Bill Text: NY S00220 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits any person, partnership, or corporation from engaging in the for-profit bail bond business.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO CODES [S00220 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S00220-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 220 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 9, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sens. BENJAMIN, HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes AN ACT to amend the criminal procedure law, the insurance law and the general business law, in relation to prohibiting the bail bond busi- ness; and to repeal certain provisions of such laws, relating thereto The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 520.10 of the criminal procedure 2 law, paragraph (i) as amended by chapter 457 of the laws of 2005, is 3 amended to read as follows: 4 1. The only authorized forms of bail are the following: 5 (a) Cash bail. 6 (b) [An insurance company bail bond.7(c)] A secured surety bond. 8 [(d)] (c) A secured appearance bond. 9 [(e)] (d) A partially secured surety bond. 10 [(f)] (e) A partially secured appearance bond. 11 [(g)] (f) An unsecured surety bond. 12 [(h)] (g) An unsecured appearance bond. 13 [(i)] (h) Credit card or similar device; provided, however, that 14 notwithstanding any other provision of law, any person posting bail by 15 credit card or similar device also may be required to pay a reasonable 16 administrative fee. The amount of such administrative fee and the time 17 and manner of its payment shall be in accordance with the system estab- 18 lished pursuant to subdivision four of section 150.30 of this chapter or 19 paragraph (j) of subdivision two of section two hundred twelve of the 20 judiciary law, as appropriate. 21 § 2. Subdivision 16 of section 500.10 of the criminal procedure law is 22 REPEALED and subdivisions 17, 18, 19 and 20 are renumbered subdivisions 23 16, 17, 18 and 19. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01754-01-9S. 220 2 1 § 3. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 520.30 of the criminal 2 procedure law, as amended by chapter 384 of the laws of 1984, is amended 3 to read as follows: 4 (a) The background, character and reputation of any obligor[, and, in5the case of an insurance company bail bond, the qualifications of the6surety-obligor and its executing agent]; and 7 § 4. The article heading of article 68 of the insurance law is amended 8 to read as follows: 9 [BAIL BONDS] CHARITABLE BAIL ORGANIZATIONS 10 § 5. Sections 6801, 6802, 6803 and 6804 of the insurance law are 11 REPEALED and section 6805 is renumbered section 6801. 12 § 6. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 391-u 13 to read as follows: 14 § 391-u. Prohibit the bail bond business. 1. For purposes of this 15 section "bail bond business" shall mean any person, partnership, or 16 corporation engaged for profit in the business of furnishing bail, or to 17 otherwise for compensation or other consideration furnish bail or funds 18 or property to serve as bail or make bonds or enter into undertakings as 19 surety for the appearance of persons charged with any criminal offense 20 or violation of law or ordinance punishable by fine or imprisonment 21 before any court of this state, or securing the payment of fines imposed 22 and of costs assessed by such courts upon final disposition thereof. The 23 business of bail bondsman shall be limited to the acts, transactions, 24 and undertakings described in this subdivision. 25 2. It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, or corporation to 26 engage in the bail bond business as defined in subdivision one of this 27 section. 28 3. Any person, partnership, or corporation who violates this section 29 shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to 30 exceed five hundred dollars, or by imprisonment of not more than one 31 year, or by both such fine and imprisonment. 32 § 7. The article heading of article 7 of the general business law, as 33 amended by chapter 562 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as 34 follows: 35 PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS[, BAIL ENFORCEMENT36AGENTS] AND WATCH, GUARD AND PATROL AGENCIES 37 § 8. Section 70-a of the general business law, as added by chapter 115 38 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows: 39 § 70-a. [Bail enforcement agents and watch] Watch, guard or patrol 40 agencies. 1. The department of state shall have the power to issue 41 separate licenses to [bail enforcement agents and to] watch, guard or 42 patrol agencies. Nothing in this article shall prevent a private inves- 43 tigator licensed hereunder from performing the services of a watch, 44 guard or patrol agency [or bail enforcement agent] as defined in this 45 article; however, a watch, guard or patrol agency [or bail enforcement46agent] may not perform the services of a private investigator as defined 47 in this article. 