NY State Senate Bill 2023-S5558

Senate Bill S5558

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Establishes a deaf and hard of hearing outreach program to facilitate communication between hearing-impaired persons and law enforcement personnel

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to finance
Mar 08, 2023	referred to finance

2023-S5558 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Finance
Law Section:: Executive Law
Laws Affected:: Add §837-x, Exec L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S7958
2021-2022: S4019

2023-S5558 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a deaf and hard of hearing outreach program to facilitate communication between deaf and hard of hearing individuals and law enforcement personnel.

2023-S5558 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S5558

SPONSOR: COMRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the executive law, in relation to establishing a deaf
and hard of hearing outreach program to facilitate communication between
law enforcement and deaf and hard of hearing individuals

 
PURPOSE:

This bill will create a program to develop and distribute visor communi-
cation cards to deaf and hard of hearing individuals to help improve
communication with law enforcement.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends the executive law by adding a new section
837-t that establishes a program to develop and maintain visor communi-
cation cards to help improve communication between law enforcement and
deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Any New York State resident may
apply and receive a visor communication card. The division of criminal

justice will be responsible for the development and distribution of the
visor communication cards and shall make an electronic version available
on their website.

Section 2 of the bill relates to the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Visor communication cards will enhance the ability of law enforcement
officers to communicate with hard of hearing or deaf individuals during
a traffic stop. It is important that law enforcement officers and emer-
gency personnel are aware that such motorists may not hear verbal
commands, nor respond as anticipated. Visor communication cards will
create a safer interaction between law enforcement and hard of hearing
or deaf individuals by improving their lines of communication. In addi-
tion, the online availability of the visor communication cards shall
make the program more transparent and accessible.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

A.1218-A of 2017-18,

A.7387 of 2015-16

2021-2022: S4019

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S5558 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5558
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               March 8, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Finance
 
 AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to  establishing  a  deaf
   and  hard  of  hearing  outreach  program  to facilitate communication
   between law enforcement and deaf and hard of hearing individuals

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 837-x
 to read as follows:
   § 837-X. DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING OUTREACH PROGRAM. 1. AS USED IN THIS
 SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   (A) "DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING" SHALL MEAN A PERSON WHO HAS PARTIAL  OR
 COMPLETE LOSS OF HEARING, INCLUDING INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE DEAF-BLIND.
   (B)  "VISOR  COMMUNICATION  CARD"  SHALL  MEAN  SUCH IDENTIFICATION AS
 ISSUED BY THE DIVISION WHICH IDENTIFIES THE DRIVER AS DEAF AND  HARD  OF
 HEARING,  AS  DEFINED IN THIS SECTION, AND WHICH DETAILS THE APPROPRIATE
 PROCEDURES FOR ASSISTING A DEAF AND HARD  OF  HEARING  DRIVER  DURING  A
 TRAFFIC STOP AS PROMULGATED BY THE DIVISION PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
   2.  THE  DIVISION SHALL DEVELOP AND MAINTAIN VISOR COMMUNICATION CARDS
 FOR THE PURPOSE OF IMPROVING COMMUNICATION BETWEEN LAW  ENFORCEMENT  AND
 DEAF  AND HARD OF HEARING INDIVIDUALS. ANY PERSON RESIDING IN THIS STATE
 SHALL, UPON REQUEST,  BE  ISSUED  A  VISOR  COMMUNICATION  OF  A  DESIGN
 APPROVED  BY  THE COMMISSIONER. APPLICATION FOR SUCH VISOR COMMUNICATION
 CARD SHALL BE FILED WITH THE DIVISION IN SUCH FORM  AND  DETAIL  AS  THE
 COMMISSIONER SHALL PRESCRIBE.
   3.  THE  DIVISION  SHALL  MAKE  AVAILABLE AN ELECTRONIC VERSION OF THE
 VISOR COMMUNICATION CARD ON THEIR WEBSITE. THE  DIVISION  SHALL  DISSEM-
 INATE FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSTING SUCH ELECTRONIC VERSION TO LAW ENFORCE-
 MENT  AGENCIES  AND  OTHER  STATE  AGENCIES  WHERE THE PUBLIC MAY OBTAIN
 INFORMATION REGARDING MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND LICENSES.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03755-01-3

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