Bill Text: NY A01291 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Causes a person who engages in certain non-driving activities while driving to be guilty of inattentive driving; provides that inattentive driving is considered a traffic infraction; provides that if a person commits three violations of inattentive driving during an eighteen month period, he or she is guilty of reckless driving.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - referred to transportation [A01291 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A01291-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1291 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 11, 2017 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. GANTT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to inattentive driving, and to amend the state finance law, in relation to creating the attentive driver education fund The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature finds and 2 determines that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 3 (NHTSA), whose mission it is to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce 4 traffic related health care costs and other economic costs through regu- 5 lation, enforcement, economic incentives, educational programs, basic 6 and applied research, and technology demonstration programs, has taken a 7 particular interest in the issue of driver distraction. 8 The legislature finds that NHTSA encourages states to actively enforce 9 their reckless and inattentive driving laws, regardless of the causes of 10 such behavior. 11 For this reason, the legislature finds that New York state should 12 vigorously enforce its current reckless driving law and enact an inat- 13 tentive driving statute to better discourage drivers from engaging in 14 non-driving related activities while driving or using a motor vehicle; 15 activities that can interfere with or endanger other users of public 16 highways. 17 The legislature further directs the governor's traffic safety commit- 18 tee to create a public outreach program to inform and educate the public 19 about the dangers of reckless and inattentive driving and to encourage 20 safe driving habits. 21 § 2. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section 22 1212-a to read as follows: 23 § 1212-a. Inattentive driving. 1. Inattentive driving shall mean 24 engaging in any non-driving activity while driving a motor vehicle, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01436-01-7A. 1291 2 1 motorcycle, or any other vehicle propelled by any power other than 2 muscular power, where (a) the non-driving activity unreasonably inter- 3 feres with the free and proper use of the public highway; or (b) the 4 non-driving activity unreasonably endangers other people who are using 5 the public highways. Every person violating the provisions of this 6 section shall be guilty of a traffic infraction. 7 2. Any person who violates the provisions of subdivision one of this 8 section shall be punished as follows: (a) by a fine of not less than 9 fifty dollars nor more than one hundred fifty dollars for any conviction 10 that is not covered under paragraph (b) of this subdivision; or (b) by a 11 fine of not less than one hundred fifty dollars nor more than two 12 hundred fifty dollars for a conviction that occurs within six months of 13 a previous conviction under this section. 14 § 3. Section 1212 of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 15 47 of the laws of 1988, is amended to read as follows: 16 § 1212. Reckless driving. (a) Reckless driving shall mean: 17 1. driving or using any motor vehicle, motorcycle or any other vehicle 18 propelled by any power other than muscular power or any appliance or 19 accessory thereof in a manner which unreasonably interferes with the 20 free and proper use of the public highway, or unreasonably endangers 21 users of the public highway. Reckless driving is prohibited; or 22 2. violating the provisions of section twelve hundred twelve-a of this 23 article three times, all of which are within a period of eighteen 24 months. 25 (b) Every person violating this provision shall be guilty of a misde- 26 meanor. 27 § 4. The governor's traffic safety committee, with the cooperation of 28 the department of motor vehicles, the department of transportation, the 29 division of state police, and any other department, division, board, 30 bureau, commission, agency or public authority of the state or any poli- 31 tical subdivision deemed necessary by the committee shall develop and 32 implement a public outreach campaign to inform the general public of the 33 dangers of reckless and inattentive driving, including additional 34 hazards created by engaging in non-driving related activities while 35 driving a motor vehicle; and to encourage safe driving habits. 36 § 5. Subdivision 3 of section 1809 of the vehicle and traffic law, as 37 amended by chapter 309 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as 38 follows: 39 3. The mandatory surcharge provided for in subdivision one of this 40 section shall be paid to the clerk of the court or administrative tribu- 41 nal that rendered the conviction. Within the first ten days of the month 42 following collection of the mandatory surcharge the collecting authority 43 shall determine the amount of mandatory surcharge collected and, if it 44 is an administrative tribunal or a town or village justice court, it 45 shall pay such money to the state comptroller who shall deposit such 46 money in the state treasury pursuant to section one hundred twenty-one 47 of the state finance law to the credit of the general fund; provided, 48 however, that the comptroller shall deposit such money collected for 49 violations of section twelve hundred twelve-a of this chapter to the 50 credit of the attentive driver education fund established pursuant to 51 section ninety-eight-d of the state finance law. If such collecting 52 authority is any other court of the unified court system, it shall, 53 within such period, pay such money to the state commissioner of taxation 54 and finance to the credit of the criminal justice improvement account 55 established by section ninety-seven-bb of the state finance law; 56 provided, however, that the state commissioner of taxation and financeA. 1291 3 1 shall deposit such money collected for violations of section twelve 2 hundred twelve-a of this chapter to the credit of the attentive driver 3 education fund established pursuant to section ninety-eight-d of the 4 state finance law. The crime victim assistance fee provided for in 5 subdivision one of this section shall be paid to the clerk of the court 6 or administrative tribunal that rendered the conviction. Within the 7 first ten days of the month following collection of the crime victim 8 assistance fee, the collecting authority shall determine the amount of 9 crime victim assistance fee collected and, if it is an administrative 10 tribunal or a town or village justice court, it shall pay such money to 11 the state comptroller who shall deposit such money in the state treasury 12 pursuant to section one hundred twenty-one of the state finance law to 13 the credit of the criminal justice improvement account established by 14 section ninety-seven-bb of the state finance law. 15 § 6. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 98-d to 16 read as follows: 17 § 98-d. Attentive driver education fund. 1. There is hereby estab- 18 lished in the joint custody of the state comptroller and the commission- 19 er of motor vehicles a fund known as the attentive driver education 20 fund. 21 2. The fund shall consist of monies received by the state from any 22 court of the unified court system pursuant to section eighteen hundred 23 nine of the vehicle and traffic law for violations of section twelve 24 hundred twelve-a of such law, and all other fines, fees, grants, 25 bequests, or other monies credited, appropriated or transferred thereto 26 from any other fund or source. 27 3. The monies of the fund, following appropriation by the legislature, 28 shall be made available to the governor's traffic safety committee for 29 the development and implementation of a public outreach campaign as 30 provided in section four of the chapter of the laws of two thousand 31 seventeen that added this section. 32 4. The monies of the fund made available pursuant to subdivision three 33 of this section shall be paid out on the audit and warrant of the comp- 34 troller on vouchers approved and certified by the commissioner of motor 35 vehicles. At the end of each year any monies remaining in the fund shall 36 be retained in the fund and shall not revert to the general fund. The 37 interest and income earned on money in the fund, after deducting any 38 applicable charges, shall be credited to the fund. 39 § 7. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed- 40 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
