Bill Text: NY S03047 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to prohibiting the issuance of late fees prior to a finding of liability.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S03047 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S03047-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          3047
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    February 1, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
        AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to  prohibiting
          the  issuance of late fees prior to a finding of liability for a park-
          ing violation; and repealing certain provisions of such  law  relating
          thereto
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 235 of the  vehicle
     2  and traffic law, as amended by section 18 of part J of chapter 62 of the
     3  laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows:
     4    a.  Notice.  (1)  Whenever  a  city issues a notice of violation for a
     5  parking violation, it shall be served in the manner prescribed by subdi-
     6  vision two of section two hundred thirty-eight of this article.
     7    (2) Whenever a person has been issued a  notice  of  violation  for  a
     8  parking  violation  and has not responded in the manner described in the
     9  notice, a city shall give the owner a second notice of the violation  by
    10  regular first class mail: (i) within forty days of issuance of the first
    11  notice of violation for a parking violation where the vehicle is a vehi-
    12  cle  registered  in this state; or (ii) within forty days of the receipt
    13  by such city of the name and address of the owner of the  vehicle  where
    14  the  vehicle  is  a  vehicle  registered in any other state. Such second
    15  notice shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:
    16    (A) that the owner has a period of twenty days from  issuance  of  the
    17  second notice in which to respond to the notice of violation for a park-
    18  ing violation;
    19    (B)  that  failure to respond to the notice of violation for a parking
    20  violation may result in the suspension and non-renewal  of  the  owner's
    21  registration;
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09143-01-9
        S. 3047                             2
     1    (C)  [that failure to respond to the notice of violation for a parking
     2  violation may subject the owner to additional penalties as  provided  in
     3  paragraph b of this subdivision;
     4    (D)]  that failure to respond to the notice of violation for a parking
     5  violation shall subject the owner to a default judgment as  provided  in
     6  paragraph  [c]  b  of  this  subdivision  [and  the additional penalties
     7  imposed upon parking violations pursuant to paragraph b of this subdivi-
     8  sion]; and
     9    [(E)] (D) that submission of a plea of guilty to the parking violation
    10  makes the owner liable for payment of the stated  fine  [and  additional
    11  penalties  imposed  pursuant to paragraph b of this subdivision] and the
    12  mandatory surcharge of fifteen dollars imposed upon  parking  violations
    13  pursuant to section eighteen hundred nine-a of this chapter.
    14    (1)  Upon  written  application  of the chief executive officer of any
    15  such city, the commissioner may authorize for a  specified  time  period
    16  the  use  of a notice mailer form that does not contain all the informa-
    17  tion set forth in this subdivision but which was used by such city on or
    18  before the effective date of this section.
    19    (2) In addition, the commissioner may suspend  for  a  period  not  to
    20  exceed  one  year from the effective date of this section the provisions
    21  of this subdivision requiring that  a  second  notice  of  violation  be
    22  served  within  forty  days of issuance of the first notice of a parking
    23  violation, upon written application of the chief  executive  officer  of
    24  any  such  city  demonstrating  that immediate imposition of such notice
    25  requirement will cause substantial financial hardship to such city,  and
    26  setting  forth  the steps to be taken by such city to achieve compliance
    27  with the notice requirements of this subdivision at the end of such  one
    28  hundred  eighty  day period. Upon granting such application, the commis-
    29  sioner shall specify a period, not to exceed seventy-five  days,  within
    30  which  such  second notice must be served[, and shall adjust accordingly
    31  the time periods set forth in paragraph b of this subdivision to provide
    32  that the additional penalties set forth in such subdivision will not  be
    33  imposed  prior  to  the  stated  number of days from the service of such
    34  notice].
    35    § 2. Paragraphs b, b-1, b-2 and b-3 of subdivision 2 of section 235 of
    36  the vehicle and traffic law are REPEALED and paragraph c of  subdivision
    37  2 is relettered paragraph b.
    38    § 3. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (c) of subdivision 2-a of section
    39  238  of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 409 of the laws
    40  of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
    41    (iii) Upon a finding by a hearing examiner that  the  dismissal  of  a
    42  charged  parking  violation  has been procured due to the knowing fraud,
    43  false testimony, misrepresentation, or other misconduct, or the  knowing
    44  alteration of a notice of parking violation, by the person so charged or
    45  his  or  her  agent, employee, or representative, the dismissal shall be
    46  set aside and a determination may be rendered against the owner  on  the
    47  charged  parking  violation.  The  hearing  examiner may impose monetary
    48  penalties for the charged parking violation of up  to  three  times  the
    49  scheduled  fine for the violation [and three times the additional penal-
    50  ties that may be imposed for failure to respond to a notice of violation
    51  pursuant to section two  hundred  thirty-five  of  this  article.    For
    52  purposes  of  determining  the  amount of such additional penalties, the
    53  hearing examiner shall disregard the plea that  procured  the  dismissal
    54  that  has  been set aside and shall calculate such penalties as if there
    55  had been no plea or appearance in the  proceeding].  In  any  proceeding
    56  under  this  paragraph to set aside a determination and to impose penal-
        S. 3047                             3
     1  ties for the violation, it shall not be necessary for the hearing  exam-
     2  iner  to find that the owner personally committed the unlawful acts that
     3  procured the dismissal of the violation.
     4    §  4.  The  vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section
     5  238-a to read as follows:
     6    § 238-a. Prohibition of certain late fees. Notwithstanding any  incon-
     7  sistent provision of this article, or any general, special, or local law
     8  or administrative code to the contrary, an owner shall not be subject to
     9  additional penalties for failure to respond to a notice of violation but
    10  only,  in the event such owner is found liable for such violation, fail-
    11  ure to pay the imposed fine in a timely fashion.
    12    § 5. This act shall take effect immediately,  provided,  however  that
    13  the  amendments to subdivision 2 of section 235 of the vehicle and traf-
    14  fic law made by sections one and two of this act, shall not  affect  the
    15  expiration of such subdivision and shall be deemed to expire therewith.