48 2. No person, firm, company, partnership, limited liability company or 49 corporation shall engage in the business of [bail enforcement agents or50the business of] watch, guard or patrol agency, or advertise his, their 51 or its business to be that of [bail enforcement agent or] watch, guard 52 or patrol agency, notwithstanding the name or title used in describing 53 such agency or notwithstanding the fact that other functions and 54 services may also be performed for fee, hire or reward, without having 55 first obtained from the department of state a license so to do, as here- 56 inafter provided, for each bureau, agency, sub-agency, office and branchS. 220 3 1 office to be owned, conducted, managed or maintained by such person, 2 firm, company, partnership, limited liability company or corporation for 3 the conduct of such business. 4 3. Any person, firm, company, partnership or corporation who violates 5 any provision of this section shall be guilty of a class B misdemeanor. 6 § 9. Subdivisions 1-a and 4 of section 71 of the general business law 7 are REPEALED. 8 § 10. The opening paragraph of section 72 of the general business law, 9 as amended by chapter 562 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as 10 follows: 11 Application for licenses. Any person, firm, partnership, limited 12 liability company or corporation intending to conduct the business of 13 private investigator[, business of bail enforcement agent] or the busi- 14 ness of watch, guard or patrol agency, and any person, firm, partner- 15 ship, limited liability company or corporation intending to conduct the 16 business of furnishing or supplying information as to the personal char- 17 acter of any person or firm, or as to the character or kind of the busi- 18 ness and occupation of any person, firm or corporation, society or asso- 19 ciation or any person or group of persons, or intending to own, conduct, 20 manage or maintain a bureau or agency for the above mentioned purposes, 21 or while engaged in other lawful business activities also intending to 22 engage in any one or more of the activities set forth in section seven- 23 ty-one of this article except exclusively as to the financial rating, 24 standing, and credit responsibility of persons, firms, companies or 25 corporations or as to personal habits and financial responsibility of 26 applicants for [insurance indemnity bonds or] commercial credit or of 27 claimants under insurance policies shall, for each such bureau or agency 28 and for each and every sub-agency, office and branch office to be owned, 29 conducted, managed or maintained by such person, firm, partnership, 30 limited liability company or corporation for the conduct of such busi- 31 ness, file in the office of the department of state a written applica- 32 tion, on forms provided by the department containing such information 33 and documentation, including fingerprints, as the secretary of state may 34 require by rule and regulation. 35 § 11. Subdivision 1 of section 73 of the general business law, as 36 amended by chapter 562 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as 37 follows: 38 1. The secretary of state shall have the power to enforce the 39 provisions of this article and article seven-A of this chapter and upon 40 complaint of any person, or on his own initiative, to investigate any 41 violation thereof or to investigate the business, business practices and 42 business methods of any person, firm, limited liability company, part- 43 nership or corporation applying for or holding a license as a private 44 investigator[, bail enforcement agent] or watch, guard or patrol agency, 45 if in the opinion of the secretary of state such investigation is 46 warranted. Each such applicant or licensee shall be obliged, on request 47 of the secretary of state, to supply such information, books, papers or 48 records as may be required concerning his, their or its business, busi- 49 ness practices or business methods, or proposed business practices or 50 methods. Failure to comply with a lawful request of secretary shall be a 51 ground for denying an application for a license, or for revoking, 52 suspending, or failing to renew a license issued under this article. 53 § 12. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 1 of section 74 of the 54 general business law, as amended by chapter 562 of the laws of 2000, 55 paragraph (b) as further amended by section 104 of part A of chapter 62 56 of the laws of 2011, are amended to read as follows:S. 220 4 1 (a) The application shall be accompanied by a non-refundable fee, 2 payable to the department of state for the use of the state, for each 3 certificate of license, as hereinbelow enumerated, issued to the appli- 4 cant, if the applicant be an individual, of four hundred dollars for a 5 license as private investigator [or bail enforcement agent] or a fee of 6 three hundred dollars for a license as watch, guard or patrol agency, or 7 if the applicant be a firm, partnership, limited liability company or 8 corporation, a fee of five hundred dollars for a license as private 9 investigator [or bail enforcement agent] or a fee of four hundred 10 dollars for a license as watch, guard or patrol agency. 