STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7684
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
June 5, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Cities
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in
relation to prohibiting the operation of horse drawn cabs in the city
of New York; and to repeal certain provisions of such law relating
thereto
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The eighth, eleventh, and thirteenth undesignated para-
2 graphs of section 17-326 of the administrative code of the city of New
3 York, as amended by local law number 203 of the city of New York for the
4 year 2019, are amended to read as follows:
5 Rental horse business. The term "rental horse business" means a busi-
6 ness enterprise which provides or offers the use of a horse to the
7 public for a fee for the purpose of riding [or drawing a horse drawn
8 vehicle or which operates a horse drawn vehicle for hire such as a horse
9 drawn cab].
10 Under tack. The term "under tack" means that a horse is equipped for
11 riding [or driving].
12 Work. A horse is considered to be at "work" when it is out of its
13 stable and presented to the public as being available for riding[, pull-
14 ing carriages, vehicles or other devices,] or when it is saddled or in
15 harness or when it is being ridden [or is pulling a carriage, vehicle or
16 device].
17 § 2. The administrative code of the city of New York is amended by
18 adding a new section 17-326.1 to read as follows:
19 § 17-326.1 Carriage rides prohibited. It shall be unlawful to offer
20 rides to the public on a vehicle drawn or pulled by a carriage horse.
21 § 3. Subdivisions a and d of section 17-327 of the administrative code
22 of the city of New York, subdivision d as amended by local law number 80
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06473-01-3
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1 of the city of New York for the year 2020, are amended to read as
2 follows:
3 a. On and after January first, nineteen hundred eighty-two no person
4 shall use or offer the use of a horse in a rental horse business unless
5 such horse is licensed pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter.
6 For purposes of this subchapter the use of a horse in a rental horse
7 business means that a horse is used or offered for use by the public for
8 a fee for the purpose of riding [or drawing a horse drawn vehicle or is
9 used in the operation of a horse drawn vehicle for hire such as a horse
10 drawn cab].
11 d. Application for a license or the renewal of a license shall be made
12 to the department of health and mental hygiene. Such application shall
13 contain the name and address of the owner of the horse and of the owner
14 of the rental horse business in which such horse is to be used if such
15 person is not the owner of the horse, the age, sex, color, markings and
16 any other identifying marks such as brands or tattoos of the horse, the
17 location of the stable where the horse is to be kept and any other
18 information which the commissioner of health and mental hygiene may
19 require. [An application with respect to a horse which is used in the
20 operation of a "horse drawn cab" as defined in subchapter twenty-one of
21 chapter two of title twenty of this code shall include the identifica-
22 tion number required to be inscribed on such horses hoof pursuant to the
23 rules and regulations of the department of consumer and worker
24 protection.] The application shall be accompanied by the license or
25 renewal fee.
26 § 4. Section 17-329 of the administrative code of the city of New York
27 is amended to read as follows:
28 § 17-329 Disposition of licensed horse. a. The department shall be
29 notified of the transfer of ownership or other disposition of a licensed
30 horse within [ten] five days thereafter. Such notice shall include the
31 date of disposition and [if sold in New York city,] the name and address
32 of the buyer or other transferee and such other information as the
33 commissioner may prescribe.
34 b. A horse shall not be sold or disposed of except in a humane
35 manner[.], which, for the purposes of this subchapter shall mean one of
36 the following:
37 1. The owner shall sell or donate the horse to a private individual
38 who signs an assurance that the horse will not be sold and shall be kept
39 solely as a companion animal and not employed in another horse-drawn
40 carriage business or as a work horse and will be cared for humanely for
41 the remainder of the horse's natural life; or
42 2. The owner shall sell or donate the horse to a duly incorporated
43 animal sanctuary or duly incorporated animal protection organization
44 whose president or executive director signs an assurance that the horse
45 will not be sold and shall be kept solely as a companion animal and not
46 employed in another horse-drawn carriage business or as a work horse and
47 will be cared for humanely for the remainder of the horse's natural
48 life.
49 3. Records indicating the name, address and telephone number of the
50 private individual, duly incorporated animal sanctuary or duly incorpo-
51 rated animal protection organization to whom the horse was sold or
52 donated together with the assurance specified above shall be sent by the
53 owner to the department within five days after such sale or donation. A
54 copy of such record shall also be maintained at the stable.
