Bill Text: NY A01630 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to the issuance of special vehicle identification parking permits and provision of parking spaces for veterans injured in the line of duty.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to transportation [A01630 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-A01630-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1630 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 16, 2019 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. SANTABARBARA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to providing parking spaces for veterans injured in the line of duty The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding four new 2 sections 1205, 1205-a, 1205-b and 1205-c to read as follows: 3 § 1205. Parking permits for veterans injured in the line of duty. 1. 4 The commissioner shall distribute special vehicle identification parking 5 permits to the governing bodies of all cities, town and villages in the 6 state. Notwithstanding any local law or ordinance to the contrary, such 7 permits shall entitle any vehicle displaying such permit to park in any 8 area in any city, town or village of the state which has been designated 9 by such city, town or village or pursuant to the provisions of section 10 twelve hundred five-c of this article as a place for parking for veter- 11 ans injured in the line of duty. The design, period of validity, and 12 procedures for reissuance of such permits shall be as determined by the 13 commissioner. A city, town or village issuing a permit pursuant to this 14 subdivision shall indelibly inscribe or otherwise mark, on the face of 15 such permit, the last three digits of the identification number of the 16 driver's license or non-driver identification card of the person to whom 17 the permit is issued. The governing bodies of cities, towns and villages 18 in the state shall appoint an issuing agent to issue such permits. Any 19 person issued a permit pursuant to this section who holds a driver's 20 license or non-driver identification card shall make the last three 21 digits of such license or identification card available to an issuing 22 agent at the time of permit issuance or renewal by presenting such 23 license or identification card to such issuing agent. Any person issued 24 a permit pursuant to this section who holds a driver's license or non- 25 driver identification card shall carry and make available to a law EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD06291-01-9A. 1630 2 1 enforcement officer upon demand, or as soon as practicable thereafter, 2 his or her driver's license or non-driver identification card which 3 shall be presumptive evidence of the validity of his or her special 4 vehicle identification parking permit. Failure to make available such 5 driver's license or non-driver identification card upon demand shall not 6 be deemed a violation. The permits shall be issued to any resident of 7 New York state who is a veteran, as defined in section eighty-five of 8 the civil service law, who has been injured in the line of duty upon 9 application of such person, provided, however, that an issuing agent 10 shall issue permits only to residents of the city, town or village in 11 which such issuing agent is located, except that, an issuing agent, in 12 his or her discretion, may issue a permit to a veteran who has been 13 injured in the line of duty who is not a resident of the city, town, or 14 village in which such issuing agent is located where such person resides 15 in a city, town, or village in which the governing body has not 16 appointed an issuing agent. 17 2. Such permit shall be for use exclusively in a vehicle in which the 18 person to whom it has been issued is being transported and such permit 19 shall not be transferable and shall be forfeited if presented by any 20 other person. Any abuse by any person, facility or agency to whom such 21 permit has been issued of any privilege, benefit, precedence or consid- 22 eration granted pursuant to the issuance of such permit, shall be suffi- 23 cient cause for revocation of said permit. 24 3. The special vehicle identification parking permit issued by the 25 commissioner shall be recognized statewide. 26 4. A person who knowingly and wilfully with the intent to deceive 27 makes a false statement or gives information which such individual knows 28 to be false to a public official to obtain a parking permit for veterans 29 injured in the line of duty or to prevent the marking on such permit of 30 the last three digits of a driver's license or non-driver identification 31 card held by such person, in addition to any other penalty provided by 32 law, shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than two hundred 33 fifty dollars nor more than one thousand dollars. 34 § 1205-a. Parking spaces; veterans. 1. Parking spaces for veterans 35 injured in the line of duty. A veterans permit issued in accordance 36 with the provisions of section one thousand two hundred five of this 37 article shall entitle the veteran-driver to park in such parking spac- 38 es. Parking spaces for veterans shall be those parking spaces accorded 39 to a holder of a veterans parking permit provided in accordance with 40 section one thousand two hundred five of this article. 41 2. It shall be a violation for any person to stop, stand or park a 42 vehicle in any area designated as a place for veteran parking unless the 43 vehicle bears a permit issued under section one thousand two hundred 44 five of this article and such vehicle is being used for the transporta- 45 tion of a veteran. This subdivision shall not apply to a violation of 46 section twelve hundred five-c of this article. 47 § 1205-b. Veterans parking enforcement. 