STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9734
IN SENATE
May 23, 2024
___________
Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- (at request of the NYC Finance) -- 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 administrative code
of the city of New York, in relation to the contents and adjudication,
of notices of violation returnable to a parking violations bureau, and
to increase the fine for tractors, trailers, or related vehicles that
park on residential streets overnight
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 237 of the vehicle and traffic
2 law, as amended by chapter 458 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read
3 as follows:
4 2. To provide for penalties other than imprisonment for (a) parking
5 violations in accordance with a schedule of monetary fines and penal-
6 ties, provided however, that monetary penalties shall not exceed fifty
7 dollars for each parking violation other than (i) in a city with a popu-
8 lation of one million or more, violations committed in spaces where
9 stopping or standing is prohibited for which monetary penalties shall
10 not exceed one hundred dollars and, (ii) handicapped parking violations
11 for which monetary penalties shall not exceed one hundred fifty dollars;
12 and (b) abandoned vehicle violations, except in a city with a population
13 of one million or more, provided however, that monetary penalties shall
14 not be less than two hundred fifty dollars nor more than one thousand
15 dollars for each abandoned vehicle violation; and (c) a city with a
16 population of one million or more may impose a monetary penalty of up to
17 [two hundred fifty] one thousand dollars for [a first] each offense [and
18 up to five hundred dollars for subsequent offenses within a six month
19 period] for tractor-trailer combinations, tractors, truck trailers
20 [and], semi-trailers, and semi-trailers without a towing vehicle
21 attached parked overnight on streets in residential neighborhoods;
22 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 238 of the vehicle and traffic law, as
23 amended by chapter 224 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as
24 follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11660-02-4
S. 9734 2
1 2. A notice of violation shall be served personally upon the operator
2 of a motor vehicle who is present at the time of service, and [his] such
3 operator's name, together with the plate designation and the plate type
4 as shown by the registration plates of said vehicle and the expiration
5 date, provided that where the vehicle has no such registration plate
6 issued by the commissioner, the commissioner's agent, or the equivalent
7 official or agents from another state, territory, district, province,
8 nation or other jurisdiction, or where such registration plate is
9 concealed or obscured, the vehicle identification number may be inserted
10 in such notice in place of or in addition to the plate designation and
11 plate type; the make or model, and, provided that a body type is indi-
12 cated on the registration sticker of said vehicle, the body type of said
13 vehicle; a description of the charged violation, including but not
14 limited to a reference to the applicable traffic rule or provision of
15 this chapter; information as to the days and hours the applicable rule
16 or provision of this chapter is in effect, unless always in effect
17 pursuant to rule or this chapter and where appropriate the word ALL when
18 the days and/or hours in effect are everyday and/or twenty-four hours a
19 day; the meter number for a meter violation, where appropriate; and the
20 date, time and particular place of occurrence of the charged violation,
21 shall be inserted therein. A mere listing of a meter number in cases of
22 charged meter violations shall not be deemed to constitute a sufficient
23 description of a particular place of occurrence for purposes of this
24 subdivision. The notice of violation shall be served upon the owner of
25 the motor vehicle if the operator is not present, by affixing such
26 notice to said vehicle in a conspicuous place. Whenever such notice is
27 so affixed, in lieu of inserting the name of the person charged with the
28 violation in the space provided for the identification of said person,
29 the words "owner of the vehicle bearing license" may be inserted to be
30 followed by the plate designation and plate type as shown by the regis-
31 tration plates of said vehicle together with the expiration date,
32 provided that where the vehicle has no such registration plate issued by
33 the commissioner, the commissioner's agent, or the equivalent official
34 or agents from another state, territory, district, province, nation or
35 other jurisdiction, or where such registration plate is concealed or
36 obscured, the vehicle identification number may be inserted in such
37 notice in place of or in addition to the plate designation and plate
38 type; the make or model, and, provided that a body type is indicated on
39 the registration sticker of said vehicle, the body type of said vehicle;
40 a description of the charged violation, including but not limited to a
41 reference to the applicable traffic rule or provision of this chapter;
42 information as to the days and hours the applicable rule or provision of
43 this chapter is in effect unless always in effect pursuant to rule or
44 this chapter and where appropriate the word ALL when the days and/or
45 hours in effect are every day and/or twenty-four hours a day; the meter
46 number for a meter violation where appropriate; and the date, time and
47 particular place of occurrence of the charged violation. Service of the
48 notice of violation, or a duplicate thereof by affixation as herein
49 provided shall have the same force and effect and shall be subject to
50 the same penalties for disregard thereof as though the same was
51 personally served with the name of the person charged with the violation
52 inserted therein.