55 § 5. Subdivisions g, h and l of section 17-330 of the administrative
56 code of the city of New York, subdivisions g and l as amended by local
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1 law number 10 of the city of New York for the year 2010, and subdivision
2 h as added by local law number 2 of the city of New York for the year
3 1994, are amended to read as follows:
4 g. [1. Carriage horses shall not be at work for more than nine hours
5 in any continuous twenty-four hour period.] Riding horses shall not be
6 at work for more than eight hours in any continuous twenty-four hour
7 period. Rest periods for [carriage horses and] riding horses shall be of
8 such duration and at such intervals as the commissioner shall
9 prescribe[, but rest periods for carriage horses shall in no event be
10 for less than fifteen minutes after each two hour working period, and
11 the time of such rest period shall be included in calculating the number
12 of hours the horse has worked in any twenty-four hour period. During
13 such rest periods, the person in charge of such carriage horses shall
14 make fresh water available to the horse.
15 2. Carriage horses shall receive no less than five weeks of vacation
16 or furlough every twelve months at a horse stable facility which allows
17 daily access to paddock or pasture turnout. Proof of such vacation or
18 furlough shall be provided upon request to the department and/or the
19 ASPCA].
20 h. [Carriage horses shall not be driven at a pace faster than a trot.]
21 Riding horses may be ridden at a canter but shall not be galloped.
22 l. An owner of a rental horse business shall keep such records as the
23 commissioner of health shall prescribe including but not limited to a
24 consecutive daily record of the movements of each licensed horse includ-
25 ing the [driver's name and identification number, if applicable,]
26 rider's name, the horse's identification number, [vehicle license plate
27 number, if applicable,] time of leaving stable and time of return to
28 stable. An owner of a rental horse business shall also keep written
29 protocols for emergencies, including but not limited to primary and
30 secondary emergency contact information for each horse owner and insur-
31 ance company information, if applicable. Such records shall be kept on
32 the premises of the stable where the horses are kept and shall be avail-
33 able for inspection. The commissioner may, in his or her discretion,
34 require a time clock, date stamp or time stamp where such commissioner
35 believes it is appropriate.
36 § 6. Subdivisions o and p of section 17-330 of the administrative code
37 of the city of New York are REPEALED.
38 § 7. Paragraph 1 of subdivision a of section 17-331 of the administra-
39 tive code of the city of New York is amended to read as follows:
40 1. Two members shall be appointed from among the owners of rental
41 horse businesses operating within the city[, one of whom shall be repre-
42 sentative of the interests of owners of riding horses and one of whom
43 shall be representative of the interests of owners of carriage horses].
44 § 8. Subdivision a of section 17-334 of the administrative code of the
45 city of New York is REPEALED and subdivisions b and c are relettered
46 subdivisions a and b.
47 § 9. Section 17-334.1 of the administrative code of the city of New
48 York is REPEALED.
49 § 10. Sections 19-174 and 19-175 of the administrative code of the
50 city of New York are REPEALED.
51 § 11. Section 20-371 of the administrative code of the city of New
52 York, as amended by local law number 31 of the city of New York for the
53 year 1995, is amended to read as follows:
54 § 20-371 Licensing of sight-seeing buses[, horse drawn cabs and horse
55 drawn cab drivers]. Legislative findings. The legislative findings here-
56 tofore made in relation to the business of sight-seeing buses [and horse
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1 drawn cabs] in the city of New York and set forth in local law number
2 ten of nineteen hundred sixty-four continue to be valid; such businesses
3 are vested with a public interest and their regulation and control
4 continue to be necessary and essential in order to cope with certain
5 evils and hazards which existed in the absence of governmental super-
6 vision. The supervision formerly was reposed in the police commissioner,
7 but recent experience and study indicate that jurisdiction over such
8 businesses should be transferred to the commissioner. [It is further
9 found that the present number of horse drawn cabs licensed in the city
10 of New York is adequate to meet the public need and demand and should be
11 preserved, unless the commissioner finds that additional licenses are
12 necessary and advisable.]
13 § 12. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 20-372 of the administrative
14 code of the city of New York, as amended by local law number 31 of the
15 city of New York for the year 1995, are amended to read as follows:
16 1. "Owner" shall include any person, firm, partnership, corporation or
17 association owning and operating a sight-seeing bus or buses, [or horse
18 drawn cab or cabs,] and shall include a purchaser under a reserve title
19 contract, conditional sales agreement or vendor's agreement and the
20 lessee of such vehicle or vehicles under a written lease or similar
21 contract provided such purchaser or lessee of sight-seeing bus or buses
22 shall be entitled to obtain in his or her name a license or licenses
23 therefor from the commissioner of motor vehicles of the state of New
24 York.
25 3. "Inspection card" shall designate the card issued by the commis-
26 sioner for the sight-seeing bus licensed [or horse drawn cab licensed],
27 which card shall display the license number and capacity of such vehi-
28 cle.
