Bill Text: NY A05893 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Relates to ensuring access to emergency services via telephone.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 5-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-03-10 - held for consideration in governmental operations [A05893 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A05893-Introduced.html


                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          5893
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    February 20, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. FITZPATRICK, TAGUE, GIGLIO, SALKA -- Multi-Spon-
          sored by -- M.   of A. MANKTELOW -- read  once  and  referred  to  the
          Committee on Governmental Operations
        AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to ensuring access
          to emergency services via telephone
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
     2  206-g to read as follows:
     3    § 206-g. Access to  emergency  services  via  telephone.  1.  For  the
     4  purpose of this section:
     5    (a)  The term "covered business" means any partnership, joint venture,
     6  club, corporation or other form of business organization which opens its
     7  facilities to the general public for the sale and purchase of  goods  or
     8  services.
     9    (b) The term "hotel" and "motel" means an establishment which is regu-
    10  larly  used  and kept open as such in a bona fide manner for the feeding
    11  and lodging of guests, where all who conduct themselves properly and who
    12  are able and ready to pay for such services are received  if  there  are
    13  accommodations  for them. This term shall include a tourist cabin, camp,
    14  resort, tavern, inn, boarding house, lodging house or any  other  estab-
    15  lishment comparable or equivalent to any of those previously mentioned.
    16    (c)  The term "multi-line telephone system" means any system comprised
    17  of common control unit or units, telephone sets,  control  hardware  and
    18  software,  and  adjunct  systems which enables users to make and receive
    19  telephone calls using shared resources such as telephone network  trunks
    20  or  data  link  bandwidth.  This  term  includes, but is not limited to,
    21  network-based and premises-based systems such as Centrex service,  prem-
    22  ises-based,  hosted and cloud-based VoIP, as well as PBX, Hybrid and Key
    23  Telephone Systems, as classified by the FCC under  Part  sixty-eight  of
    24  its rules.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05732-01-9

        A. 5893                             2
     1    2.  All  hotels,  motels and covered businesses which operate a multi-
     2  line telephone system shall configure said system to allow any  call  to
     3  911  on the system to be directly connected to a public safety answering
     4  point without the use of an access code.
     5    3.  All  hotels,  motels and covered businesses which operate a multi-
     6  line telephone system shall ensure that the configuration of said system
     7  will also allow any call made on their system where the system's  exist-
     8  ing  access code is dialed prior to dialing 911 be directly connected to
     9  a public safety answering point.
    10    4. When feasible,  without  improving  system  hardware,  all  hotels,
    11  motels and covered businesses shall configure their multi-line telephone
    12  system  to  provide notification of any 911 call made on its system to a
    13  centralized location on the same site as the system.
    14    5. The requirements set forth in this section shall not apply  to  any
    15  hotel,  motel  or covered business that would be required to upgrade the
    16  hardware of its telephone network to meet  said  requirements.  However,
    17  these  exempted  entities  shall  be  required to place an instructional
    18  sticker on or immediately adjacent to each telephone informing users  of
    19  the  phone's inability to directly dial 911 and the procedures to follow
    20  in case of an emergency. Each instructional sticker shall be printed  in
    21  bold, easy to read font in a contrasting color with a minimum print size
    22  of sixteen point font.
    23    6.  Violation  of  this  section  shall be punishable by a fine of two
    24  hundred fifty dollars for an  initial  offense,  with  a  fine  of  five
    25  hundred  dollars  for  any second or subsequent offenses. Each violation
    26  shall be a separate and distinct offense. No fine shall be imposed until
    27  after a hearing is held by the commissioner of the department of  labor,
    28  licensing and consumer affairs where the alleged violator shall have the
    29  opportunity to be heard.
    30    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    31  it shall have become a law.
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