53 § 3. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2-a of section 238 of the vehicle
54 and traffic law, as added by chapter 224 of the laws of 1995, is amended
55 to read as follows:
S. 9734 3
1 (a) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of subdivision two of
2 this section, where the plate type or the expiration date are not shown
3 on either the registration plates or sticker of a vehicle or where the
4 registration sticker is covered, faded, defaced or mutilated so that it
5 is unreadable, or cannot be located on such vehicle, the plate type or
6 the expiration date may be omitted from the notice of violation;
7 provided, however, [such] that the condition or absence of such plates
8 or sticker must be so described and inserted on the notice of violation
9 and that supporting photographic documentation may be provided.
10 § 4. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (c) of subdivision 2-a of section
11 238 of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 409 of the laws
12 of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
13 (ii) Notice shall be served on the owner by mail to the last known
14 registered address within the greater of six years of the date of the
15 dismissal or two years of the time that the enforcing authority discov-
16 ers, or could with reasonable diligence have discovered, that the
17 dismissal was procured due to the knowing fraud, false testimony,
18 misrepresentation, or other misconduct, or the knowing alteration of a
19 notice of parking violation, by the person so charged or [his or her]
20 such person's agent, employee, or representative. Such notice shall fix
21 a time when and place where a hearing shall be held before a hearing
22 examiner to determine whether or not dismissal of a charged parking
23 violation shall be set aside. Such notice shall set forth the basis for
24 setting aside the dismissal and advise the owner that failure to appear
25 at the date and time indicated in such notice shall be deemed an admis-
26 sion of liability and shall result in the setting aside of the dismissal
27 and entry of a determination on the charged parking violation. Such
28 notice shall also contain a warning that civil penalties may be imposed
29 for the violation pursuant to this paragraph and that a default judgment
30 may be entered thereon.
31 § 5. Section 242 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a
32 new subdivision 3-a to read as follows:
33 3-a. Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, in
34 cities having a population of one million or more persons, an adminis-
35 trative appeal of a determination regarding a notice of violation served
36 on an owner or operator of a commercial vehicle, as such term is defined
37 in section 4-01 of title thirty-four of the rules of the city of New
38 York, shall be conducted only when an appellant has either:
39 (a) posted a bond in the amount of the determination appealed from; or
40 (b) paid to the parking violations bureau the following penalties and
41 surcharges, as applicable:
42 (i) any penalty imposed pursuant to a notice of liability issued
43 pursuant to a program authorized by section three hundred eighty-five-a,
44 eleven hundred eleven-a, eleven hundred eleven-c, eleven hundred
45 eleven-c-one, or eleven hundred eighty-b of this chapter, other than any
46 additional penalty imposed for failure to respond to a notice of liabil-
47 ity within the prescribed time period; and
48 (ii) any surcharge levied pursuant to a notice of violation issued in
49 accordance with sections eighteen hundred nine-a and eighteen hundred
50 nine-b of this chapter.
51 § 6. Subdivision 6 of section 242 of the vehicle and traffic law, as
52 added by chapter 515 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
53 6. When charges have been overturned by a court or any other adminis-
54 trative body or officer, the party in whose favor the appeal is decided
55 shall be entitled to have returned an amount equal to any fine or penal-
56 ty imposed and collected from the parking violations bureau, less an
S. 9734 4
1 amount equal to any such penalty described in subparagraph (i) of para-
2 graph (b) of subdivision three-a of this section that was paid after the
3 time period to contest the notice of liability has expired, within thir-
4 ty days of the entry of the judgement; provided, however, that such
5 court, administrative body or officer shall have the authority to lessen
6 from such amount any debt owed by such party and shall apply this amount
7 to any outstanding fines and penalties owed by the same individual. If
8 payment is not made within thirty days, a penalty shall accrue at the
9 same rate as that imposed for failure to make timely payment of a fine
10 and shall be paid by the parking violations bureau; provided, however,
11 that in a city with a population of one million or more, where such
12 amount exceeds five thousand dollars, a court may extend the time for a
13 parking violations bureau to return such an amount to a reasonable peri-
14 od of time after entry of the judgment.
