Bill Text: NY A11376 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits the sale of infant walkers and restricts the use of such infant walkers in certain settings.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-2)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-10-19 - referred to consumer affairs and protection [A11376 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A11376-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 11376 IN ASSEMBLY October 19, 2018 ___________ Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Paulin, McDonough, Seawright, Dinowitz, Fahy, Gottfried, Pellegrino, Weprin, Pheffer Amato, Simon) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting the sale of infant walkers and restricting the use of such infant walkers in certain settings The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 2 399-k to read as follows: 3 § 399-k. Prohibit the sale of infant walkers and restrict use of such 4 walkers in certain settings. 1. For the purposes of this section: 5 (a) "Infant walker" shall mean an infant walker or baby walker, which 6 are devices that are manufactured to facilitate walking mobility in 7 infants and babies. 8 (b) "Distributor" shall mean any person who delivers to a person other 9 than purchaser, for the purpose of retail sale. 10 (c) "Manufacturer" shall mean any person who makes and places into the 11 stream of commerce an infant walker as defined by this section. 12 (d) "Retailer" shall have the same meaning as set forth in subdivision 13 eleven of section four hundred ninety-a of this chapter. 14 (e) "Secondhand dealer" shall have the same meaning as set forth in 15 subdivision six of section four hundred ninety-a of this chapter. 16 (f) "Child care facility" shall mean any place subject to section 17 three hundred ninety of the social services law or article forty-seven 18 of the New York city health code as authorized by section five hundred 19 fifty-eight of the New York city charter. 20 (g) "Person" shall mean a natural person, firm, corporation, limited 21 liability company, association, or an employee or agent of a natural 22 person or an entity included in this definition. 23 2. No manufacturer, importer, distributor, wholesaler, retailer or 24 secondhand dealer shall sell, lease, offer for sale, or offer for lease 25 in this state any infant walker. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD16573-01-8A. 11376 2 1 3. (a) On or after the effective date of this section, no child care 2 facility shall use or have on the premises any infant walker unless a 3 medical professional has determined that use of an infant walker is 4 medically necessary for a particular child in such child care facility. 5 (b) The office of children and family services, in consultation with 6 the city of New York department of health and mental hygiene, shall 7 notify child care facilities of the provisions of this subdivision in 8 plain, non-technical language. Such notice shall be given to every child 9 care facility upon the effective date of this section or as soon as 10 practicable thereafter, and such notice shall also be given to each 11 applicant for license or registration pursuant to section three hundred 12 ninety of the social services law. 13 (c) The office of children and family services shall promulgate rules 14 and regulations to carry out the provisions of this subdivision, with 15 respect to the ban on infant walkers in child care facilities. 16 4. Whenever there shall be a violation of subdivision two of this 17 section an application may be made by the attorney general in the name 18 of the people of the state of New York to a court or justice having 19 jurisdiction by a special proceeding to issue an injunction, and upon 20 notice to the defendant of not less than five days, to enjoin and 21 restrain the continuance of such violations; and if it shall appear to 22 the satisfaction of the court or justice that the defendant has, in 23 fact, violated this section, an injunction may be issued by the court or 24 justice, enjoining and restraining any further violations, without 25 requiring proof that any person has, in fact, been injured or damaged 26 thereby. In any such proceeding, the court may make allowances to the 27 attorney general as provided in paragraph six of subdivision (a) of 28 section eighty-three hundred three of the civil practice law and rules, 29 and direct restitution. Whenever the court shall determine that a 30 violation of subdivision two of this section has occurred, the court may 31 impose a civil penalty of not more than five hundred dollars for each 32 violation. Each sale of an infant walker in violation of this section 33 shall constitute a separate violation. In connection with any such 34 proposed application, the attorney general is authorized to take proof 35 and make a determination of the relevant facts and to issue subpoenas in 36 accordance with the civil practice law and rules. 37 5. If any provision of this section or the application thereof to any 38 person or circumstance is held unconstitutional, such invalidity shall 39 not affect other provisions or applications of this section which can be 40 given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this 41 end the provisions of this section are severable. 42 § 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall 43 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or 44 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of 45 this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be made 46 and completed on or before such effective date.
