Bill Text: NY S03288 | 2025-2026 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides for an applicant to voluntarily indicate that such applicant has a health condition or disability that may impede effective communication with a law enforcement officer when registering a motor vehicle, and that such information shall be provided to a law enforcement officer who makes a traffic stop of such vehicle.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-01-24 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S03288 Detail]

Download: New_York-2025-S03288-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3288

                               2025-2026 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    January 24, 2025
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  COONEY -- 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  designating
          a  health  condition  or disability that may impede communication on a
          vehicle registration

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 401 of the vehicle and traffic law
     2  is amended by adding a new paragraph c to read as follows:
     3    c.  (a)  The  commissioner  shall  provide  space  on each application
     4  submitted pursuant to paragraph b of this subdivision for the  applicant
     5  to  voluntarily  indicate  that such applicant has a health condition or
     6  disability that may impede effective communication with a  law  enforce-
     7  ment  officer. The department may request verification from a person who
     8  makes an indication under this paragraph in the form of:
     9    (i) for a physical  health  condition,  a  written  statement  from  a
    10  licensed physician; or
    11    (ii)  for  a  mental  health  condition,  a  written  statement from a
    12  licensed physician or a licensed psychologist.
    13    (b) The commissioner shall establish  a  system  to  make  information
    14  received  pursuant  to  subparagraph  (a) of this paragraph available to
    15  alert a law enforcement officer who makes a traffic stop that the opera-
    16  tor of the stopped vehicle may have a  health  condition  or  disability
    17  that may impede effective communication.
    18    (c) Except as provided by subparagraph (b) of this paragraph, informa-
    19  tion supplied to the department relating to an applicant's health condi-
    20  tion  or  disability  is  for the confidential use of the department and
    21  shall not be disclosed to any person.
    22    § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
    23  have become a law.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03545-01-5