Assembly BillIntroduced
A 6831: Requires court-ordered blood alcohol content testing for all drivers involved in fatal and serious physical injury accidents where there is a reasonable cause to believe an alcohol-related offense has been committed; provides exception when seeking court order would unduly interfere with emergency medical assistance or other necessary services at incident scene.
What A 6831 does, verified January 9, 2026
The bill aims to amend the vehicle and traffic law to allow for court-ordered compulsory chemical tests to determine blood alcohol content. A police officer or district attorney can request a court order to compel a person to submit to a chemical test if there is reasonable cause to believe the person is driving under the influence. However, in emergency situations where a police officer needs to address medical needs or other urgent circumstances, they are not required to request a court order. The changes will take effect 30 days after the bill becomes a law.
Bill journey
1IntroducedCurrent
2In CommitteePending
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: referred to transportation (2026-01-07)Alert me
Quick answers about A 6831
- What is the current status of A 6831?
- As of January 9, 2026, A 6831 is recorded as "Introduced": it has been introduced and is waiting for its first committee hearing or floor vote. The last recorded action, on January 7, 2026, was "referred to transportation".
- Did A 6831 pass?
- Not yet. A 6831 has been introduced and has not passed either house.
- Who wrote A 6831, and where is it now?
- A 6831 was authored by Asm. James Pretlow. Its committee of record is Assembly Transportation.
Author and sponsors
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlockRecent actions2 total · showing 2
| Jan. 07, 2026 | referred to transportation |
| Mar. 14, 2025 | referred to transportation |
Latest bill textIntroduced version, March 14, 2025 · 348 words
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6831 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY March 14, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the applica- tion for court orders for compulsory chemical tests to determine blood alcohol content The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The opening paragraph of paragraph (b) of subdivision 3 of 2 section 1194 of the vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 47 of 3 the laws of 1988, is amended to read as follows: 4 Upon refusal by any person to submit to a chemical test or any portion 5 thereof as described above, [the test shall not be given unless] a 6 police officer or a district attorney, as defined in subdivision thir- 7 ty-two of section 1.20 of the criminal procedure law, [requests and8obtains] shall request a court order to compel a person to submit to a 9 chemical test to determine the alcoholic or drug content of the person's 10 blood [upon a finding of] if such police officer or district attorney 11 finds that there exists reasonable cause to believe that: 12 § 2. Subdivision 3 of section 1194 of the vehicle and traffic law is 13 amended by adding a new paragraph (f) to read as follows: 14 (f) Exception. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (b) of this 15 subdivision, a police officer shall not be required to request a court 16 order to compel submission to a chemical test where such request would 17 impair the ability to address medical needs or other exigent circum- 18 stances at the scene of an incident. 19 § 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 20 have become a law. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02418-01-5
Text of A 6831 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions