Cal. Civ. Code § 5:10-25.3
Criteria for acceptance
Operative Text
(a) Before accepting a device or system of devices for indirect apportionment of heating costs for use in multiple dwellings, the Bureau, after consultation with the Bureau of Construction Project Review, shall be satisfied that it is: 1. Reliable and accurate; 2. Subject to an appropriate inspection and maintenance schedule; 3. Capable of equitably measuring distribution of energy to all occupancies based on actual usage; 4. Equipped with individual thermostats for each dwelling unit; 5. Designed to produce itemized billing statements, or to produce data for itemized billing statements, based on actual use in each dwelling unit; and, 6. Not designed so as to include additional costs or usages, whether apportioned or not, in the data or billings for individual dwelling units. (b) The Bureau, in consultation with the Bureau of Construction Project Review, shall review testing records for all devices and systems, inspection and maintenance records for devices and systems previously in use and proposed schedules for inspection and maintenance. (c) The following general classes of systems may be approved: 1. Gas, oil, or electric-fired furnace systems that monitor time of delivery of gas, or electricity or oil consumed, rate of consumption and accuracy of timer activation; 2. Hydronic heated/cooled systems that monitor changes in water temperature, volume of water, and time period of usage; and 3. Any other type of system that the Department approves in accordance with these rules. (d) The following general classes of methods, devices and systems shall not be approved because of inherent inaccuracy: 1. Methods that rely on any means of calculation other than the use of approved devices or systems; and 2. Any device or system not meeting the requirements set forth in ASHRAE Guideline 8-1994, "Energy Cost Allocation for Multiple-Occupancy Residential Buildings," incorporated herein by reference, as amended and supplemented, published by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc., 1791 Tullie Circle, NE, Atlanta, GA 30329-2305. (e) The Bureau shall not reject, on technical grounds, any device or system that is approved by the Bureau of Construction Project Review.
N.J.A.C. § 5:10-25.3 establishes the criteria that heating cost apportionment devices and systems must meet before they can be used in New Jersey multiple dwellings. To gain approval, a device or system must be reliable, accurate, capable of equitable measurement based on actual usage, equipped with individual thermostats, and able to produce itemized billing statements that exclude unrelated costs. Certain categories of systems—such as gas, oil, or electric furnace systems and hydronic systems—may qualify, while methods relying on non-device calculations or systems failing ASHRAE Guideline 8-1994 standards are expressly prohibited.
Plain English — not legal advice.
Property owners and managers seeking to use indirect heating cost apportionment in multiple dwellings must ensure that any proposed device or system satisfies the acceptance criteria set out in N.J.A.C. § 5:10-25.3 before deployment. Compliant operators typically submit testing records, maintain appropriate inspection and maintenance schedules, and verify that their chosen system meets ASHRAE Guideline 8-1994 standards and produces itemized billing statements based solely on each unit's actual usage. Systems that have already received approval from the Bureau of Construction Project Review cannot be rejected by the Bureau on technical grounds, which may be relevant when coordinating approvals across agencies.
General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.
Under N.J.A.C. § 5:10-25.3, tenants in multiple dwellings have a regulatory basis to expect that any heating cost apportionment system used in their building has been vetted for reliability, accuracy, and equitable measurement of actual usage, and that billing statements are itemized and free of unrelated costs. If a tenant believes that a system in use does not meet these criteria—for example, that bills include costs beyond individual unit usage—they may raise this as a concern with the New Jersey Bureau of Housing Inspection or consult a tenant-rights organization familiar with state utility billing rules. Keeping copies of billing statements and any communications about heating charges can be useful when pursuing such inquiries.
General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.
Generated November 3, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.
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