Prohibits a person from operating a taxi or livery unless restrained by a safety belt; further requires that no person sixteen years of age or over shall be a passenger in the front seat of a taxi or livery unless restrained by a safety belt; requires the commissioner to approve such safety belts.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1258
SPONSOR: Pretlow TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the use of
safety belts in taxicabs and liveries
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to provide taxicab and livery operators and
passengers in the state of New York with commissioner approved safety
belts.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1. Amends section 1229-c of the vehicle and traffic law by
amending subdivisions 5 and 9, extend the provisions of seatbelt
requirements to taxi and livery vehicles.
Section 2. Amends section 1229-c of the vehicle and traffic law by
adding a new subdivision 3-c to require operators of taxi and livery
vehicles to be restrained by seatbelts and to restrict passengers
sixteen and older from riding in the front seat of such vehicles without
seatbelt restraint.
JUSTIFICATION:
The intent of this bill is to require every New York State taxi cab and
livery operator and passenger be restrained with a commissioner-approved
safety belt.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A1595A 2015/2016 amended and referred to codes
A3849 2013-14 referred to codes
A3204 2012: reported and referred to codes
A5754 2009-2010 02/19/09 referred to transportations
04/21/09 reported referred to codes
01/06/10 referred to transportation
4/20/10 reported referred to codes
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on November 1, 2018. Effective immediately,
the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation neces-
sary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are and
directed to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1258
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the use of
safety belts in taxicabs and liveries
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivisions 5 and 9 of section 1229-c of the vehicle and
2 traffic law, subdivision 5 as amended by chapter 448 of the laws of 2015
3 and subdivision 9 as amended by chapter 390 of the laws of 1996, are
4 amended to read as follows:
5 5. Any person who violates the provisions of subdivision three,
6 three-c or ten-a of this section shall be punished by a civil fine of up
7 to fifty dollars. Any person who violates the provisions of subdivision
8 one, two, eleven or thirteen of this section shall be punished by a
9 civil fine of not less than twenty-five nor more than one hundred
10 dollars. In any prosecution or proceeding alleging a violation of para-
11 graph (b) of subdivision one or paragraph (c) of subdivision two of this
12 section, it shall be an affirmative defense that the passenger subject
13 to the requirements of such paragraphs was restrained by a safety belt
14 and measures more than four feet nine inches in height and/or weighs
15 more than one hundred pounds. In any prosecution or proceeding alleging
16 a violation of paragraph (b) of subdivision three-c of this section, it
17 shall be an affirmative defense that such taxi or livery was in
18 violation of subdivision four-b of section three hundred eighty-three of
19 this chapter.
20 9. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision four of this section,
21 the provisions of this section shall not apply to [taxis, liveries, and]
22 buses other than school buses and the provisions of subdivisions one,
23 two, three and three-a of this section shall not apply to taxis and
24 liveries.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04425-01-7
A. 1258 2
1 § 2. Section 1229-c of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by
2 adding a new subdivision 3-c to read as follows:
3 3-c. (a) No person shall operate a taxi or livery unless such person
4 is restrained by a safety belt approved by the commissioner.
5 (b) No person sixteen years of age or over shall be a passenger in the
6 front seat of a taxi or livery unless such person is restrained by a
7 safety belt approved by the commissioner.
8 § 3. This act shall take effect November 1, 2017. Effective immediate-
9 ly, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation
10 necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date is
11 authorized to be made on or before such effective date.
