A 8498: Permits villages located in counties with a population between one million and one million five hundred thirty thousand to adopt local laws to implement a demonstration program imposing monetary liability not to exceed fifty dollars on the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator to comply with stop signs; permits such villages to install and operate stop sign photo violation monitoring systems as part of such demonstration program.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8498 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY May 20, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. LAVINE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to owner liability for failure of an operator to comply with stop signs in certain villages The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "protect 2 our pedestrians (POP) act". 3 § 2. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section 4 1174-b to read as follows: 5 § 1174-b. Owner liability for failure of operator to stop for a stop 6 sign in certain villages. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of 7 law, any village located within a county in the state of New York with a 8 population between one million and one million five hundred thirty thou- 9 sand is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt and amend a local law 10 or ordinance establishing a demonstration program imposing monetary 11 liability on the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator thereof 12 to comply with subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-two of 13 this article. Such demonstration program shall empower such village to 14 install and operate stop sign photo violation monitoring systems which 15 may be stationary or mobile, and which may be installed on stop signs 16 within the boundaries of such village. 17 (b) Such demonstration program shall utilize necessary technologies to 18 ensure, to the extent practicable, that photographs produced by such 19 stop sign photo violation monitoring systems shall not include images 20 that identify the driver, the passengers, or the contents of the vehi- 21 cle. Provided, however, that no notice of liability issued pursuant to 22 this section shall be dismissed solely because a photograph or photo- 23 graphs allow for the identification of the driver, passengers, or the EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD11641-02-5 
 A. 8498 2 1 contents of a vehicle, provided that such village has made a reasonable 2 effort to comply with the provisions of this paragraph. 3 (c) In any such village which has adopted a local law or ordinance 4 pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section, the owner of a vehicle 5 shall be liable for a penalty imposed pursuant to this section if such 6 vehicle was used or operated with the permission of the owner, express 7 or implied, in violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred 8 seventy-two of this article, and such violation is evidenced by informa- 9 tion obtained from a stop sign photo violation monitoring system. 10 (d) For purposes of this section, the following terms shall have the 11 following meanings: 12 1. "Owner" shall have the meaning as defined pursuant to section two 13 hundred thirty-nine of this chapter. 14 2. "Village" shall mean any village located within a county in the 15 state with a population between one million and one million five hundred 16 thirty thousand. 17 3. "Stop sign photo violation monitoring system" shall mean a vehicle 18 sensor installed to work in conjunction with a stop sign which automat- 19 ically produces two or more photographs, two or more microphotographs, a 20 videotape or other recorded images of each vehicle at the time it is 21 used or operated in violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven 22 hundred seventy-two of this article. 23 4. "Operator" means any person, corporation, firm, partnership, agen- 24 cy, association, organization or lessee that uses or operates a vehicle 25 with or without the permission of the owner, and an owner who operates 26 such owner's own vehicle. 27 (e) A certificate, sworn to or affirmed by a technician employed by 28 the village in which the charged violation occurred, or a facsimile 29 thereof, based upon inspection of photographs, microphotographs, vide- 30 otape or other recorded images produced by a stop sign photo violation 31 monitoring system, shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained 32 therein. Any photographs, microphotographs, videotape or other recorded 33 images evidencing such a violation shall be available for inspection in 34 any proceeding to adjudicate the liability for such violation pursuant 35 to a local law or ordinance adopted pursuant to this section. 36 (f) An owner liable for a violation of subdivision (a) of section 37 eleven hundred seventy-two of this article pursuant to a local law or 38 ordinance adopted pursuant to this section shall be liable for monetary 39 penalties in accordance with a schedule of fines and penalties to be set 40 forth in such local law or ordinance. The liability of the owner pursu- 41 ant to this section shall not exceed fifty dollars for each violation; 42 provided, however, that such local law or ordinance may provide for an 43 additional penalty not in excess of twenty-five dollars for each 44 violation for the failure to respond to a notice of liability within the 45 prescribed time period. 46 (g) An imposition of liability under a local law or ordinance adopted 47 pursuant to this section shall not be deemed a conviction as an operator 48 and shall not be made part of the operating record of the person upon 49 whom such liability is imposed nor shall it be used for insurance 50 purposes in the provision of motor vehicle insurance coverage. 51 (h) 1. A notice of liability shall be sent by first class mail to each 52 person alleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of subdivision 53 (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-two of this article pursuant to 54 this section. Personal delivery on the owner shall not be required. A 55 manual or automatic record of mailing prepared in the ordinary course of 56 business shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein. 
