S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2296
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 19, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens. MAYER, HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
 
 AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to  creating  a
   pilot  program  for the field testing of mobile telephones or portable
   electronic devices by local police departments in Westchester  county;
   and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon expiration there-
   of
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The vehicle and traffic law is  amended  by  adding  a  new
 section 1225-e to read as follows:
   §  1225-E.  PILOT  PROGRAM  FOR FIELD TESTING OF MOBILE TELEPHONES AND
 PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICES. 1. PURPOSE. FOR THE COUNTY OF  WESTCHESTER,
 THE COMMISSIONER SHALL AUTHORIZE A TWO YEAR PILOT PROGRAM FOR SUCH COUN-
 TY TO ALLOW LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS TO FIELD TEST MOBILE TELEPHONES AND
 PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICES FOLLOWING AN ACCIDENT OR COLLISION INVOLVING
 DAMAGE  TO  REAL  OR  PERSONAL  PROPERTY, PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH.  THE
 COMMISSIONER SHALL NOT REQUIRE ANY POLICE DEPARTMENT TO  PARTICIPATE  IN
 SUCH PROGRAM.
   2. DEFINITIONS. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION:
   (A)  "FIELD  TESTING"  SHALL  MEAN  THE  USE OF AN ELECTRONIC SCANNING
 DEVICE:
   (1) APPROVED AND UTILIZED IN ACCORDANCE WITH RULES JOINTLY PROMULGATED
 BY THE COMMISSIONER AND THE COMMISSIONER OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES;
   (2) APPROVED AND CERTIFIED FOR USE BY WESTCHESTER COUNTY;
   (3) USED ONLY TO SCAN THE LOG RECORDS ON THE MOBILE TELEPHONE OR PORT-
 ABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE OF THE OPERATOR OF THE MOTOR VEHICLE TO DETERMINE
 WHETHER OR NOT THE OPERATOR OF A MOTOR VEHICLE WAS USING A MOBILE  TELE-
 PHONE  OR  A  PORTABLE  ELECTRONIC DEVICE IN VIOLATION OF SECTION TWELVE
 HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-C OR TWELVE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-D OF  THIS  ARTICLE,
 PROVIDED,  HOWEVER, THAT SUCH USE OF AN ELECTRONIC SCANNING DEVICE SHALL
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02134-01-3
              