11 (b) When the application shall have been examined and such further 12 inquiry and investigation made as the secretary of state shall deem 13 proper, and when the secretary of state shall be satisfied therefrom of 14 the good character, competency and integrity of such applicant, or, if 15 the applicant be a firm or partnership, the individual members thereof, 16 or if the applicant be a limited liability company, the individual 17 members thereof, or if the applicant be a corporation, the president, 18 secretary, treasurer and all other officers and all directors thereof, 19 and each stockholder owning ten per centum or more of the stock and a 20 period to ten days from the date of the filing of the application shall 21 have passed, the department of state shall issue and deliver to such 22 applicant a certificate of license to conduct such business and to own, 23 conduct or maintain a bureau, agency, sub-agency, office or branch 24 office for the conduct of such business on the premises stated in such 25 application upon the applicant's executing, delivering and filing in the 26 office of such department a surety company bond in the sum of ten thou- 27 sand dollars; provided however, that [an applicant for a license as a28bail enforcement agent shall execute, deliver and file with the office29of such department a surety company bond in the sum of five hundred30thousand dollars, conditioned for the faithful and honest conduct of31such business by such applicant, which surety bond must be written by a32company recognized and approved by the superintendent of financial33services of the state, and approved by the department of state with34respect to its form, manner of execution and sufficiency provided,35further, however,] before a license is issued to a non-resident the 36 applicant must file with the secretary of state a written consent to the 37 jurisdiction of the courts of New York (i) in any case or cases arising 38 from any contract for the performance of private investigative services 39 as private investigator[, bail enforcement agent] or watch, guard or 40 patrol agency, made within the state or to be performed, wholly or in 41 part, within the state or in any way connected with the conduct of busi- 42 ness within the state, and (ii) in any case or cases arising from any 43 tort occurring within the state or occurring in connection with the 44 business of the licensee within the state. The license as private inves- 45 tigator[, bail enforcement agent] or watch, guard or patrol agency 46 granted pursuant to this article shall last for a period of two years, 47 but shall be revocable at all times by the department of state for cause 48 shown. Such bond shall be taken in the name of the people of the state 49 of New York, and any person injured by the violation of any of the 50 provisions of this article or by the wilful, malicious and wrongful act 51 of the principal or employee may bring an action against such principal, 52 employee or both on said bond in his own name to recover damages 53 suffered by reason of such wilful, malicious and wrongful act. In each 54 and every suit, or prosecution arising out of this article, the agency 55 of any employee as to the employment and as to acting in the course of 56 his employment, shall be presumed. The license certificate shall be in aS. 220 5 1 form to be prescribed by the secretary of state and shall specify the 2 full name of the applicant, the location of the principal office or 3 place of business and the location of the bureau, agency, sub-agency, 4 office or branch office for which the license is issued, the date on 5 which it is issued, the date on which it will expire and the names and 6 residences of the applicant or applicants filing the statement required 7 by section seventy-two of this article upon which the license is issued 8 and in the event of a change of any such address or residence the 9 department of state shall be duly notified in writing of such change 10 within twenty-four hours thereafter, and failure to give such notifica- 11 tion shall be sufficient cause for revocation of such license. No such 12 license as private investigator[, bail enforcement agent] or watch, 13 guard or patrol agency shall be issued to a person under the age of 14 twenty-five years. 15 § 13. Section 74-a of the general business law is REPEALED. 