 A. 8498 3 1 2. A notice of liability shall contain the name and address of the 2 person alleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of subdivision 3 (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-two of this article pursuant to 4 this section, the registration number of the vehicle involved in such 5 violation, the location where such violation took place, the date and 6 time of such violation and the identification number of the camera which 7 recorded the violation or other document locator number. 8 3. The notice of liability shall contain information advising the 9 person charged of the manner and the time in which such person may 10 contest the liability alleged in the notice. Such notice of liability 11 shall also contain a warning to advise the persons charged that failure 12 to contest in the manner and time provided shall be deemed an admission 13 of liability and that a default judgment may be entered thereon. 14 4. The notice of liability shall be prepared and mailed by the village 15 where the alleged violation occurred or by any other entity authorized 16 by such village to prepare and mail such notification of violation. 17 (i) Adjudication of the liability imposed upon owners by this section 18 shall be by the court having jurisdiction over traffic infractions. 19 (j) If an owner receives a notice of liability pursuant to this 20 section for any time period during which the vehicle was reported to the 21 police department as having been stolen, it shall be a valid defense to 22 an allegation of liability for a violation of subdivision (a) of section 23 eleven hundred seventy-two of this article pursuant to this section that 24 the vehicle had been reported to the police as stolen prior to the time 25 the violation occurred and had not been recovered by such time. For 26 purposes of asserting the defense provided by this subdivision, it shall 27 be sufficient that a certified copy of the police report on the stolen 28 vehicle be sent by first class mail to the traffic violations bureau or 29 court having jurisdiction. 30 (k) An owner who is a lessor of a vehicle to which a notice of liabil- 31 ity was issued pursuant to subdivision (h) of this section shall not be 32 liable for the violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred 33 seventy-two of this article, provided that such owner sends to the traf- 34 fic violations bureau or court having jurisdiction a copy of the rental, 35 lease or other such contract document covering such vehicle on the date 36 of the violation, with the name and address of the lessee clearly legi- 37 ble, within thirty-seven days after receiving notice from the bureau or 38 court of the date and time of such violation, together with the other 39 information contained in the original notice of liability. Failure to 40 send such information within such thirty-seven day time period shall 41 render the owner liable for the penalty prescribed by this section. 42 Where the lessor complies with the provisions of this subdivision, the 43 lessee of such vehicle on the date of such violation shall be deemed to 44 be the owner of such vehicle for purposes of this section, shall be 45 subject to liability for the violation of subdivision (a) of section 46 eleven hundred seventy-two of this article pursuant to this section and 47 shall be sent a notice of liability pursuant to subdivision (h) of this 48 section. 49 (l) 1. If the owner liable for a violation of subdivision (a) of 50 section eleven hundred seventy-two of this article pursuant to this 51 section was not the operator of the vehicle at the time of the 52 violation, the owner may maintain an action for indemnification against 53 the operator. 54 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, no owner of a 55 vehicle shall be subject to a monetary fine imposed pursuant to this 56 section if the operator of such vehicle was operating such vehicle with- 
 A. 8498 4 1 out the consent of the owner at the time such operator failed to obey a 2 stop sign. For purposes of this subdivision there shall be a presumption 3 that the operator of such vehicle was operating such vehicle with the 4 consent of the owner at the time such operator failed to obey a stop 5 sign. 6 (m) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the liability 7 of an operator of a vehicle for any violation of subdivision (a) of 8 section eleven hundred seventy-two of this article. 9 (n) Any village that adopts a demonstration program pursuant to subdi- 10 vision (a) of this section shall submit an annual report detailing the 11 results of the use of such stop sign photo violation monitoring system 12 to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker 13 of the assembly on or before the first day of June next succeeding the 14 effective date of this section and on the same date in each succeeding 15 year in which the demonstration program is operable. Such report shall 16 include, but not be limited to: 17 1. a description of the locations where stop sign photo violation 18 monitoring systems were used; 19 2. the aggregate number, type and severity of accidents reported at 20 intersections where a stop sign photo violation monitoring system is 21 used for the three years preceding the installation of such system, to 22 the extent the information is maintained by the department; 23 3. the aggregate number, type and severity of accidents reported at 24 intersections where a stop sign photo violation monitoring system is 25 used for the reporting year, as well as for each year that the stop sign 26 photo violation monitoring system has been operational, to the extent 27 the information is maintained by the department; 28 4. the number of events and number of violations recorded at each 29 intersection where a stop sign photo violation monitoring system is used 30 and in the aggregate on a daily, weekly and monthly basis; 31 5. the number of notices of liability issued for violations recorded 32 by such system at each intersection where a stop sign photo violation 33 monitoring system is used; 34 6. the number of fines imposed and total amount of fines paid after 35 first notice of liability; 36 7. the number and percentage of violations adjudicated and results of 37 such adjudications including breakdowns of dispositions made for 38 violations recorded by such systems which shall be provided at least 39 annually to such village by the respective courts and bureaus conducting 40 such adjudications; 41 8. the total amount of revenue realized by such village from such 42 adjudications including a breakdown of revenue realized by such village 43 for each year since deployment of its stop sign photo violation monitor- 44 ing system; 45 9. expenses incurred by such village in connection with the program; 46 and 47 10. quality of the adjudication process and its results which shall be 48 provided at least annually to such village by the respective courts 49 conducting such adjudications. 50 § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 51 have become a law.