As your Assemblyman, I have been working with my colleagues in the state Legislature to create effective and sensible legislation to improve New York State and make our communities safer. This year, I have joined the fight to make our roadways safer with the “Traffic Safety Act of 2006,” which enacts into law major changes. This proposed legislation creates the crime of aggravated driving while intoxicated, creates a new category of vehicular manslaughter, stiffens penalties for speeding through certain speed zones and improves roadway safety.
Across the state there have been too many alcohol related motor vehicle accidents, which often prove fatal. According to the most recent data from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, over 5,600 people were injured or killed in alcohol-related automobile accidents in 2004. The Traffic Safety Act of 2006 increases penalties for a person operating a motor vehicle with a Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) of .18 or higher. Under the proposed legislation, the convicted violator would be charged for the first offense with a class E felony which would carry fines of up to $5,000 and/or jail time. Repeat offenders would face even tougher penalties with longer jail sentences and/or fines of up to $10,000.
In our community and in communities across the country, road rage has become the fastest growing danger on our roadways. Too often a rude gesture or action escalates resulting in injury or even death. To make people think twice before committing road rage, the Traffic Safety Act of 2006 adds a charge of vehicular manslaughter in the third degree, a class E Felony.
Speeding motorists are a constant hazard on New York roadways. People who speed think they can push the envelope to save time, but what they fail to realize is not only do they decrease their reaction time but they also endanger their lives and the lives of those around them. The Traffic Safety Act of 2006 would stiffen the penalties for speeding by requiring an additional five point penalty for motorists who drive 20 miles per hour over in areas posted at 45 miles an hour or less and tack on an additional nine points for repeat offenders who get three or more speeding tickets in an 18 month period.
For questions, comments or concerns on this or any other matter, don’t hesitate to contact my office at (585) 225-4190. You can also mail my office, the address is 2300 West Ridge Road, Rochester, N.Y. 14626, or e-mail me at reilicw@assembly.state.ny.us.