16 § 14. Section 80 of the general business law, as amended by chapter 17 562 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: 18 § 80. License certificates, pocket cards or badges. Upon the issuing 19 of a license as hereinbefore provided the department of state shall 20 issue to each person, partner, member of a limited liability company or 21 officer of a corporation making and filing a statement required by 22 section seventy-two of this article a pocket card of such size and 23 design as the department of state may prescribe, which card shall 24 contain a photograph of the licensee, the name and business address of 25 the licensee and the imprint or impress of the seal of the department of 26 state which pocket card shall be evidence of due authorization pursuant 27 to the terms of this article. All persons to whom such license certif- 28 icates or pocket cards shall have been issued shall be responsible for 29 the safe keeping of the same, and shall not lend, enable, let or allow 30 any other person to have, hold, use or display such certificate or pock- 31 et card; and any person so parting with such a license certificate or 32 pocket card or displaying the same without authority, or who shall 33 display any license certificate or pocket card purporting to authorize 34 the holder thereof to act as a private investigator[, bail enforcement35agent or] watch, guard or patrol agency, unless the same shall have been 36 duly issued pursuant to the provisions of this article, shall be guilty 37 of a misdemeanor. Failure to comply with the provisions of this section 38 shall be sufficient cause for revocation of such license, and all such 39 certificates or pocket cards shall be returned to the department of 40 state within seventy-two hours after the holder thereof has received 41 notice in writing of the expiration or revocation of such license. It 42 shall be unlawful for a holder of a license or anyone else to distrib- 43 ute, possess, use or display any license certificate, pocket card, 44 badge, shield or any other indicia of a license status pursuant to this 45 article except as set forth in this article. Any person who is a licen- 46 see hereunder or an officer or authorized employee of any other person, 47 firm, limited liability company or corporation, whether or not licensed 48 hereunder, while performing the services of a watchman, guard or private 49 patrolman, may wear on his outer clothing a rectangular metal or woven 50 insignia approved by the department of state, which insignia shall not 51 be larger than three inches high nor four inches wide with an 52 inscription thereon containing the word "watchman", "guard", "patrol" or 53 "special service" and the name of such licensee or employer. It shall be 54 unlawful for any employer, whether or not licensed hereunder, to wear or 55 distribute to his, their or its employees any employment identification 56 except as authorized in this article and approved by the secretary ofS. 220 6 1 state. Any person violating any provision of this section shall be guil- 2 ty of a misdemeanor. 3 § 15. Subdivision 1 of section 81 of the general business law, as 4 amended by section 14 of part LL of chapter 56 of the laws of 2010, is 5 amended to read as follows: 6 1. The holder of any license certificate issued pursuant to this arti- 7 cle may employ to assist him in his work of private detective or inves- 8 tigator [or bail enforcement agent] as described in section seventy-one 9 of this article and in the conduct of such business as many persons as 10 he may deem necessary, and shall at all times during such employment be 11 legally responsible for the good conduct in the business of each and 12 every person so employed. No holder of any unexpired license certif- 13 icate issued pursuant to this article shall knowingly employ in 14 connection with his or its business in any capacity whatsoever, any 15 person who has been convicted of a felony or any of the offenses speci- 16 fied in subdivision two of section seventy-four of this article, and who 17 has not subsequent to such conviction received executive pardon therefor 18 removing this disability, or received a certificate of relief from disa- 19 bilities or a certificate of good conduct pursuant to article twenty- 20 three of the correction law to remove the disability under this section 21 because of such a conviction, or any person whose private detective or 22 investigator's license [or bail enforcement agent's license] was revoked 23 or application for such license was denied by the department of state or 24 by the authorities of any other state or territory because of conviction 25 of any of such offenses. Should the holder of an unexpired license 26 certificate falsely state or represent that a person is or has been in 27 his employ, such false statement or misrepresentation shall be suffi- 28 cient cause for the revocation of such license. Any person falsely stat- 29 ing or representing that he is or has been a detective or employed by a 30 detective agency [or that he is or has been a bail enforcement agent or31employed by a bail enforcement agency] shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. 