How to Resolve an ECB Violation: Cure Dates, Hearings and the Certificate of Correction
Older papers say ECB, for the Environmental Control Board. Newer papers say OATH, the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. For a Buildings Department case, those are the same kind of summons.
An ECB violation is a city summons about a condition on your property. The class is printed on the paper: Class 1 is immediately hazardous, Class 2 is major, and Class 3 is lesser. The class changes the deadline and the penalty. Call S & M Expediting when you find the paper. We will read the summons with you and tell you what it requires before any filing is made.
Read the hearing date
Read the hearing date the day you get the notice. The fastest way to know what to do next is to call us with the address and the summons number, at 718-833-2333 or info@sandmexpediting.com. We look the summons up and walk you through the date, the class, and the filing the city still needs.
Cure dates
Some summonses print a cure date. If yours does, an acceptable certificate of correction filed by that date, with the cure option selected, can let you avoid the hearing and the penalty. Not every summons has a cure date, so use the date on your own paper. We prepare the certificate and follow it with the city so a cure date is not missed.
The certificate of correction
A certificate of correction is the form and the proof you send the Buildings Department to show the problem is fixed. Proof can include photos, permits, receipts, and a sign-off from a licensed professional when the summons requires one. The city takes that filing through DOB NOW: Safety.
Paying the fine is not the same thing. Paying on or before the hearing date admits the charge and gives up the hearing, and the violation can still sit on the building record until a certificate of correction is accepted, unless the case is dismissed. If you already paid and the violation is still online, call us. That is usually the missing filing, and it is the work we do.
Stipulations
Some cases are resolved by a stipulation, an agreement, usually around the hearing, on the penalty and on what still has to be corrected. A stipulation does not by itself remove the violation from Buildings Department records. The certificate of correction is still required unless the case is dismissed. Talk to us before you agree to one.
The OATH hearing
If you are going to the hearing, ask for a phone or in-person appearance before the date passes. OATH says a phone hearing has to be requested at least three business days ahead, and an in-person hearing at least five. If you are short on time or out of town, our staff can go to the hearing for you. Missing the hearing is treated as a default, with the maximum penalty. If you already missed it, OATH allows one request to reopen, and says it will grant a request that arrives within 75 days of the missed date. Call us with the summons number so we can check the status.
Plumbers and contractors
If the condition needs a plumber, an electrician, or a contractor, you hire that licensed person. S & M Expediting does not do the construction. We will work with the contractor you have, or if not, we will recommend one from our network. We prepare the certificate of correction and the related filings, and follow them until the record is addressed.
S & M Expediting is a New York City certified minority- and women-owned business.