A 4026: Relates to enacting the "New York state window tinting safety and enforcement act".

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4026 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY January 30, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. SANTABARBARA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to enacting the "New York state window tinting safety and enforcement act"; and making an appropriation therefor The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "New York state window tinting safety and enforcement act". 3 § 2. Legislative intent. The legislature finds that non-compliant 4 window tinting presents a safety hazard by reducing visibility for driv- 5 ers and law enforcement officers. Although New York state currently 6 limits the allowable level of tint on vehicle windows, enforcement of 7 this law has proven inconsistent. The intent of this legislation is to 8 increase compliance through enhanced enforcement measures, stiffer 9 penalties, and public awareness campaigns, with the goal of reducing 10 dangerous driving conditions and improving law enforcement safety. 11 § 3. Subdivision 12-a of section 375 of the vehicle and traffic law is 12 amended by adding two new paragraphs (g) and (h) to read as follows: 13 (g) Any person convicted of a violation of this subdivision shall for 14 a first conviction thereof be punished by a fine of up to two hundred 15 dollars; for a conviction of a second or subsequent violation such 16 person shall be punished by a fine of up to five hundred dollars; upon 17 conviction of a third or subsequent violation, all of which were commit- 18 ted within a period of two years, such person shall be subject to a 19 vehicle registration suspension until such time as such person is in 20 compliance with this subdivision. 21 (h) Law enforcement agencies shall conduct quarterly window tint 22 enforcement sweeps in high traffic areas to enforce compliance with this 23 subdivision. Law enforcement agencies shall use light transmission 24 meters during such window tint enforcement sweeps to assess compliance EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD07569-01-5 
 A. 4026 2 1 with this subdivision. Law enforcement agencies may use light trans- 2 mission meters during routine traffic stops to assess compliance with 3 this subdivision. 4 § 4. Paragraph 1 of subdivision (c) of section 301 of the vehicle and 5 traffic law is amended by adding a new subparagraph (c) to read as 6 follows: 7 (c) A light transmission meter shall be used during the course of a 8 safety inspection to determine whether any front side window is composed 9 of, covered by or treated with any material which has a light transmit- 10 tance of less than seventy percent pursuant to subparagraph (a) of this 11 paragraph. A determination that any front side window is composed of, 12 covered by or treated with any material which has a light transmittance 13 of less than seventy percent in violation of section three hundred 14 seventy-five of this title shall be a reason for automatic failure of 15 this inspection. 16 § 5. (a) The department of motor vehicles shall conduct a public 17 education campaign to inform vehicle owners about the updated penalties 18 and enforcement procedures for violations of subdivision 12-a of section 19 375 and subdivision (c) of section 301 of the vehicle and traffic law. 20 Such campaign shall include, but not be limited to, digital media, mail- 21 ers, and updates on such department's website to educate drivers on the 22 dangers of illegal tint and the current tint laws pursuant to subdivi- 23 sion 12-a of section 375 of the vehicle and traffic law. 24 (b) The department of motor vehicles shall provide free tint cards to 25 vehicle owners to allow such vehicle owners to independently check the 26 compliance of their window tints with state law. 27 (c) The department of motor vehicles shall prepare and submit a report 28 to the legislature on an annual basis. Such report shall include, but 29 not be limited to: 30 (i) the number of safety inspection failures due to non-compliance 31 with window tint requirements pursuant to section 301 of the vehicle and 32 traffic law; and 33 (ii) the number of violations issued for non-compliance with window 34 tint requirements pursuant to section 375 of the vehicle and traffic 35 law, including data from quarterly window tint enforcement sweeps. 36 § 6. The sum of two million dollars ($2,000,000) or so much thereof as 37 may be deemed necessary, is hereby appropriated to law enforcement agen- 38 cies out of any moneys in the state treasury in the general fund to the 39 credit of such law enforcement agencies, not otherwise appropriated, and 40 made immediately available for the purposes of carrying out the 41 provisions of this act, including providing light transmission meters to 42 such law enforcement agencies and training law enforcement officers on 43 the use of such meters to effectively enforce window tint laws. Such 44 moneys shall be payable on the audit and warrant of the comptroller on 45 vouchers certified or approved by the commissioner of motor vehicles in 46 the manner prescribed by law. 47 § 7. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall 48 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or 49 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of 50 this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed 51 on or before such effective date.