29 § 13. Subdivisions 5, 6, 7 and 8 of section 20-372 of the administra-
30 tive code of the city of New York are REPEALED and subdivisions 9, 10
31 and 11 are renumbered subdivisions 5, 6 and 7.
32 § 14. Subdivisions a and b of section 20-373 of the administrative
33 code of the city of New York are amended to read as follows:
34 a. It shall be unlawful to operate or permit another to operate for
35 hire a sight-seeing bus [or horse-drawn cab] within the city unless the
36 owner shall have first obtained a license therefor from the commission-
37 er. [An applicant for a horse-drawn cab license shall be at least eigh-
38 teen years of age.]
39 b. Fees. The original and renewal license fee for each sight-seeing
40 bus shall be fifty dollars [and for each horse-drawn cab shall be fifty
41 dollars].
42 § 15. Subdivisions c and d of section 20-373 of the administrative
43 code of the city of New York are REPEALED.
44 § 16. Subdivisions a and b of section 20-374 of the administrative
45 code of the city of New York are amended to read as follows:
46 a. Any person, firm, partnership, corporation or association, owning
47 or operating a sight-seeing bus, or buses[, or horse-drawn cab, or cabs]
48 engaging in the business of transporting passengers in, about, over and
49 upon any of the streets, avenues, bridges, highways, boulevards or
50 public places within the limits of the city of New York, shall be issued
51 a license for each bus [or cab] so operating, provided, however any such
52 person, firm, partnership, corporation or association owning or operat-
53 ing a sight-seeing bus or buses, shall first have obtained a license or
54 licenses, as he or she shall be entitled to receive from the commission-
55 er of motor vehicles of the state of New York as made and provided by
56 law.
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1 b. It shall be unlawful for a license, after being issued by the
2 commissioner, to be transferred to any person, firm, partnership, corpo-
3 ration or association for any cause whatsoever[, except that licenses
4 for horse-drawn cabs may be transferred with the approval of the commis-
5 sioner. Upon voluntary sale or transfer of a licensed horse-drawn cab by
6 the holder of a license or his or her legal representative, the licensee
7 shall immediately notify the commissioner of his or her intention to
8 replace such horse-drawn cab, or shall surrender his or her license. If
9 the license is surrendered, the vendee or transferee may make applica-
10 tion to the commissioner for the licensing of the horse-drawn cab so
11 purchased. A new license shall then be issued by the commissioner in
12 place of the license so surrendered, provided the applicant has demon-
13 strated to the satisfaction of the commissioner that he or she is quali-
14 fied to assume the duties and obligations of a horse-drawn cab license].
15 § 17. Subdivision c of section 20-374 of the administrative code of
16 the city of New York is REPEALED and subdivisions d and e are relettered
17 subdivisions c and d.
18 § 18. Section 20-375 of the administrative code of the city of New
19 York, as amended by local law number 2 of the city of New York for the
20 year 1994, is amended to read as follows:
21 § 20-375 License plate. Upon the payment of the license fee the
22 commissioner shall issue a license to the owner of the sightseeing bus
23 [or horse drawn cab] together with a license plate to be securely
24 affixed to a conspicuous and indispensable part of such sightseeing bus
25 [or securely and conspicuously affixed to the rear axle of such horse
26 drawn cab,] on which shall be clearly set forth the license number of
27 such sightseeing bus [or horse drawn cab]. The license plate issued to
28 the licensee may, in the discretion of the commissioner, be a plate of a
29 permanent nature with a replaceable date tag attached thereto, indicat-
30 ing the expiration date of the plate during each license year and the
31 issuance of such a plate with such date tag to a person possessing such
32 a plate, shall be deemed issuance of a license plate. Such license plate
33 and the replaceable date tag to be issued from year to year to be
34 attached thereto, shall be of such material, form, design and dimension
35 and set forth such distinguishing number or other identification marks
36 as the commissioner shall prescribe. The commissioner upon renewal of
37 the license hereunder, may continue the use of the license plate for as
38 many additional license years as he or she in his or her discretion may
39 determine, in which event he or she shall issue and deliver to the
40 licensee a replaceable date tag as evidence of renewal of the license,
41 which shall be attached or affixed in such manner as he or she may
42 prescribe by rule. The failure to affix or display such date tag in a
43 manner prescribed by the commissioner shall constitute a violation of
44 this section. In the event of the loss, mutilation or destruction of any
45 license plate or date tag issued hereunder, the owner may file such
46 statement and proof of facts as the commissioner shall require, with a
47 fee of twenty-five dollars, at the department, and the department shall
48 issue a duplicate or substitute license plate or date tag.
