New York mold remediation plan, work plan and clearance report: what Article 32 asks for

Download the remediation plan template: PDFWord

Who writes what

• The mold assessor inspects, writes the mold remediation plan and gives it to the client before remediation begins. After the work, the assessor does the post-remediation assessment and issues a passed clearance report or a final status report.
• The mold remediation contractor writes a work plan that carries out the assessor's plan and gives it to the client before site preparation begins. The contractor posts signs, supplies protective equipment and keeps the containment up until the assessor says the job passed clearance.
• They can't be the same company. No licensee may do both the assessment and the remediation on the same project, and no one may own an interest in both the assessment and the remediation company on it (Labor Law § 936).

Both companies need a license from the New York State Department of Labor, and each crew member who removes or cleans the mold needs a mold abatement worker license. The license has to be displayed at the work site.

When Article 32 applies

The law covers a "project": mold assessment, remediation or abatement of areas greater than 10 square feet (Labor Law § 930). Routine cleaning doesn't count, and neither does construction, maintenance or repair done for reasons other than mold. Section 933 also exempts some owners who do the work on their own property, such as a homeowner on their own home, and government agencies on property they own or manage. Read the exemptions themselves before relying on one.

The mold remediation plan (the assessor)

Section 945 says the plan must be specific to the project and given to the client before remediation begins. It has to cover:

1. The rooms or areas where the work will be done.
2. The estimated quantities of materials to be cleaned or removed.
3. The methods for each type of remediation in each type of area.
4. The personal protective equipment the remediation contractor must supply to the abatement workers.
5. The proposed clearance procedures and criteria for each type of area.
6. When the building is occupied, how occupants will be told about the work, with posting recommendations that fit the project.
7. An estimate of the cost and the time to finish.
8. Where possible, the underlying sources of moisture and the type of contractor who should fix them.

The plan can call for containment to keep mold from spreading beyond the work area. If it calls for a disinfectant, biocide or antimicrobial coating, it can name a specific product only if that product is registered with the US EPA for the use, and the choice should take occupants' sensitivities into account.

The mold remediation work plan (the remediation contractor)

Section 946 says the work plan must be specific to the project, carry out the assessor's remediation plan, and give the instructions or standard operating procedures for doing the job. The client gets it before site preparation begins. On the job, the contractor:

• Supplies the protective equipment the remediation plan calls for to the workers who may disturb or remove mold.
• Builds containment, where the plan calls for it, that keeps mold from spreading outside it.
• Posts signs at every accessible entrance to the work area saying a mold remediation project is in progress.
• Uses a disinfectant, biocide or coating only if the plan calls for it, only if it is EPA-registered for that use, and as the label says.
• Leaves the containment up until the assessor's notice that the project passed clearance arrives.

Work plan template: PDFWord

The post-remediation assessment and clearance report (the assessor)

Under section 947, a licensed assessor checks that the work area is free of all visible mold, that the work followed the remediation plan and the work plan, and that it meets the plan's clearance criteria. As far as possible, the assessor also confirms the underlying cause has been fixed; if it hasn't, the assessor recommends the type of contractor who can fix it. Then:

• If it passes, the assessor gives the client a written passed clearance report.
• If it doesn't, the assessor gives the client and the remediation contractor a written final status report recommending a new assessment, finishing the original plan, or fixing the cause, as fits.

The Department of Labor suggests using the assessor who wrote the remediation plan for the clearance, though the law doesn't require it.

Clearance report template: PDFWord

In New York City: the Local Law 61 filings

New York City adds filings for "covered buildings": buildings with 10 or more apartments, or on a zoning lot with 25,000 or more square feet of non-residential floor area. For a project of more than 10 square feet in one of them:

• The owner, the managing agent and their employees can't do the work themselves. It has to be done by licensed companies under Article 32.
• The remediation contractor files a notice with the city, with a copy of the work plan, no later than 2 business days before remediation begins. If a court order requires the work within 30 days or less, or the condition poses an immediate risk to people or property, the notice is due within 24 hours after the work starts.
• The assessor files a notice with a copy of the post-remediation assessment no later than 7 days after finishing it.

The Department of Environmental Protection takes the filings online and lists fines of $800 to $10,000 for not hiring licensed companies or not filing the post-remediation forms.

Photos and records

The three documents have to agree with each other, and photos are what tie them together. Number the photos for each work area in the assessment, use the same area names in the work plan, and take the after photos from the same spots at clearance. Put a tape measure or the meter reading in the frame where a size or a reading matters. Photos that carry the date, time and location in the image show what was there before the containment came down, which is the question people ask later.

Common mistakes

• A remediation plan with areas but no quantities, so the remediation contractor can't price it from the plan.
• A work plan that uses different area names or a different scope than the remediation plan.
• Taking the containment down before the assessor's clearance notice.
• The same company, or companies with a common owner, assessing and remediating the same job.
• In New York City, starting work without the notice filed 2 business days ahead, or filing the post-remediation forms late.
• Cleaning the mold and never naming the moisture source behind it.

Doing it in FieldPix

Run the built-in Mold Inspection checklist on the assessment, then the three New York checklists built into FieldPix: NY Mold: Remediation Plan (§ 945), NY Mold: Remediation Work Plan (§ 946) and NY Mold: Post-Remediation Clearance (§ 947). They ask the questions in the sections above, with photos where they count, and each one becomes its own PDF with your logo. Copy any of them to change the questions. Record a walkthrough as you go: say what you find and take photos, and FieldPix writes notes for each area with the photos under them. Every photo carries the time, date and location burned into the image. One tap turns the job into a PDF report with your logo that you can share with the client from a private link. FieldPix doesn't file anything with the city or decide whether a job meets the law; the licensed assessor and contractor do. See FieldPix for mold and water damage.

This guide summarizes the law; it isn't legal advice. Sources: New York Labor Law Article 32, sections 930, 933, 936, 945, 946 and 947; the NYS Department of Labor Mold Program; NYC DEP, Mold Abatement, and Local Law 61 of 2018.