Bill Text: NY S06438 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires instruction concerning traffic stops in pre-licensing courses to provide drivers with their responsibilities when stopped by a law enforcement officer; requires all applicants for renewal to complete such course.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S06438 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S06438-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6438 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE April 28, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sen. WEIK -- 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 and the insurance law, in relation to instruction concerning traffic stops The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 of 2 section 502 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chapter 513 of 3 the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows: 4 (i) Upon submission of an application for a driver's license, the 5 applicant shall be required to take and pass a test, or submit evidence 6 of passage of a test, with respect to the laws relating to traffic, the 7 laws relating to driving while ability is impaired and while intoxicat- 8 ed, under the overpowering influence of "Road Rage", "Work Zone Safety" 9 awareness and "Motorcycle Safety" awareness as defined by the commis- 10 sioner, "School Bus Safety" awareness, the law relating to exercising 11 due care to avoid colliding with a parked, stopped or standing author- 12 ized emergency vehicle or hazard vehicle pursuant to section eleven 13 hundred forty-four-a of this chapter, the ability to read and comprehend 14 traffic signs and symbols, the responsibilities of a driver when stopped 15 by a law enforcement officer and such other matters as the commissioner 16 may prescribe, and to satisfactorily complete a course prescribed by the 17 commissioner of not less than four hours and not more than five hours, 18 consisting of classroom driver training and highway safety instruction 19 or the equivalent thereof. Such test shall include at least seven writ- 20 ten questions concerning the effects of consumption of alcohol or drugs 21 on the ability of a person to operate a motor vehicle and the legal and 22 financial consequences resulting from violations of section eleven 23 hundred ninety-two of this chapter, prohibiting the operation of a motor 24 vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Such test shall 25 include one or more written questions concerning the devastating effects EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD11129-01-1S. 6438 2 1 of "Road Rage" on the ability of a person to operate a motor vehicle and 2 the legal and financial consequences resulting from assaulting, threat- 3 ening or interfering with the lawful conduct of another person legally 4 using the roadway. Such test shall include one or more questions 5 concerning the potential dangers to persons and equipment resulting from 6 the unsafe operation of a motor vehicle in a work zone. Such test may 7 include one or more questions concerning motorcycle safety. Such test 8 may include one or more questions concerning the law for exercising due 9 care to avoid colliding with a parked, stopped or standing vehicle 10 pursuant to section eleven hundred forty-four-a of this chapter. Such 11 test may include one or more questions concerning school bus safety. 12 Such test shall include one or more questions concerning the responsi- 13 bilities of a driver when stopped by a law enforcement officer. Such 14 test shall be administered by the commissioner. The commissioner shall 15 cause the applicant to take a vision test and a test for color blind- 16 ness. Upon passage of the vision test, the application may be accepted 17 and the application fee shall be payable. 18 § 2. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 4 of section 502 of the vehicle and 19 traffic law, as amended by chapter 513 of the laws of 2019, is amended 20 to read as follows: 21 (b) Upon successful completion of the requirements set forth in para- 22 graph (a) of this subdivision which shall include an alcohol and drug 23 education component as described in paragraph (c) of this subdivision, a 24 "Road Rage" awareness component as described in paragraph (c-1) of this 25 subdivision and a "Work Zone Safety" awareness component as described in 26 paragraph (c-2) of this subdivision, a "Motorcycle Safety" awareness 27 component as described in paragraph (c-3) of this subdivision, and a 28 "School Bus Safety" awareness component as described in paragraph (c-4) 29 of this subdivision, and a traffic stop instruction component as 30 described in paragraph (c-5) of this subdivision, the commissioner shall 31 cause the applicant to take a road test in a representative vehicle of a 32 type prescribed by the commissioner which shall be appropriate to the 33 type of license for which application is made, except that the commis- 34 sioner may waive the road test requirements for certain classes of 35 applicants. The commissioner shall have the power to establish a program 36 to allow persons other than employees of the department to conduct road 37 tests in representative vehicles when such tests are required for appli- 38 cants to obtain a class A, B or C license. If she chooses to do so, she 39 shall set forth her reasons in writing and conduct a public hearing on 40 the matter. She shall only establish such a program after holding the 41 public hearing. 42 § 3. Subdivision 4 of section 502 of the vehicle and traffic law is 43 amended by adding a new paragraph (c-5) to read as follows: 44 (c-5) Traffic stop instruction component. (i) The commissioner shall 45 provide in the pre-licensing course, set forth in paragraph (b) of this 46 subdivision, a mandatory component in traffic stop instruction as a 47 prerequisite for obtaining a license to operate a motor vehicle. The 48 purpose of this component is to educate prospective licensees on his or 49 her responsibilities when stopped by a law enforcement officer. 