S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5302
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
March 7, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ZEBROWSKI -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law and the education law, in
relation to allowing boards of cooperative educational services to
install school bus stop sign cameras
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraphs 1, 1-a, 1-b, 2 and 3 of subdivision (a) of
section 1174-a of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 145
of the laws of 2019, are amended to read as follows:
1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a county, city, town or
village located within a school district ("district") OR A BOARD OF
COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES ("BOCES") is hereby authorized and
empowered to adopt and amend a local law or ordinance establishing a
demonstration program imposing monetary liability on the owner of a
vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with section eleven
hundred seventy-four of this chapter when meeting a school bus marked
and equipped as provided in subdivisions twenty and twenty-one-c of
section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter and operated in such
county, city, town or village, in accordance with the provisions of this
section. Such demonstration program shall empower such county, city,
town or village to install and operate school bus photo violation moni-
toring systems which may be stationary or mobile, and which may be
installed, pursuant to an agreement with a school district OR BOCES
within such county, city, town or village, on school buses owned and
operated by such school district OR BOCES or privately owned and oper-
ated for compensation under contract with such district OR BOCES.
Provided, however, that (a) no stationary school bus photo violation
monitoring system shall be installed or operated by a county, city, town
or village except on roadways under the jurisdiction of such county,
city, town or village, and (b) no mobile school bus photo violation
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09320-01-3
A. 5302 2
monitoring system shall be installed or operated on any such school
buses unless such county, city, town or village and such district OR
BOCES enter into an agreement for such installation and operation.
1-a. Any county, city, town or village, located within a school
district OR BOCES, that has adopted a local law or ordinance pursuant to
this section establishing a demonstration program imposing liability on
the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with
section eleven hundred seventy-four of this chapter when meeting a
school bus marked and equipped as provided in subdivisions twenty and
twenty-one-c of section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter and
operated in such county, city, town or village may enter into an agree-
ment with the applicable school district OR BOCES for the installation,
maintenance and use of school bus photo violation monitoring systems on
school buses pursuant to this section and section twenty-two of the
chapter of the laws of two thousand nineteen which added this section,
for the proper handling and custody of photographs, microphotographs,
videotapes, other recorded images and data produced by such systems, and
for the forwarding of such photographs, microphotographs, videotapes,
other recorded images and data to the applicable county, city, town or
village. Any agreement entered into hereunder shall be approved by each
participating county, city, town or village by a majority vote of the
voting strength of its governing body and by resolution of the district
OR BOCES pursuant to section sixteen hundred four, section seventeen
hundred nine, section twenty-five hundred three, section twenty-five
hundred fifty-four or section twenty-five hundred ninety-h of the educa-
tion law, as applicable. Provided, however, that where a district OR
BOCES has entered an agreement as provided hereunder with a county, no
cities, towns or villages within the same county may enter into, or be a
party to, any agreement with such district OR BOCES pursuant to this
section. Provided further, however, that no county shall enter an agree-
ment with any city school district OR BOCES wholly contained within a
city. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent a county,
city, town, village or district OR BOCES at any time to withdraw from or
terminate an agreement entered pursuant to this section and section
twenty-two of the chapter of the laws of [2019] TWO-THOUSAND NINETEEN
which added this section.
1-b. The total cost to the district OR BOCES of the installation,
maintenance and use of school bus photo violation monitoring systems
pursuant to this section shall be borne entirely by the county, city,
town or village within the district OR BOCES which is a party to such
agreement. On or before September first of each year, the district OR
BOCES shall determine and certify to each county, city, town or village
with which it has entered into an agreement pursuant to this section the
total cost to the district OR BOCES for the school year ending the
preceding June thirtieth of installing, maintaining and using such
systems within each such county, city, town or village, respectively,
for the proper handling and custody of photographs, microphotographs,
videotapes, other recorded images and data produced by such systems, and
for the forwarding of such photographs, microphotographs, videotapes,
other recorded images and data to the applicable county, city, town or
village. On or before the following December first of each year, each
such county, city, town or village shall pay to the district OR BOCES
such cost so certified to it on or before the preceding September first.
Not later than twenty days after each such payment is submitted or is
due, whichever occurs first, the district OR BOCES shall submit to the
director of the budget and the chairpersons of the fiscal committees of
A. 5302 3
the legislature a report for each such county, city, town and village
showing the amount of costs so certified and the amount of payments so
received or due. If a county, city, town or village fails to make the
payment required to the district OR BOCES by the twentieth day after the
date such payment was due, (i) the district OR BOCES shall notify the
director of the budget and the chairpersons of the fiscal committees of
the legislature of such occurrence within twenty-four hours of such day;
and (ii) the demonstration program shall be suspended within such coun-
ty, city, town, or village until such time as such county, city, town,
or village makes the payment required to the district OR BOCES. The
district OR BOCES shall notify the director of the budget and the chair-
persons of the fiscal committees of the legislature of such payment
within seven business days of its receipt. Provided, however, that any
notice of liability issued prior to such date shall not be voided.
2. Any image or images captured by school bus photo violation monitor-
ing systems shall be inadmissible in any disciplinary proceeding
convened by any school district OR BOCES or any school bus contractor
thereof, and any proceeding initiated by the department involving licen-
sure privileges of school bus operators. Any school bus photo violation
monitoring device mounted on a school bus shall be directed outwardly
from such school bus to capture images of vehicles operated in violation
of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this chapter, and images
produced by such device shall not be used for any other purpose.
3. (i) Any participating school district OR BOCES shall be prohibited
from accessing any photographs, microphotographs, videotapes, other
recorded images or data from school bus photo violation monitoring
systems but shall provide, pursuant to an agreement with a county, city,
town or village as provided in this section, for the proper handling and
custody of such photographs, microphotographs, videotapes, other
recorded images and data produced by such systems, and for the forward-
ing of such photographs, microphotographs, videotapes, other recorded
images and data to the applicable county, city, town or village for the
purpose of determining whether a motor vehicle was operated in violation
of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title
and imposing monetary liability on the owner of such motor vehicle
therefor.
(ii) Photographs, microphotographs, videotapes, other recorded images
and data produced by school bus photo violation monitoring systems shall
be destroyed (A) ninety days after the date of the alleged imposition of
liability if a notice of liability is not issued for such alleged impo-
sition of liability pursuant to this section or (B) upon final disposi-
tion of a notice of liability issued pursuant to this section.
§ 2. Section 1950 of the education law is amended by adding a new
subdivision 20 to read as follows:
20. TO PASS A RESOLUTION, IN THE DISCRETION OF THE BOARD OF SUCH BOARD
OF COOPERATIVE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES, AUTHORIZING THE ENTERING OF AN
AGREEMENT WITH A COUNTY, CITY, VILLAGE OR TOWN WITHIN SUCH DISTRICT, FOR
THE INSTALLATION AND USE OF SCHOOL BUS PHOTO VIOLATION MONITORING
SYSTEMS PURSUANT TO SECTION ELEVEN HUNDRED SEVENTY-FOUR-A OF THE VEHICLE
AND TRAFFIC LAW, PROVIDED THAT THE PURCHASE, LEASE, INSTALLATION, OPERA-
TION AND MAINTENANCE, OR ANY OTHER COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH SUCH CAMERAS
SHALL NOT BE CONSIDERED AN AIDABLE EXPENSE PURSUANT TO SECTION THIRTY-
SIX HUNDRED TWENTY-THREE-A OF THIS CHAPTER.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.