32 § 16. The opening paragraph of section 83 of the general business law, 33 as amended by chapter 127 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as 34 follows: 35 Nothing in this article shall apply to any detective or officer 36 belonging to the police force of the state, or any county, city, town or 37 village thereof, appointed or elected by due authority of law, or to any 38 person in the employ of any police force or police department of the 39 state, or of any county, city, town or village thereof while engaged in 40 the performance of their official duties; nor to any person, firm, 41 limited liability company, partnership, corporation, or any bureau or 42 agency, whose business is exclusively the furnishing of information as 43 to the business and financial standing, and credit responsibility of 44 persons, firms, or corporations, or as to the personal habits and finan- 45 cial responsibility of applicants for insurance, indemnity bonds or 46 commercial credit or of claimants under insurance policies, nor to any 47 person licensed as a certified public accountant while engaged in the 48 practice of public accountancy as defined in article one hundred forty- 49 nine of the education law or any firm, limited liability company, part- 50 nership or corporation registered as a certified public accounting firm 51 by the commissioner of education while performing services regulated 52 under article one hundred forty-nine of the education law or Part 70 of 53 the regulations of the commissioner of education; and whose business 54 does not embrace other activities described in section seventy-one of 55 this article; or whose business is licensed by the commissioner of labor 56 under the provisions of section twenty-four-a or subdivision three-b ofS. 220 7 1 section fifty of the workers' compensation law or whose business is 2 representing employers or groups of employers insured under the workers' 3 compensation law in the state insurance fund; nor to any corporation 4 duly authorized by the state to operate a central burglar or fire alarm 5 protection business; nor to any person while engaged in the business of 6 adjuster for an insurance company nor to any public adjuster licensed by 7 the superintendent of financial services under the insurance law nor to 8 any person regularly employed as special agent, detective or investi- 9 gator exclusively by one employer in connection with the affairs of that 10 employer only nor to any charitable or philanthropic society or associ- 11 ation duly incorporated under the laws of the state and which is organ- 12 ized and maintained for the public good and not for private profit, nor 13 shall anything in this article contained be construed to affect in any 14 way attorneys or counselors at law in the regular practice of their 15 profession, but such exemption shall not enure to the benefit of any 16 employee or representative of such attorney or counselor at law who is 17 not employed solely, exclusively and regularly by such attorney or coun- 18 selor at law. No person, firm, limited liability company, partnership, 19 corporation or any bureau or agency exempted hereunder from the applica- 20 tion of this article shall perform any manner of private investigator[,21bail enforcement agent] or watch, guard or patrol agency service as 22 described in section seventy-one of this article, for any other person, 23 firm, limited liability company, partnership, corporation, bureau or 24 agency whether for fee, hire, reward, other compensation, remuneration, 25 or consideration or as an accommodation without fee, reward or remunera- 26 tion or by a reciprocal arrangement whereby such services are exchanged 27 on request of parties thereto. The commission of a single act prohibit- 28 ed by this article shall constitute a violation thereof. 29 § 17. Subdivision 1 of section 84 of the general business law, as 30 amended by chapter 84 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as 31 follows: 32 1. It is unlawful for the holder of a license, issued under this arti- 33 cle, or for any employee of such licensee, knowingly to commit any of 34 the following acts within or without the state of New York: to incite, 35 encourage, or aid in the incitement or encouragement of any person or 36 persons who have become a party to any strike, to do unlawful acts 37 against the person or property of any one, or to incite, stir up, create 38 or aid in the inciting of discontent or dissatisfaction among the 39 employees of any person, firm, limited liability company or corporation 40 with the intention of having them strike; to interfere or prevent lawful 41 and peaceful picketing during strikes; to interfere with, restrain, or 42 coerce employees in the exercise of their right to form, join or assist 43 any labor organization of their own choosing; to interfere or hinder the 44 lawful or peaceful collective bargaining between employees and employ- 45 ers; to pay, offer, or give any money, gratuity, favor, consideration, 46 or other thing of value, directly or indirectly, to any person for any 47 verbal or written report of the lawful activities of employees in the 48 exercise of their right of self-organization, to form, join, or assist 49 labor organizations and to bargain collectively through representatives 50 of their own choosing; to advertise for, recruit, furnish or replace or 51 offer to furnish or replace for hire or reward, within or without the 52 state of New York, any help or labor, skilled or unskilled, or to 53 furnish or offer to furnish armed guards, other than armed guards there- 54 tofore regularly employed for the protection of payrolls, property or 55 premises, for service upon property which is being operated in antic- 56 ipation of or during the course or existence of a strike, or furnishS. 