15 § 7. Subdivisions (a) and (b) of section 1204 of the vehicle and traf-
16 fic law, as amended by chapter 193 of the laws of 1974, are amended to
17 read as follows:
18 (a) Whenever any police officer, or in a city having a population in
19 excess of one million any person designated by the commissioner of
20 [traffic] transportation of such city or on highways under the jurisdic-
21 tion of the New York state thruway authority, the office of parks and
22 recreation, a county park commission, a parkway authority, a bridge
23 authority or a bridge and tunnel authority any person designated by such
24 office, commission or authority, finds a vehicle standing upon a highway
25 in violation of any of the foregoing provisions of this article such
26 officer is hereby authorized to move such vehicle, or require the driver
27 or other person in charge of the vehicle to move the same to a position
28 off the paved or main-traveled part of such highway.
29 (b) 1. Whenever any police officer, or in a city having a population
30 in excess of one million any person designated by the commissioner of
31 [traffic] transportation of such city or on highways under the jurisdic-
32 tion of the New York state thruway authority, the office of parks and
33 recreation, a county park commission, a parkway authority, a bridge
34 authority or a bridge and tunnel authority any person designated by such
35 office, commission or authority finds a vehicle unattended where it
36 constitutes an obstruction to traffic, or any place where stopping,
37 standing or parking is prohibited, such officer is hereby authorized to
38 provide for the removal of such vehicle, semitrailer or trailer to a
39 garage, automobile pound or other place of safety.
40 2. In any city with a population of one million or more, whenever any
41 police officer, or any person designated by the commissioner of [traf-
42 fic] transportation, finds a tractor-trailer combination, tractor, truck
43 trailer, semitrailer or trailer without a tractor or towing vehicle
44 attached, parked or unattended on any city street, such officer or
45 person designated by [the] such commissioner [of traffic] is hereby
46 authorized to provide for the removal of such [semitrailer] vehicle or
47 trailer to a garage, automobile pound or other place of safety. In
48 addition to any other charge authorized by this section, the owner or
49 other person lawfully entitled to the possession of such vehicle or
50 trailer, other than such a vehicle or trailer found parked or unattended
51 while connected to a state sanctioned film or television production,
52 shall be subject to a fine of up to one thousand dollars.
53 § 8. Subdivision c of section 19-170 of the administrative code of the
54 city of New York, as amended by local law number 74 of the city of New
55 York for the year 2019, is amended to read as follows:
S. 9734 5
1 c. 1. Except as otherwise provided in [paragraphs 2 and 3] paragraph
2 two of this subdivision, a violation of this section shall be punishable
3 by the monetary fine authorized for violation of the rules and regu-
4 lations of the commissioner in paragraph [1] one of subdivision a of
5 section [2903] twenty-nine hundred three of the charter.
6 2. A [first] violation of this section, when the commercial vehicle is
7 a tractor-trailer combination, tractor, truck trailer [or], semi-trailer
8 or semi-trailer without a towing vehicle attached, shall be punishable
9 by a monetary [fine] penalty of [$250] up to one thousand dollars. [Any
10 such subsequent violation of this section by the same owner, as defined
11 in paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 239 of the vehicle and traf-
12 fic law, within a six month period shall be punishable by a monetary
13 fine of $500.
14 3. As an alternative to any other means of enforcement of this subdi-
15 vision authorized by law, a first violation of subdivision b of this
16 section, when the commercial vehicle is a tractor-trailer combination,
17 tractor, truck trailer or semi-trailer, shall be punishable by a civil
18 penalty of $400. Any such subsequent violation of subdivision b of this
19 section by the same owner, as defined in paragraph a of subdivision 1 of
20 section 239 of the vehicle and traffic law, within a six month period
21 shall be punishable by a civil penalty of $800. Such civil penalties
22 shall be recoverable in a proceeding before the office of administrative
23 trials and hearings.]
24 § 9. This act shall take effect immediately, provided that section
25 four of this act shall apply with respect to any determination made on
26 or after the first day of the first month succeeding the sixtieth day
27 after this act shall have become a law.