Requires all-way stop signs erected at all intersections immediately surrounding a public or private school in a city with a population of 1 million or more

1 Co-sponsor

• Kevin S. Parker

BILL NUMBER:S1547

Title of bill

An act to amend the public authorities law, in relation to prohibiting the consumption of food in New York city subways

Purpose of the bill

The purpose of this legislation is to mitigate the growing rat infestation in the NYC subway system.

Summary of specific provisions

§ 1- Public authorities law is amended by adding a new section 1277 -b which prohibits the consumption of food on subway trains.

Subdivision 2. Establishes fines and other punitive actions for a fail- ure to adhere to the prohibition.

Subdivision 3. Requires all fines collected pursuant to subdivision 2 of this section be deposited to the credit of the New York subway littering prevention fund established pursuant to section 97-uuu of the state finance law.

§ 2- Effective Date.

Justification

Most people have a visceral reaction to rats, but that alone is not why we must make every effort to rid them from our subways. Rats can carry and transmit diseases, some of which are fatal to humans, dogs, and other animals. Rats can spread disease through their urine, feces and from bites. Leptospirosis, for example, is a rat borne illness that may cause kidney and liver damage, meningitis (inflammation of the membrane around the brain and spinal cord) and respiratory difficulty can result. Rats also carry parasites like fleas, worms and mites which can spread diseases as well. The public health crisis underscores the potential danger posed by an out of control rat population. In partic- ular, New York city's subway system, with its densely packed trains and enclosed spaces, provides an ideal environment for communicable diseases to spread quickly.

New Yorkers think we have a serious rodent problem in our subways that cart be resolved. This is the news that comes from a district-wide rat survey conducted by my office. Over 15,000 surveys were distributed, in the mail, on-line and in-person at train stations. People's passion for this issue was evident wherever we handed out surveys. Within days of our mailing, we received stacks of mail from constituents who had taken the time to fill out, stamp and mail back our surveys. The response was overwhelming.

As the results came in, three things are clear: NYC residents overwhelm- ingly stated they are facing a severe problem, and that the problem of rats rampaging through the subway is partly due to inept pest-control by the Metropolitan Transit Authority and most feel strongly that the conduct of train customers, eating in stations, on trains, and careless-

ly discarding refuse on the tracks or platforms, plays an important role in compounding the problem. New York City is considered by many to be the capital of the world. As one of the busiest cities in the country with one of the largest transportation systems, we have to take the problem of rats more seriously.

Prior legislative history

2012 (S.6312): Referred to Transportation; Finance

Fiscal implications

No cost to the state. In fact, the fines associ- ated with this legislation creates an additional revenue stream for the New York subway littering prevention fund.

Effective date

This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have become a law.