Part 494 Variance Application and Public Comment

Regulated business entities under Part 494 “Hydrofluorocarbon Standards and Reporting” may be subject to requirements of the rule as suppliers and owners or operators. Some requirements start on the effective date of January 9, 2025. Review the Part 494 regulation on the Climate Change Regulatory Revisions webpage.

Entities can apply for a variance to the rule. The Part 494 Variance Application Form is now available. Please note all applicants will be required to have a ny.gov account. For help with ny.gov account creation and general nForm access, please visit DEC's nForm webpage.

As of August 28, 2025, DEC has published an updated Part 494 Variance Application Form. If you are resubmitting an application form, please use this updated version.

Submit Variance Application Form

A variance is a formal request to the agency for temporary relief from a regulation for that specific entity. Variance requests for Part 494 are allowable for economic hardship, impossibility, and force majeure. DEC may publicly post a variance application based on impossibility or force majeure for a 30-day public comment period.

Note: Potential applicants for a variance for the use of R-410A VRF systems must first review the approved Joint OEM Variance below to determine if their equipment is covered by that variance. If the equipment is covered – including all conditions in the Joint OEM Variance – then no additional approval is needed from DEC, and no additional variance application is required. It is the responsibility of the potential applicant to determine if the equipment is covered, including, if necessary, contacting the manufacturer listed to determine if the equipment is covered by the Joint OEM Variance.

Approved Variances

The following variances have been approved.

ApplicantVariance ApplicationDetermination
Extell Development CompanyExtell Variance Application (PDF)DEC Response (PDF)

Variances Available for Public Comment 

DEC released the following variance applications for public comment.

Applicant 

Variance Application 

Comment Period 

Determination 

NYC HPD

NYC HPD Variance Application (PDF)

Monday, April 14 - Wednesday, May 14

DEC Response (PDF)

Daikin Comfort Technologies North America, Inc.; LG Electronics U.S.A., Inc.; Mitsubishi
Electric U.S., Inc.; Samsung HVAC America, LLC		VRF Joint Variance Application (PDF)Wednesday, October 8 - Friday November 7, 2025 DEC Response (PDF)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please fill out the public comment form to submit public comments on a specific variance application. All public comments will be reviewed by DEC before issuing a final determination on the application. For any questions or to submit public comments via email, contact [email protected]. 

Submit Public Comment Form

To submit comments via mail, please send to NYSDEC Office of Climate Change, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233-1030. Please include the name of the variance application you are commenting on in the subject line. 

For more information about Part 494, the regulation express terms, supplemental documents, frequently asked questions, and a fact sheet, please visit DEC’s Climate Change Regulatory Revisions webpage. To receive notifications of variance applications and decisions, please sign up for the Climate Change Regulation Distribution List and select “Variance Application" or all updates for Part 494.

Contact for this Page

Office of Climate Change
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-1030

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