Bill Text: NY S03730 | 2015-2016 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Defines the terms "impaired" and "intoxication" for the purposes of the vehicle and traffic law.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-01-06 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S03730 Detail]

Download: New_York-2015-S03730-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         3730
                              2015-2016 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                   February 17, 2015
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  Sen.  LANZA  -- 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  the  defi-
         nitions of the terms "impaired" and "intoxication" for the purposes of
         such law
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Section 119-b of the vehicle and traffic law is  renumbered
    2  section 119-c and a new section 119-b is added to read as follows:
    3    S 119-B. IMPAIRED. IMPAIRMENT IS REACHED WHEN A DRIVER HAS VOLUNTARILY
    4  CONSUMED  OR  INGESTED  A  SUBSTANCE OR COMBINATION OF SUBSTANCES TO THE
    5  EXTENT THAT THE DRIVER HAS IMPAIRED, TO ANY  EXTENT,  THE  PHYSICAL  AND
    6  MENTAL ABILITIES WHICH A DRIVER IS EXPECTED TO POSSESS IN ORDER TO OPER-
    7  ATE A VEHICLE AS A REASONABLE AND PRUDENT DRIVER.
    8    S  2.  The  vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section
    9  120-a to read as follows:
   10    S 120-A. INTOXICATION. INTOXICATION IS A GREATER DEGREE OF  IMPAIRMENT
   11  WHICH  IS  REACHED  WHEN A DRIVER HAS VOLUNTARILY CONSUMED OR INGESTED A
   12  SUBSTANCE OR COMBINATION OF SUBSTANCES TO THE EXTENT THAT THE DRIVER  IS
   13  INCAPABLE  OF EMPLOYING THE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL ABILITIES WHICH A DRIVER
   14  IS EXPECTED TO POSSESS IN ORDER TO OPERATE A VEHICLE AS A REASONABLE AND
   15  PRUDENT DRIVER.
   16    S 3. Section 1192 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by  adding
   17  a new subdivision 13 to read as follows:
   18    13.  IT SHALL BE AN AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE TO A CHARGE UNDER ANY SUBDIVI-
   19  SION OF THIS SECTION THAT THE OPERATOR SUFFERED AN ALLERGIC REACTION  OR
   20  MEDICAL  EMERGENCY RATHER THAN BEING IMPAIRED BY THE SUBSTANCE OR COMBI-
   21  NATION OF SUBSTANCES.   PROVIDED, HOWEVER,  THAT  NO  DEFENSE  SHALL  BE
   22  AVAILABLE  IF  ANY  SUCH  CONSUMED OR INGESTED SUBSTANCE IS CONTAINED IN
   23  SECTION THIRTY-THREE HUNDRED SIX OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW.
   24    S 4. This act shall take effect on the first of November next succeed-
   25  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD02096-01-5