, the CLCPA (codified in relevant part in ECL Article 75) was substantially amended by the state legislature on May 26, 2026. Among the amendments were changes to the state’s emissions reduction goals, the accounting methodology upon which the emissions reduction goals are based, the types of GHG emissions inventoried, and a significant extension of the NYSDEC’s rulemaking deadline to adopt rules and regulations designed to achieve the targeted emissions reductions. The amendments also require the NYSDEC to consider feasibility, affordability, and the importance of fostering economic growth and competitiveness.
While the recent CLCPA amendments arguably address some of the regulated community’s concerns, the NYSDEC has elected not to modify their regulations—at least not yet for Part 253 and likely not at all for Part 494. By enforcement letter dated July 31, 2026, the NYSDEC has stayed its enforcement of many of the upcoming compliance deadlines of Part 253, including extensions of the first annual GHG emissions report from June 1, 2027, to December 31, 2027, and the 2026 verification statement from large emissions sources from December 1, 2027, to April 1, 2028. But the substantive requirements of the rule continue to apply. The letter states that the NYSDEC plans to develop a regulatory package to amend Part 253 to conform to the new requirements of the amended CLCPA but does not specify any anticipated revisions, let alone a timeframe for doing so. Conversely, the June 29, 2026, enforcement discretion letter applicable to amended Part 494 makes no mention of anticipated revisions to conform to the new requirements of the amended CLCPA and instead provides yet another extension of the deadlines imposed in amended Part 494 (NYSDEC’s sixth extension of its amended Part 494 prohibition dates).
Conclusion
Although these letters alleviate immediate enforcement anxieties, they defy the legislative mandate that agency actions conform to uniform, sound, and equitable standards. The most recent NYSDEC enforcement discretion letter for Part 253 merely extends the deadlines for certain reporting; it fails to stay or repeal any of the substantive requirements necessitated by the statutory revisions. And the exercise of enforcement discretion for Part 494 is merely another after-the-fact attempt by the agency to fix their improper rulemaking.
Agencies must regulate within their authority, accounting for feasibility, cost, and realistic timelines for technology forcing rules. They cannot exceed their delegated power, nor should they remedy inherent regulatory defects through selective, discretionary fixes. This backdoor approach creates chaotic legal risk and destroys the clear rules businesses need to operate.
Bottom line: Right now the regulatory community has a short reprieve from enforcement. The NYSDEC has at least signaled that changes to Part 253 are forthcoming. It remains to be seen exactly what those changes will be or when they will be implemented. Changes to Part 494 are unlikely as NYSDEC continues to claim its variance process is sufficient to address implementation challenges. Apart from that, it will be up to the courts.
Barclay Damon will continue to monitor how the NYSDEC implements the amendments to the CLCPA.
If you have any questions regarding the content of this alert, please contact Yvonne Hennessey, Environmental Practice Area chair, at yhennessey@barclaydamon.com; Danielle Mettler-LaFeir, partner, at dmettler@barclaydamon.com; Thais Dombrowski, special counsel, at tdombrowski@barclaydamon.com; or another member of the firm’s Environmental Practice Area.