50 (ii) The commissioner shall establish a curriculum for the traffic 51 stop instruction component which shall include but not be limited to: 52 instruction describing appropriate actions to be taken by drivers during 53 traffic stops and appropriate interactions with law enforcement officers 54 who initiate traffic stops. The curriculum shall also explain a driver's 55 responsibilities when stopped by a law enforcement officer, including 56 moving the vehicle onto the shoulder of the highway or, where the high-S. 6438 3 1 way has no shoulder, an area adjacent to the highway where the vehicle 2 can safely be stopped during a traffic stop; turning off the motor vehi- 3 cle's engine and radio; avoiding sudden movements and keeping the driv- 4 er's hands in plain view of the officer. The commissioner is authorized 5 to collaborate with the division of state police and non-profit organ- 6 izations focusing on defending or promoting civil liberties and any 7 other agencies or organizations she or he deems necessary in establish- 8 ing the curriculum. Such curriculum shall be updated at least annually. 9 § 4. Paragraph 1 of subsection (a) of section 2336 of the insurance 10 law, as amended by section 3 of chapter 4 of the laws of 2021, is 11 amended to read as follows: 12 (1) Any schedule of rates or rating plan for motor vehicle liability 13 and collision insurance submitted to the superintendent shall provide 14 for an actuarially appropriate reduction in premium charges for any 15 insured for a three year period after successfully completing a motor 16 vehicle accident prevention course, known as the national safety coun- 17 cil's defensive driving course, or any driver improvement course 18 approved by the department of motor vehicles as being equivalent to the 19 national safety council's defensive driving course, provided that, 20 except as provided in article twelve-C of the vehicle and traffic law, 21 there shall be no reduction in premiums for a self-instruction defensive 22 driving course or a course that does not provide for actual classroom 23 instruction for a minimum number of hours as determined by the depart- 24 ment of motor vehicles. Such reduction in premium charges shall be 25 subsequently modified to the extent appropriate, based upon analysis of 26 loss experience statistics and other relevant factors. All such accident 27 prevention courses shall be monitored by the department of motor vehi- 28 cles and shall include components of instruction in "Road Rage" aware- 29 ness [and], in "Work Zone Safety" awareness and in traffic stops, as 30 defined by the commissioner of motor vehicles. The provisions of this 31 section shall not apply to attendance at a program pursuant to article 32 twenty-one of the vehicle and traffic law as a result of any traffic 33 infraction. 34 § 5. Paragraph 1 of subsection (a) of section 2336 of the insurance 35 law, as amended by section 4 of chapter 4 of the laws of 2021, is 36 amended to read as follows: 37 (1) Any schedule of rates or rating plan for motor vehicle liability 38 and collision insurance submitted to the superintendent shall provide 39 for an actuarially appropriate reduction in premium charges for any 40 insured for a three year period after successfully completing a motor 41 vehicle accident prevention course, known as the national safety coun- 42 cil's defensive driving course, or any driver improvement course 43 approved by the department of motor vehicles as being equivalent to the 44 national safety council's defensive driving course, provided that in 45 either event there shall be no reduction in premiums for a self-instruc- 46 tion defensive driving course or a course that does not provide for 47 actual classroom instruction for a minimum number of hours as determined 48 by the department of motor vehicles. Such reduction in premium charges 49 shall be subsequently modified to the extent appropriate, based upon 50 analysis of loss experience statistics and other relevant factors. All 51 such accident prevention courses shall be monitored by the department of 52 motor vehicles and shall include components of instruction in "Road 53 Rage" awareness [and], in "Work Zone Safety" awareness and in traffic 54 stops, as defined by the commissioner of motor vehicles. The provisions 55 of this section shall not apply to attendance at a program pursuant toS. 6438 4 1 article twenty-one of the vehicle and traffic law as a result of any 2 traffic infraction. 3 § 6. Subdivision 6 of section 502 of the vehicle and traffic law is 4 amended by adding a new paragraph (a-1) to read as follows: 5 (a-1) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this subdivision, a license 6 shall not be renewed until such time as the applicant completes an 7 updated traffic stop instruction course with the most recently issued 8 course instructional materials developed pursuant to paragraph (c-5) of 9 subdivision four of this section. Such course may be offered in an 10 interactive video or other electronic means as part of an applicant's 11 online renewal application. 12 § 7. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a 13 law; provided that the amendments to paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of 14 section 2336 of the insurance law, made by section four of this act 15 shall be subject to the expiration and repeal of such subsection pursu- 16 ant to section 5 of chapter 751 of the laws of 2005, as amended, when 17 upon such date the provisions of section five of this act shall take 18 effect. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of 19 any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on 20 its effective date are authorized and directed to be made and completed 21 on or before such effective date.