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A09521 Summary:

BILL NOA09521
 
SAME ASSAME AS S08726-A
 
SPONSORWilliams
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Amd 1224, V & T L
 
Reduces the number of hours before a vehicle is considered abandoned; increases the dollar value of abandoned vehicles which may be seized by a local authority.
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A09521 Actions:

BILL NOA09521
 
03/20/2024referred to transportation
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A09521 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A9521
 
SPONSOR: Williams
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to abandoned vehicles   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:: Allow for abandoned vehicles to be removed off City of New York roads.   SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:: Section 1224(1)(a) of the Vehicle and Traffic Law ("VTL") currently allows for a motor vehicle to be deemed abandoned if it is left unat- tended with no number plates affixed for more than six hours on any highway or other public place. Section 1224(2) of the VTL currently provides that ownership of a vehi- cle deemed abandoned on any roadway shall immediately vest in the local authority having jurisdiction over the roadway if, among other criteria, the wholesale value of the vehicle, based on its physical condition at the time of abandonment, is $1,250 or less.   JUSTIFICATION:: The New York City Department of Sanitation (the "Department") is respon- sible for the removal of unlawfully abandoned vehicles from streets and other public areas in New York City. The commercial value of these vehi- cles, commonly referred to as "derelicts" or "hulks", is marginal, often the result of scavenging and vandalism. The Department manages and oversees the expedient removal of unlawfully abandoned vehicles from City roadways and public areas through its Dere- lict Vehicle Operations ("DVO") Program and through the Department's new, joint DSNY NYPD Citywide Abandoned Vehicle Taskforce, which enables both agencies to increase abandoned vehicle, operations. Vehicles subject to the DVO Program must meet both statutory requirements under VTL § 1224(1), which includes-the requirement that the vehicle be left unattended without plates for six hours and display substantial interior or exterior damage. The Department's uniformed field personnel and enforcement officers identify the worst, and potentially dangerous, derelict vehicles based on specific criteria developed by the Department as to the vehicle's physical condition. This set of criteria allows Department personnel to reasonably approximate the wholesale value set forth under VTL § 1224(2). Upon determining that the vehicle is dere- lict, the vehicle is tagged and subsequently removed by a towing contractor, who arranges for the recycling or proper disposal of the abandoned vehicle. Consistent with VTL § 1224(2), the Department will not arrange for a vehicle without plates to be towed if the Department determines the vehicle is worth more than $1,250. Vehicles determined to be worth more than $1,250 are removed by the New York City Police Department under its Rotation Towing Program. Allowing a motor vehicle to be deemed abandoned if left unattended with- out any license plates affixed for more than six hours on any highway or other public place is too long of a time period. This proposed legis- lation would reduce this required time period from six hours to three hours and would allow the Department to remove these vehicles more quickly. These vehicles are potentially dangerous and should be removed as quickly as possible. This proposed legislation would help to expedite the removal of abandoned vehicles with no plates, and would help to address the overwhelming number of complaints received by the Department relating to abandoned vehicles - specifically, the Department received more than 51,000 such complaints during calendar year 2023 - by allowing for a more timely removal of problematic vehicles. Additionally, since its DVO Program was created, the Department has updated and improved many of its methods and operational procedures for managing abandoned vehicles through utilization of advanced communi- cations technology, agency personnel training, coordinated. City and State agency efforts, and successful legislative reform. The wholesale value of the abandoned vehicle under VU § 1224(2), however, has only been increased four times since the State's abandoned vehicle legis- lation was enhanced by Chapter 829 of the Laws of 1969. In 1969, the wholesale value was fixed at $100. The last change to the statutory wholesale value of an abandoned vehicle occurred in 2002 - over twenty years ago -when the wholesale value was increased from $750 to $1,250. Today, many physical components of hulk vehicles left abandoned, such as tires and hood ornaments and certain vehicle parts, are worth more than $1,250. Accordingly, this legislation which increases the wholesale value of an abandoned vehicle from $1,250 to $5,000 is long overdue and necessary to reflect the current market value of vehicles and their components, and to keep pace with inflation.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:: New legislation   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:: N/A   EFFECTIVE DATE:: This act shall take 180 days after it shall have become a law.
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A09521 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          9521
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                     March 20, 2024
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. WILLIAMS -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Transportation
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to abandoned
          vehicles
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 1 of section 1224 of the vehi-
     2  cle  and  traffic law, as amended by chapter 795 of the laws of 1974, is
     3  amended to read as follows:
     4    (a) with no number plates affixed thereto, for more than  [six]  three
     5  hours on any highway or other public place;
     6    §  2. Subdivision 2 of section 1224 of the vehicle and traffic law, as
     7  amended by chapter 540 of the laws  of  2002,  is  amended  to  read  as
     8  follows:
     9    2.  If an abandoned vehicle, at the time of abandonment, has no number
    10  plates affixed and is of a wholesale value,  taking  into  consideration
    11  the condition of the vehicle, of [one] five thousand [two hundred fifty]
    12  dollars or less, ownership shall immediately vest in the local authority
    13  having  jurisdiction  thereof  and  title  to  the vehicle shall vest in
    14  accordance with applicable law  and  regulations  of  the  commissioner,
    15  provided  however that a local authority shall not be required to obtain
    16  title to an abandoned vehicle that is subject to the provisions of  this
    17  subdivision if the vehicle will be sold or otherwise disposed of as junk
    18  or  salvage, dismantled for use other than as a motor vehicle, or other-
    19  wise destroyed.
    20    § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    21  it shall have become a law.
 
 
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14319-03-4
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