NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A10303b
SPONSOR: Dinowitz TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the transportation law, in relation to paratransit
services within the state and city of New York during the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To ensure that paratransit services-an essential lifeline of many New
Yorkers-continue operating and observe certain public health and safety
protocols for the benefit of workers, employees, paratransit users,
families and the general public.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Amends the Transportation Law to provide the following:
Postponement of Eligibility Expiration. The eligibility of all ADA para-
transit eligible customers, whose certification would otherwise expire
between March 1, 2020 and July 31, 2020, shall be extended through at
least August 31, 2020 by the applicable public transportation
authority/provider in New York State;
Temporary Suspension of In-Person Eligibility Assessments. The applica-
ble public transportation authority/provider in New York State shall
render eligibility determinations based solely on information contained
in the written application and submitted medical documentation, until
August 31, 2020;
Individual Trip Scheduling. Through at least July 31, 2020, the applica-
ble public transportation authorities/providers in New York State shall
dispatch and route individual rather than shared paratransit trips, to
the maximum extent possible, and notify customers as soon as practicable
in advance in the event that their ride will be shared with another
customer. Customers shall have the right to refuse or reschedule shared
rides, which shall be without penalty provided customers respond within
a reasonable amount of time;
Virus Protection Measures. All applicable public transportation
authorities/providers in New York State and their contractors will
ensure that all paratransit drivers and personnel providing paratransit
services are provided with hand sanitizer, disposable sterile gloves,
face masks and training on preventive measures to protect customers,
paratransit drivers, and personnel providing paratransit services from
COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, consistent with current CDC,
OSHA, and NYSDOH guidelines; and
Extension. All applicable public transportation authorities/providers in
New York State shall have the authority to extend any date provided in
the bill if they deem it necessary in the interest of public health and
safety.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION (IT APPLICABLE):
Provides technical corrections to clarify various provisions of the
bill.
JUSTIFICATION:
The coronavirus disease epidemic has changed all aspects of our lives;
one particularly vulnerable population are New Yorkers whose only means
of travel is via paratransit services. This legislation enacts a number
of important temporary measures designed to keep the system seamlessly
moving and keep everyone safe.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
Undetermined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10303--B
IN ASSEMBLY
April 15, 2020
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, TAYLOR, RIVERA, ABINANTI, BICHOTTE,
OTIS, LENTOL, GOTTFRIED, MONTESANO, SIMON, O'DONNELL -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Transportation -- committee discharged,
bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said
committee -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the transportation law, in relation to paratransit
services within the state and city of New York during the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 5 of section 15-b of the transportation law is
2 amended by adding a new paragraph c to read as follows:
3 c. (1) (a) The period of validity of the paratransit certification of
4 all Americans with Disabilities Act paratransit eligible individuals,
5 whose certification would otherwise expire between March first, two
6 thousand twenty and July thirty-first, two thousand twenty, shall be
7 extended through August thirty-first, two thousand twenty.
8 (b) Each contractor providing paratransit services shall render eligi-
9 bility determinations for any application for Americans with Disabili-
10 ties Act paratransit based solely on information contained in the writ-
11 ten application and in submitted medical documentation, until August
12 thirty-first, two thousand twenty.
13 (c) All contractors providing paratransit services shall, until July
14 thirty-first, two thousand twenty, dispatch and route individual rather
15 than shared paratransit rides, to the maximum extent possible, and shall
16 notify customers as soon as practicable in advance in the event that
17 their ride will be shared with another customer. Such customers shall
18 have the right to refuse or reschedule rides that would have been
19 shared, and any such refusal or rescheduling shall be without penalty
20 provided they respond within a reasonable amount of time.
21 (d) All contractors providing paratransit services in the city of New
22 York shall ensure that all paratransit drivers and personnel providing
23 paratransit services are provided with hand sanitizer, disposable ster-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16013-18-0
A. 10303--B 2
1 ile gloves, face masks and training on preventive measures to protect
2 customers, paratransit drivers and personnel providing paratransit
3 services from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, consistent with
4 current guidelines from the federal centers for disease control and
5 prevention, the federal occupational safety and health administration,
6 and the New York state department of health.
7 (2) Any contractor providing paratransit services is authorized to
8 extend any date set forth in clause (a), (b) or (c) of subparagraph one
9 of this paragraph, if, in the interest of the health and safety of the
10 public due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, such contractor deems
11 such extension to be necessary.
12 § 2. Subdivision 5 of section 15-c of the transportation law is
13 amended by adding a new paragraph e to read as follows:
14 e. (1) (a) The period of validity of the paratransit certification of
15 all Americans with Disabilities Act paratransit eligible individuals,
16 whose certification would otherwise expire between March first, two
17 thousand twenty and July thirty-first, two thousand twenty, shall be
18 extended through August thirty-first, two thousand twenty.
19 (b) Each transportation provider providing paratransit services shall
20 render eligibility determinations for any application for Americans with
21 Disabilities Act paratransit based solely on information contained in
22 the written application and in submitted medical documentation, until
23 August thirty-first, two thousand twenty.
24 (c) All transportation providers providing paratransit services shall,
25 until July thirty-first, two thousand twenty, dispatch and route indi-
26 vidual rather than shared paratransit rides, to the maximum extent
27 possible, and shall notify customers as soon as practicable in advance
28 in the event that their ride will be shared with another customer. Such
29 customers shall have the right to refuse or reschedule rides that would
30 have been shared, and any such refusal or rescheduling shall be without
31 penalty provided they respond within a reasonable amount of time.
32 (d) All transportation providers providing paratransit services in
33 this state shall ensure that all paratransit drivers and personnel
34 providing paratransit services are provided with hand sanitizer, dispos-
35 able sterile gloves, face masks and training on preventive measures to
36 protect customers, paratransit drivers and personnel providing paratran-
37 sit services from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, consistent
38 with current guidelines from the federal centers for disease control and
39 prevention, the federal occupational safety and health administration,
40 and the New York state department of health.
41 (2) Any transportation provider providing paratransit services is
42 authorized to extend any date set forth in clause (a), (b) or (c) of
43 subparagraph one of this paragraph, if, in the interest of the health
44 and safety of the public due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic,
45 such transportation provider deems such extension to be necessary.
46 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