220 8 1 armed guards upon the highways, for persons involved in labor disputes 2 or to furnish or offer to furnish to employers or their agents, any 3 arms, munitions, tear gas implements, or any other weapons; or to send 4 letters or literature to employers offering to eliminate labor unions or 5 distribute or circulate any list of members of a labor organization, or 6 to advise any person of the membership of an individual in a labor 7 organization for the express purpose of preventing those so listed or 8 named from obtaining or retaining employment. The violation of any of 9 the provisions of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor and shall 10 be punishable by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars, or one 11 year's imprisonment or both. It is unlawful for the holder of a license 12 to collect or offer or attempt to collect or directly or indirectly 13 engage in the business of collecting of debts or claims of any kind, 14 excepting that the taking possession, on behalf of a secured party 15 having the right to do so under section 9--609 of the uniform commercial 16 code, of property in the possession of a debtor who has defaulted in the 17 performance of a security agreement secured by such property, shall not 18 be considered a violation of this section and excepting further that the 19 secretary of state may grant exemption from this prohibition in the 20 collection of debts to licensees who are principally engaged in the 21 business of credit investigation and credit reporting. It is unlawful 22 for the holder of a license to furnish or perform any services described 23 in subdivisions one and two of section seventy-one of this article on a 24 contingent or percentage basis or to make or enter into any agreement 25 for furnishing services of any kind or character, by the terms or condi- 26 tions of which agreement the compensation to be paid for such services 27 to the holder of a license is partially or wholly contingent or based 28 upon a percentage of the amount of money or property recovered or 29 dependent in any way upon the result achieved. It shall be unlawful for 30 a holder of a license to use, display, cause to be printed or distrib- 31 uted, cards, letter-heads, circulars, brochures or any other advertising 32 material or advertisement in which any name or indicia of the license 33 status of the licensee is set forth in any manner other than the name 34 under which the licensee is duly licensed. It is unlawful for a licensed 35 private investigator [or bail enforcement agent] to own, have or possess 36 or in any manner to wear, exhibit or display, a shield or badge of any 37 material, kind, nature or description, in the performance of any of the 38 activities as private investigator [or bail enforcement agent], as 39 distinguished from watch, guard or patrol agency, under this article. 40 It is unlawful for a licensed private investigator [or bail enforcement41agent] to issue to any person employed by such licensee, a badge or 42 shield of any material, kind, nature or description, and it is unlawful 43 for any person employed by such licensee to possess, carry or display a 44 badge or shield of any description provided that any licensed private 45 investigator [or bail enforcement agent] who also engages in the busi- 46 ness of watch, guard or patrol agency may possess, use or display or 47 issue to employees in the conduct of such business, a rectangular metal 48 or woven insignia to be worn on the outer clothing and approved by the 49 department of state, which insignia shall not be larger than three inch- 50 es high or four inches wide with an inscription thereon containing the 51 word "watchman", "guard", "patrol" or "special service" and the name of 52 the licensee. It shall be unlawful for any licensee to publish or cause 53 to be published any advertisement, letter-head, circular, statement or 54 phrase of any sort which suggests that the licensee is an official 55 police or investigative agency or any other agency instrumentality of 56 the state of New York or any of its political subdivisions. It shall beS. 220 9 1 unlawful for any licensee to make any statement which would reasonably 2 cause another person to believe that the licensee is a police officer or 3 official investigator of the state of New York or any of its political 4 subdivisions. It shall be unlawful for a licensee to offer, by radio, 5 television, newspaper advertisement or any other means of communication, 6 to perform services at any location which is merely the location of a 7 telephone answer service unless full disclosure of that fact is made in 8 the advertisement. 9 § 18. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day 10 after it shall have become a law.
