“The state itself is doing very little in this case. The state is washing its hand of the issue. It’s now not standing in the way of doing this kind of thing,” Sigmon says. “That’s a down-economy type of gesture.”

This recession-minded, authority-transferring bill is nevertheless investment oriented: the property taxes not being collected are being spent instead on sustainable design. In that sense, the funds are being invested in the public good , and in the economic knock-on effects that come with a greener building. These benefits take a variety of forms that can be difficult to sum up: from reductions in energy consumption to stormwater runoff to heat-island effects.

State legislatures for New York and other East Coast states may adopt such bills to permit city and county governments to take specific action. “Moving further west,” Sigmon says, “it’s the city that has the stronger authority. State governments can’t do something unless the city or other local municipalities allow them to.”

Nevada passed a property tax exemption for commercial buildings, but dialed it back somewhat last year; the state couldn’t afford it. It’s unclear whether other municipalities, from towns across upstate New York to New York City, will adopt the measure. Sigmon says that the bill would make little difference in Manhattan, where the market for Class A office space tends to prefer LEED-certified projects as a market standard.

For Long Island, though, “it couldn’t come at a better time,” Copogna says, “because construction right now is not exactly booming. This might have a great positive effect—taking a project that might be on the boards and pushing it over.”

Copogna is optimistic that municipalities across New York will take the state up on its offer. “We’re not exactly a very low property tax area,” he says.