49 § 19. Sections 20-377 and 20-377.1 of the administrative code of the
50 city of New York are REPEALED.
51 § 20. Section 20-378 of the administrative code of the city of New
52 York is amended to read as follows:
53 § 20-378 Periodic inspection. The license department shall cause all
54 sight-seeing buses [and horse-drawn cabs] now, or hereafter licensed, to
55 be inspected at least once every four months. The date of such
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1 inspection and the signature of the person making the inspection shall
2 be recorded upon the inspection card in the spaces provided therefor.
3 § 21. Section 20-379 of the administrative code of the city of New
4 York is amended to read as follows:
5 § 20-379 Form of inspection card. The commissioner shall prescribe an
6 appropriate form of inspection card for sight-seeing buses [and horse-
7 drawn cabs] and the manner in which such card and the sight-seeing bus
8 driver's [and horse-drawn cab driver's] identification cards shall be
9 displayed.
10 § 22. Sections 20-380, 20-381, 20-381.1, 20-381.2 and 20-382 of the
11 administrative code of the city of New York are REPEALED.
12 § 23. Section 20-383 of the administrative code of the city of New
13 York, as amended by local law number 2 of the city of New York for the
14 year 1994, the section number and the section heading as amended by
15 local law number 41 of the city of New York for the year 2005 and subdi-
16 vision a as amended by local law number 175 of the city of New York for
17 the year 2018, is amended to read as follows:
18 § 20-383 Suspensions and revocations. [a.] After notice and opportu-
19 nity to be heard, the commissioner may suspend or revoke any sight-see-
20 ing bus license where the holder has failed to comply with any of the
21 provisions of this subchapter or of the rules promulgated thereunder, or
22 with any other laws or rules governing sight-seeing buses, or which
23 sight-seeing bus is otherwise found to be unfit for operation. Such
24 suspension shall remain in effect until compliance and fitness have been
25 established by the licensee and accepted by the department. Grounds for
26 suspension or revocation shall include, but not be limited to, revoca-
27 tion of one or more bus stop authorizations by the commissioner of
28 transportation pursuant to section 19-175.6 of this code, three or more
29 violations of paragraph 2 of subdivision [e] d of section 20-374 of this
30 subchapter within a two year period, installation of an engine which
31 does not meet the requirements of subdivision b of section 20-376 of
32 this subchapter, being found to have violated the requirements for
33 diesel fuel-powered sight-seeing buses contained in section 24-163.6 of
34 the administrative code, failure to submit a bus for inspection, instal-
35 lation of an engine not covered by a certificate of conformity in a
36 vehicle which was originally manufactured with such an engine and
37 installation of an engine of any model year preceding the year of manu-
38 facture in a vehicle which was originally manufactured with an engine
39 covered by a certificate of conformity. The commissioner shall, as soon
40 as practicable, notify the commissioner of transportation of each sight-
41 seeing bus license that is suspended or revoked.
42 [b. Any driver of a horse drawn cab found to have committed within any
43 twelve-month period, in the aggregate, at least three violations of this
44 subchapter shall have his or her license suspended by the commissioner
45 for a period of not less than three months. For purposes of this subdi-
46 vision, all violations written on any one day shall constitute a single
47 violation.
48 c. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision b of this section,
49 any driver of a horse drawn cab found to have committed within any twen-
50 ty-four month period, in the aggregate, at least five violations of this
51 subchapter shall have his or her license suspended by the commissioner
52 for six months. For purposes of this subdivision, all violations written
53 on any one day shall constitute a single violation.
54 d. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions b and c of this
55 section, any driver of a horse drawn cab found guilty of one violation
56 of subdivision d of section 20-381.1 of the code or sections three
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1 hundred fifty-one, three hundred fifty-three, three hundred fifty-five
2 through three hundred sixty-two or three hundred sixty-nine of the New
3 York state agriculture and markets law or who is found guilty of a
4 violation of this subchapter while his or her license is suspended,
5 shall have his or her license revoked. A driver whose license has been
6 revoked in accordance with this provision may not apply for a new
7 license for five years from the date of revocation.]
8 § 24. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day
9 after it shall have become a law.