Requires that vehicle manufacturers and/or dealers terminate an individual's access to remote vehicle technology upon request by domestic violence victims who provide an order of protection and proof of ownership of a vehicle.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A9616 Revised 3/27/24
SPONSOR: Rosenthal L
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to remote vehicle
technology and domestic violence victims
 
PURPOSE:
This legislation will protect survivors of domestic violence from poten-
tial stalking, harassment and violence by allowing them to terminate an
abuser's access to their vehicle's tracking and remote technology.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one adds section 399-ccccc to the general business law.
Section two establishes the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
After leaving a domestic violence situation, many survivors continue to
experience stalking, harassment and threats of violence. As technology
has evolved, those tools have provided abusers new and startling ways to
monitor and harass survivors.
With the development of remote vehicle technology, cars can be started
and tracked, and temperature settings can be adjusted from a cellphone
or computer. Survivors must now contend with a new form of harassment
and stalking. A New York Times piece from December 2023 included inter-
views with multiple survivors who experienced this, including a survivor
whose abuser stalked her using her car's GPS technology and a survivor
whose abuser harassed her by using her car's remote start technology.
Law enforcement has faced obstacles in protecting survivors from such
intrusions as access to this technology is often controlled by car
manufacturers. This legislation would require car manufacturers or deal-
ers to remove an abuser's access to remote vehicle technology when a
survivor with an order of protection makes the request and has proof of
ownership, at no cost to the survivor. This legislation also requires
that this information be accessible through the car manufacturer or
dealer's website.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the state.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9616
IN ASSEMBLY
March 26, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to remote vehicle
technology and domestic violence victims
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
2 399-ccccc to read as follows:
3 § 399-ccccc. Remote vehicle technology; domestic violence victims. 1.
4 For the purposes of this section, the term "remote vehicle technology"
5 shall mean any technology that allows a person who is outside of a vehi-
6 cle to track the location of, or control any operation of, the vehicle,
7 and includes, but is not limited to, a global positioning system (GPS)
8 that tracks the location of the vehicle or an app-based technology that
9 controls any operation of the vehicle.
10 2. A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer located in this state shall,
11 within two business days after receiving a request by a driver who meets
12 the requirements of subdivision three of this section, terminate an
13 individual's access to remote vehicle technology.
14 3. (a) A request by a driver that a vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer
15 terminate an individual's access to remote vehicle technology shall
16 include the following information:
17 (i) proof of such driver's legal possession of a vehicle manufactured
18 by such vehicle manufacturer or sold by such dealer. Such proof may be
19 established by providing a vehicle title, a court order awarding sole
20 possession or ownership of a vehicle to such driver, or such other proof
21 as determined by the commissioner; and
22 (ii) a current order of protection establishing that such driver is a
23 victim of domestic violence and naming the individual whose access is
24 sought to be terminated.
25 (b) A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer shall not require a driver to
26 provide any information other than what is required by paragraph (a) of
27 this subdivision.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14755-02-4
A. 9616 2
1 4. A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer shall notify a driver seeking
2 relief under subdivision two of this section, in clear and accessible
3 language, that such vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer may contact the
4 driver, or the designated representative of the driver, to confirm an
5 individual's access to the remote vehicle technology has been termi-
6 nated.
7 5. A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer shall provide a notification
8 inside of a vehicle that is installed with remote vehicle technology
9 that shows if the remote vehicle technology is being used.
10 6. A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer shall provide information on
11 its internet website and vehicle internet applications, in clear and
12 accessible language, on the process of terminating a person's access to
13 remote vehicle technology, including, but not limited to, the informa-
14 tion required pursuant to paragraph (a) of subdivision three of this
15 section.
16 7. A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer shall employ dedicated staff
17 who are trauma-informed to receive and respond to requests made pursuant
18 to this section.
19 8. A vehicle manufacturer and/or dealer shall not charge a driver a
20 fee for completing a request to terminate remote vehicle technology
21 pursuant to this section.
22 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.