STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9591
IN ASSEMBLY
March 26, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to prohibiting
the issuance of late fees prior to a finding of liability for a park-
ing violation; and repealing 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. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 235 of the vehicle
2 and traffic law, as separately amended by chapters 421, 460 and 773 of
3 the laws of 2021, is amended to read as follows:
4 a. Notice. (1) Whenever a city issues a notice of violation for a
5 parking violation, it shall be served in the manner prescribed by subdi-
6 vision two of section two hundred thirty-eight of this article.
7 (2) Whenever a person has been issued a notice of violation for a
8 parking violation and has not responded in the manner described in the
9 notice, a city shall give the owner a second notice of the violation by
10 regular first class mail: (i) within forty days of issuance of the first
11 notice of violation for a parking violation where the vehicle is a vehi-
12 cle registered in this state; or (ii) within forty days of the receipt
13 by such city of the name and address of the owner of the vehicle where
14 the vehicle is a vehicle registered in any other state. Such second
15 notice shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:
16 (A) that the owner has a period of twenty days from issuance of the
17 second notice in which to respond to the notice of violation for a park-
18 ing violation;
19 (B) that failure to respond to the notice of violation for a parking
20 violation may result in the suspension and non-renewal of the owner's
21 registration;
22 (C) [that failure to respond to the notice of violation for a parking
23 violation may subject the owner to additional penalties as provided in
24 paragraph b of this subdivision;
25 (D)] that failure to respond to the notice of violation for a parking
26 violation shall subject the owner to a default judgment as provided in
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08594-01-3
A. 9591 2
1 paragraph [c] b of this subdivision [and the additional penalties
2 imposed upon parking violations pursuant to paragraph b of this subdivi-
3 sion]; and
4 [(E)] (D) that submission of a plea of guilty to the parking violation
5 makes the owner liable for payment of the stated fine [and additional
6 penalties imposed pursuant to paragraph b of this subdivision] and the
7 mandatory surcharge of fifteen dollars imposed upon parking violations
8 pursuant to section eighteen hundred nine-a of this chapter.
9 § 2. Paragraphs b, b-1 and b-2 of subdivision 2 of section 235 of the
10 vehicle and traffic law are REPEALED and paragraph c of subdivision 2 is
11 relettered paragraph b.
12 § 3. Subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (c) of subdivision 2-a of section
13 238 of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 409 of the laws
14 of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
15 (iii) Upon a finding by a hearing examiner that the dismissal of a
16 charged parking violation has been procured due to the knowing fraud,
17 false testimony, misrepresentation, or other misconduct, or the knowing
18 alteration of a notice of parking violation, by the person so charged or
19 his or her agent, employee, or representative, the dismissal shall be
20 set aside and a determination may be rendered against the owner on the
21 charged parking violation. The hearing examiner may impose monetary
22 penalties for the charged parking violation of up to three times the
23 scheduled fine for the violation [and three times the additional penal-
24 ties that may be imposed for failure to respond to a notice of violation
25 pursuant to section two hundred thirty-five of this article. For
26 purposes of determining the amount of such additional penalties, the
27 hearing examiner shall disregard the plea that procured the dismissal
28 that has been set aside and shall calculate such penalties as if there
29 had been no plea or appearance in the proceeding]. In any proceeding
30 under this paragraph to set aside a determination and to impose penal-
31 ties for the violation, it shall not be necessary for the hearing exam-
32 iner to find that the owner personally committed the unlawful acts that
33 procured the dismissal of the violation.
34 § 4. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section
35 238-a to read as follows:
36 § 238-a. Prohibition of certain late fees. Notwithstanding any incon-
37 sistent provision of this article, or any general, special, or local law
38 or administrative code to the contrary, an owner shall not be subject to
39 additional penalties for failure to respond to a notice of violation but
40 only, in the event such owner is found liable for such violation, fail-
41 ure to pay the imposed fine in a timely fashion.
42 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.
