Bill Text: NY S04678 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Increases driver safety training course requirements for D, M, and MJ license applicants; directs the commissioner of the department of motor vehicles to study the operation and safety of motorcycles, e-bikes, and scooters.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-11 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S04678 Detail]
Download: New_York-2025-S04678-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4678 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE February 11, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MURRAY -- 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 establishing "Elijah's law"; and directing the commissioner of the department of motor vehicles to conduct a study analyzing the operation and use of certain vehicles The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 "Elijah's law". 3 § 2. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 of section 502 of the vehicle and 4 traffic law, as amended by chapter 215 of the laws of 2010, is amended 5 to read as follows: 6 (c) An applicant for a class D or M license shall be at least eighteen 7 years of age[, except that an application shall be accepted if the8applicant is at least seventeen years of age and submits]. An applicant 9 for a class M license must submit acceptable proof of at least ten hours 10 experience operating a motorcycle under the supervision of a driving 11 school instructor or other motorcycle safety driving course instructor 12 approved by the department. An applicant for a class M license must also 13 submit proof of completion of the New York safety council's defensive 14 driving course, the motorcycle safety foundation's motorcycle basic 15 rider course or a similar course approved by the state education depart- 16 ment and the commissioner. All applicants must submit acceptable proof 17 of successful completion of a driver education course, approved by the 18 state education department and the commissioner, and proof of completion 19 of the minimum hours of supervised driving as required in paragraph (d) 20 of this subdivision. 21 § 3. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 2 of section 502 of the vehicle and 22 traffic law, as amended by chapter 368 of the laws of 2019, is amended 23 to read as follows: EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD08222-01-5S. 4678 2 1 (d) An applicant for a class DJ or MJ license shall be at least 2 sixteen years of age and such applicant must submit written consent to 3 the issuance of such license by the applicant's parent or guardian. Upon 4 receipt of withdrawal of such consent, any class DJ or MJ license, 5 learner's permit or license application shall be cancelled. No class DJ 6 or MJ license shall be issued unless the applicant presents, at the time 7 of the road test administered pursuant to paragraph (b) of subdivision 8 four of this section, a written certification by the applicant's parent 9 or guardian: (i) that such applicant has operated a motor vehicle for no 10 less than fifty hours, at least fifteen hours of which shall be after 11 sunset, under the immediate supervision of a person as authorized pursu- 12 ant to subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) of subdivi- 13 sion five of section five hundred one of this article, a driver educa- 14 tion teacher pursuant to section eight hundred six-a of the education 15 law or a driving school instructor pursuant to subdivision seven-a of 16 section three hundred ninety-four of this chapter; and (ii) if such 17 applicant completed an internet delivered pre-licensing course approved 18 by the commissioner pursuant to article [twelve-d] twelve-D of this 19 chapter, that such applicant participated throughout such course. An 20 applicant for a class MJ license must also submit proof of completion of 21 the New York safety council's defensive driving course, the motorcycle 22 safety foundation's motorcycle basic rider course or a similar course 23 approved by the state education department and the commissioner. An 24 applicant for an MJ license shall be required to submit acceptable proof 25 of at least fifteen hours experience operating a motorcycle under the 26 supervision of a driving school instructor or other motorcycle safety 27 driving course instructor approved by the department. 28 § 4. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 2 of section 502 of the vehicle and 29 traffic law, as amended by chapter 403 of the laws of 2009, is amended 30 to read as follows: 31 (d) An applicant for a class DJ or MJ license shall be at least 32 sixteen years of age and such applicant must submit written consent to 33 the issuance of such license by the applicant's parent or guardian. Upon 34 receipt of withdrawal of such consent, any class DJ or MJ license, 35 learner's permit or license application shall be cancelled. No class DJ 36 or MJ license shall be issued unless the applicant presents, at the time 37 of the road test administered pursuant to paragraph (b) of subdivision 38 four of this section, a written certification by the applicant's parent 39 or guardian that such applicant has operated a motor vehicle for no less 40 than fifty hours, at least fifteen hours of which shall be after sunset, 41 under the immediate supervision of a person as authorized pursuant to 42 subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) of subdivision five 43 of section five hundred one of this article, a driver education teacher 44 pursuant to section eight hundred six-a of the education law or a driv- 45 ing school instructor pursuant to subdivision seven-a of section three 46 hundred ninety-four of this chapter. An applicant for a class MJ license 47 must also submit proof of completion of the New York safety council's 48 defensive driving course, the motorcycle safety foundation's motorcycle 49 basic rider course or a similar course approved by the state education 50 department and the commissioner. An applicant for an MJ license shall be 51 required to submit acceptable proof of at least fifteen hours experience 52 operating a motorcycle under the supervision of a driving school 53 instructor or other motorcycle safety driving course instructor approved 54 by the department. 55 § 5. 1. The commissioner of the department of motor vehicles shall 56 conduct a study analyzing the operation and use of standard motorcycles,S. 4678 3 1 heavy motorcycles, mopeds, other light motorcycles, electric bikes in 2 classes 1, 2, 3 and 4 and electric and non-electric powered scooters. 3 Such study shall examine: 4 a. The prevalence of ownership and use of all such vehicles in the 5 state; and 6 b. The incidents and trends of violations of traffic laws and crashes 7 involving all such vehicles. 8 2. The commissioner shall make a report of the findings of such study, 9 including any recommendations. Such recommendations may include, but not 10 be limited to: 11 a. Increased safety education course requirements for permit and 12 license applications for operation of the vehicles studied; 13 b. Increased age restrictions in operation of any of such types of 14 vehicles; and 15 c. The implementation or enhancement of safety gear requirements for 16 operation of all such vehicles. 17 3. The commissioner's recommendations and a report on such study shall 18 be provided to the governor, the speaker of the assembly, and the tempo- 19 rary president of the senate within six months of the effective date of 20 this act. 21 § 6. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 22 have become a law; provided that the amendments to paragraph (d) of 23 subdivision 2 of section 502 of the vehicle and traffic law made by 24 section three of this act shall be subject to the expiration and rever- 25 sion of such paragraph pursuant to section 3 of chapter 368 of the laws 26 of 2019, as amended, when upon such date the provisions of section four 27 of this act shall take effect. Effective immediately, the addition, 28 amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the 29 implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be 30 made and completed on or before such effective date.