1. A county, city, town or 48 village may, by adoption of a local law or ordinance, establish a veter- 49 ans parking violation unit to assist in the enforcement of veterans 50 parking laws or ordinances. Persons appointed to such unit shall be 51 volunteers, shall serve without compensation, and shall be authorized to 52 provide evidence of violations of veterans parking laws or ordinances to 53 the appropriate local enforcement authority. Such evidence may include 54 photographing a violation, provided that such photograph is taken and 55 handled in compliance with the requirements of this section.A. 1630 3 1 2. A local law or ordinance enacted in accordance with the provisions 2 of this section shall: 3 (a) establish a training program of no less than two hours in length 4 and require each volunteer to participate in and complete such training 5 program; 6 (b) provide for the assignment of an identification number to each 7 volunteer, and provide official identification and equipment to assist 8 volunteer personnel in the conduct of their duties; 9 (c) establish uniform procedures for volunteers to follow in determin- 10 ing whether a violation has occurred; 11 (d) establish procedures for the uniform reporting of violations, 12 which reporting shall include the identification number of the volunteer 13 making the report; 14 (e) if such local law or ordinance provides for the taking of photo- 15 graphs of violations, (i) grant only the enforcement agency the authori- 16 ty to process or to contract for the processing of all film submitted by 17 volunteers; (ii) require any photographs evidencing a violation to be 18 available for inspection in any proceeding to adjudicate the liability 19 for such violation; (iii) provide that a certificate, sworn to or 20 affirmed by a technician employed by the locality in which the charged 21 violation occurred, or a facsimile thereof, based upon inspection of 22 photographs produced from film submitted by volunteers, shall be prima 23 facie evidence of the facts contained therein; and (iv) prohibit the use 24 of such a photograph for any purpose other than as evidence of a hand- 25 icapped parking violation; and 26 (f) provide the following with respect to notices of violation: (i) a 27 notice of violation shall be sent by first class mail to each person 28 alleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of a veterans parking 29 law or ordinance. A manual or automatic record of mailing prepared in 30 the ordinary course of business shall be prima facie evidence of the 31 facts contained therein; (ii) a notice of violation shall reference the 32 law which was allegedly violated, and shall contain the name and address 33 of the person alleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of a 34 veterans parking law or ordinance, the registration number of the vehi- 35 cle involved in such violation, the location where such violation took 36 place, the date and time of such violation, and the identification 37 number of the volunteer who recorded the violation; (iii) a notice of 38 violation shall contain information advising the person charged of the 39 manner and the time in which he or she may contest the violation alleged 40 in the notice, and shall also contain a warning to advise the persons 41 charged that failure to contest in the manner and time provided shall be 42 deemed an admission of liability and that a default judgment may be 43 entered thereon. 44 § 1205-c. Off street parking spaces for veterans injured in the line 45 of duty. 1. Any person, firm or corporation owning a shopping center or 46 facility with at least five separate retail stores and at least twenty 47 off street parking spaces which are provided for use by the shopping 48 public must designate as only for veterans injured in the line of duty 49 and clearly mark for use by veterans a minimum of three percent of such 50 parking spaces or six such spaces whichever is less. These spaces must 51 be located as close as reasonably practicable to the shopping center 52 facility and reasonably distributed so as to provide convenient access 53 for use by veteran drivers. Such parking spaces are to be used by veter- 54 an drivers displaying a special municipal parking permit (as defined in 55 section twelve hundred five of this article and distributed by theA. 1630 4 1 commissioner of motor vehicles to local governing bodies to be issued to 2 veterans who reside in such locality). 3 2. (a) The parking spaces designated pursuant to the provisions of 4 this section shall be clearly identified for use by veterans injured in 5 the line of duty which designation shall include conspicuous and perma- 6 nently installed above grade signs and which shall be positioned from 7 the parking space surface at a height of not less than five feet nor 8 more than seven feet and may include the use of green painted lines or 9 markings. Such parking spaces also may be marked as tow-away zones. 10 (b) Whenever a person, firm or corporation creates an off-street park- 11 ing lot or parking garage, or repaves or repaints more than one-half of 12 the total number of parking spaces in an off-street parking lot or park- 13 ing garage, which contains designated veteran parking spaces, or creates 14 designated veteran parking spaces in an off-street parking lot or park- 15 ing garage, or repaves or repaints more than one-half of the total 16 number of designated veteran parking spaces in an off-street parking lot 17 or parking garage, the size of designated veteran parking spaces shall 18 be at least eight feet wide. 19 3. A violation of this section by any person, firm or corporation 20 owning a shopping center or facility with at least five separate retail 21 stores and at least twenty off street parking spaces which are provided 22 for use by the shopping public who fails to provide spaces only for 23 veterans injured in the line of duty and clearly marked for use by such 24 veterans in accordance with this section, shall be punishable by a fine 25 up to two hundred fifty dollars. 26 4. Except as otherwise provided by local law which imposes a larger 27 maximum fine, any person who stops, stands or parks in spaces clearly 28 marked for use by veterans injured in the line of duty in accordance 29 with this section, without a special vehicle identification parking 30 permit or a special municipal parking permit and being used for the 31 transportation of a veteran injured in the line of duty; or with such 32 permit or registration and such person is not the one to whom the permit 33 or registration was issued or is not transporting the person issued the 34 permit or registration; shall be subject to a fine of not less than 35 fifty dollars nor more than seventy-five dollars for the first offense 36 and seventy-five to one hundred fifty dollars for the second offense 37 occurring within a period of two years within the same municipality. The 38 arresting or ticketing officer shall issue a summons to violators of 39 this section. A ticketing officer issuing a summons pursuant to this 40 section may provide for the removal and storage of a motor vehicle ille- 41 gally parked in a veteran parking space. 42 5. Notwithstanding any other state or local law to the contrary, a 43 state, county or municipal law enforcement officer seeking to enforce 44 subdivision four of this section, may enter onto the parking lot of any 45 shopping center or facility as described in subdivision one of this 46 section regardless of the existence or absence of any state or local law 47 or rule otherwise permitting or restricting such access for such law 48 enforcement officer. 49 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