 S. 2296                             2
 
 BE LIMITED TO A SEARCH OF LOG RECORDS THAT HAVE BEEN ACTIVATED BY TYPING
 OR SWIPING ACTIONS ON A MOBILE TELEPHONE OR ELECTRONIC  PORTABLE  DEVICE
 IN  THE  PRIOR  SIXTY  MINUTES  IN DETERMINING WHETHER THE OPERATOR OF A
 MOTOR VEHICLE WAS USING A MOBILE TELEPHONE OR PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE
 IN  VIOLATION OF EITHER SUCH SECTION AT OR NEAR THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT
 OR COLLISION WHICH PROVIDES THE GROUNDS FOR SUCH TESTING.  NO SUCH ELEC-
 TRONIC SCAN SHALL ACCESS, COLLECT OR STORE USER DATA OR THE  CONTENT  OR
 ORIGIN  OF  ANY  COMMUNICATION OR GAME CONDUCTED, OR IMAGE OR ELECTRONIC
 DATA VIEWED, ON A MOBILE TELEPHONE OR PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE.
   (B) "LOG RECORDS" SHALL MEAN THE LOG RECORDS OF KEYBOARD USAGE, ACTIV-
 ITY LOGS AND APPLICATIONS LOGS FOR MOBILE TELEPHONES AND PORTABLE  ELEC-
 TRONIC  DEVICES.  FOR  THE  PURPOSES  OF THIS SECTION, LOG RECORDS SHALL
 INCLUDE ONLY LOG RECORDS WHICH HAVE BEEN ACTIVATED BY TYPING OR  SWIPING
 A  MOBILE TELEPHONE OR PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE, AND SHALL NOT INCLUDE
 ANY LOG RECORDS THAT WERE ACTIVATED BY  BLUETOOTH  OR  VOICE  ACTIVATION
 TECHNOLOGY.
   (C)  "MOBILE  TELEPHONE"  SHALL  MEAN A MOBILE TELEPHONE AS DEFINED IN
 PARAGRAPH (A) OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION TWELVE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-C
 OF THIS ARTICLE.
   (D) "PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE"  SHALL  MEAN  A  PORTABLE  ELECTRONIC
 DEVICE  AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION TWELVE
 HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-D OF THIS ARTICLE.
   (E) "USER DATA" SHALL MEAN  TEXT  MESSAGES,  CONTACTS,  CALL  HISTORY,
 PICTURES,  VIDEOS,  FILES,  CONTENTS  OF DATABASES, CONTENTS OF APPLICA-
 TIONS, NAMES OF APPLICATIONS OR DELETED DATA.
   (F) "USING" SHALL MEAN:
   (1) FOR THE PURPOSES OF MOBILE TELEPHONES, AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (C)
 OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION TWELVE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-C OF THIS ARTI-
 CLE; AND
   (2) FOR THE PURPOSES OF PORTABLE ELECTRONIC  DEVICES,  AS  DEFINED  IN
 PARAGRAPH (B) OF SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION TWELVE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-D
 OF THIS ARTICLE.
   3.  SCOPE OF FIELD TESTING. (A) EVERY PERSON OPERATING A MOTOR VEHICLE
 WHICH HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT OR COLLISION INVOLVING DAMAGE  TO
 REAL  OR PERSONAL PROPERTY, PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH, AND WHO HAS IN HIS
 OR HER POSSESSION AT OR NEAR THE TIME OF SUCH ACCIDENT OR  COLLISION,  A
 MOBILE  TELEPHONE OR PERSONAL ELECTRONIC DEVICE, SHALL AT THE REQUEST OF
 A POLICE OFFICER, SUBMIT HIS OR HER  MOBILE  TELEPHONE  AND/OR  PORTABLE
 ELECTRONIC  DEVICE TO THE POLICE OFFICER SOLELY FOR THE PURPOSE OF FIELD
 TESTING SUCH MOBILE TELEPHONE AND/OR PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE. IF SUCH
 FIELD TESTING DETERMINES THAT THE OPERATOR  OF  THE  MOTOR  VEHICLE  WAS
 USING  HIS  OR  HER  MOBILE  TELEPHONE  OR PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE IN
 VIOLATION OF SECTION TWELVE  HUNDRED  TWENTY-FIVE-C  OR  TWELVE  HUNDRED
 TWENTY-FIVE-D OF THIS ARTICLE, THE RESULTS OF SUCH TESTING SHALL CONSTI-
 TUTE EVIDENCE OF ANY SUCH VIOLATION.
   (B)  THE DEPARTMENT, WESTCHESTER COUNTY AND ANY POLICE DEPARTMENTS AND
 THEIR RESPECTIVE AGENTS PARTICIPATING IN THE PILOT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED BY
 THIS SECTION MAY STORE LOG RECORDS COLLECTED DURING ELECTRONIC SCANS AND
 USE SUCH LOG RECORDS ONLY TO DETERMINE THE ACCURACY OF FIELD TESTING AND
 THE PREVALENCE OF VIOLATIONS OF SECTION TWELVE HUNDRED TWENTY-FIVE-C  OR
 TWELVE  HUNDRED  TWENTY-FIVE-D  OF  THIS  ARTICLE.  NO  USER DATA MAY BE
 COLLECTED OR STORED BY THE DEPARTMENT, WESTCHESTER COUNTY OR ANY  POLICE
 DEPARTMENTS  OR  THEIR  RESPECTIVE  AGENTS  PARTICIPATING  IN  THE PILOT
 PROGRAM AUTHORIZED BY THIS SECTION.
   4. REPORT. AT THE CONCLUSION OF SUCH PILOT PROGRAM,  THE  COMMISSIONER
 IN CONSULTATION WITH THE COMMISSIONER OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES SHALL
 S. 2296                             3
 
 ASSESS THE PROGRAM AND SUBMIT A REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE AND THE GOVER-
 NOR,  WHICH  SHALL  INCLUDE,  BUT  NOT  BE LIMITED TO, THE IMPACT OF THE
 PROGRAM ON REDUCING TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, THE AMOUNT OF PHONES TESTED,  AND
 DATA ANALYZING THE COST, EFFICIENCY, AND ACCURACY OF THE FIELD TESTING.
   5. PARTICIPATION. PARTICIPATION IN THE PILOT PROGRAM FOR THE COUNTY OF
 WESTCHESTER  SHALL  BE  OPTIONAL AND SUBJECT TO PARTICIPATION GUIDELINES
 ESTABLISHED BY THE COMMISSIONER.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have  become  a  law  and  shall expire and be deemed repealed two years
 after such date.