New York City just proposed a rule that tells you exactly what counts as legal netting on a job site, and it matters because right now a lot of what's hanging off scaffolds and sidewalk sheds is basically improvised.
The rule, filed by the Department of Buildings on September 15 and open for public comment, sets specific standards for containment netting — the mesh barrier that's supposed to stop debris, tools, and small materials from falling onto the sidewalk below a work site. Right now, DOB's code says you need netting; it doesn't say much about strength, mesh size, or how it has to be installed and inspected. This rule closes that gap.
Here's why you should care even if you've never had a netting violation. DOB's own blotter this year has been full of items about sheds and scaffolds built off-plan, and containment failures — a bag of tools through a mesh gap, a piece of blocking that should've been caught — are a top reason those Class 1 violations get written. If this rule sets a hard standard for mesh density and attachment points, that standard becomes the new baseline DOB inspectors check against on every site visit, not just the ones with a shed already up.
For a GC or scaffold sub, that means: pull your current netting spec sheets now, don't wait for the comment period to close, and check them against whatever mesh rating and attachment standard the final rule lands on. If your netting supplier can't tell you the mesh opening size and the breaking strength off the top of their head, that's the conversation to have this week, not the week the rule takes effect.
The comment period is open now through the City Record process; there's no legal advice in this — read the rule text yourself and if it changes your netting contract terms, talk to your attorney or your insurer, since containment failures are exactly the kind of claim that ends up litigated after the fact.
Source: NYC Rules, 'Containment Netting,' filed September 15, 2026 — https://rules.cityofnewyork.us/rule/rule-relating-to-containment-netting/