Bill Text: NY A04951 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires public vessels which carry passengers to be covered by insurance or a surety bond covering injury or death to the passengers.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 5-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-04 - held for consideration in insurance [A04951 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A04951-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4951

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 9, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. SIMPSON -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Insurance

        AN ACT to amend the navigation law, in  relation  to  requiring  certain
          policies of insurance for public vessels which carry passengers

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Section 50 of the navigation law, as amended by chapter 672
     2  of the laws of 1962, is amended to read as follows:
     3    § 50. Owners to notify inspector and apply for inspection. It shall be
     4  the duty of the owner of a public vessel which he intends to operate  on
     5  the navigable waters of the state to notify the inspector of such inten-
     6  tion  at  least  one  month  before it is desired to place the vessel in
     7  operation and to request an inspection of such vessel. Upon  receipt  of
     8  such  notification  the  inspector  shall  enter  the application on the
     9  records of his office. A temporary permit to operate such vessel pending
    10  inspection may be issued by the inspector, if he finds through  documen-
    11  tary  evidence  that such vessel is properly equipped and manned for the
    12  safety of life and property. No public vessel shall be used or  operated
    13  without  a  certificate  of inspection or a temporary permit as [herein]
    14  provided in this section.   No certificate of  inspection  or  temporary
    15  permit  shall  be  issued  unless  the owner of a public vessel produces
    16  proof of insurance to the inspector in accordance with section fifty-one
    17  of this part.
    18    § 2. The navigation law is amended by adding two new sections  51  and
    19  52 to read as follows:
    20    §  51.  Liability  insurance on public vessels. 1. Every public vessel
    21  certified to carry passengers which is operated on the navigable  waters
    22  of  the  state, except vessels which navigate on waters which the United
    23  States exercises active control, shall be covered by a corporate  surety
    24  bond  or  a  policy  of protection and indemnity insurance, issued by an
    25  insurer authorized to issue policies  in  this  state  pursuant  to  the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09058-01-1
        A. 4951                             2

     1  insurance  law.  Public vessels certified by the office of parks, recre-
     2  ation and historic preservation to carry passengers shall provide cover-
     3  age of at least one million dollars per  occurrence  for  injury  to  or
     4  death  of  any  person  arising  out  of the negligent operation of said
     5  public vessel.
     6    Every such bond or insurance policy shall contain a  provision  for  a
     7  continuing  liability  thereunder, notwithstanding any recovery thereon,
     8  and shall be in full force and effect  whenever  the  public  vessel  is
     9  underway.
    10    2.  No  policy  or contract shall be issued or delivered in this state
    11  pursuant to this section unless it contains in substance the  provisions
    12  of section three hundred twenty of the insurance law.
    13    3.  Proof  of  bond  or  insurance  required  by this section shall be
    14  produced and displayed by the owner or operator of  such  public  vessel
    15  upon  the  request  of  any  person  having  authority  to  enforce  the
    16  provisions of this chapter. The failure to produce such proof  upon  the
    17  request of any such person shall not be an offense but shall be presump-
    18  tive  evidence  that  the public vessel is being operated without having
    19  such bond or insurance in force and effect.
    20    4. No owner of a public vessel shall operate or permit the same to  be
    21  operated  upon the navigable waters of this state without having in full
    22  force and effect the  liability  insurance  coverage  required  by  this
    23  section,  and no person shall operate a public vessel upon the navigable
    24  waters of this state with knowledge that such insurance is not  in  full
    25  force and effect.
    26    5.  Operation  of  a public vessel in violation of the requirements of
    27  this section shall be punishable as a  misdemeanor  in  accordance  with
    28  section seventy-three-b of this article.
    29    §  52.  Self-insurers. The commissioner may, in his or her discretion,
    30  upon the application of an owner of a public vessel to have such  public
    31  vessel  certified,  issue a certificate of self-insurance when he or she
    32  is reasonably satisfied that such person is possessed and will  continue
    33  to  be  possessed  of  the  financial  ability  to  respond to judgments
    34  obtained against such person, arising out of the ownership, maintenance,
    35  use or operation of any such person's public vessel. Upon due notice and
    36  hearing, the commissioner may, in his or her discretion and upon reason-
    37  able grounds, cancel a certificate of self-insurance.
    38    § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    39  have become a law.