What's happening
This bill authorizes school bus safety cameras statewide and expands speed camera programs in New York City and Buffalo school zones.
Why it matters
Expanded use of automated enforcement. The bill empowers all school districts in New York State to install cameras on school buses to catch drivers who illegally pass stopped school buses, imposing monetary penalties on vehicle owners based on camera evidence. This could significantly increase driver accountability and potentially deter dangerous passing behavior.
Privacy and due process safeguards. While authorizing school bus and speed zone cameras, the bill includes provisions to limit the capture and misuse of personal images (such as faces or vehicle contents), ensures images are only used for adjudication purposes, and sets detailed procedures for contesting violations—addressing common privacy and fairness concerns related to automated enforcement.
Transparent reporting and oversight. School districts and cities implementing camera programs must produce annual public reports detailing camera locations, numbers and types of violations, fines collected, program expenses, and adjudication outcomes. This level of required transparency could help the public assess whether the programs are effective and being fairly implemented.
Impact on drivers and vehicle registration. Unpaid camera-based violations can affect a vehicle owner’s ability to renew their registration, adding a powerful incentive to pay fines or contest tickets. This could lead to a significant increase in compliance, but may also result in hardship for those who fail to respond or are unaware of violations, raising equity considerations.
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Who cares
Headline styles
School Bus Camera Enforcement
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to rules
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Install School Bus Cameras
Assembly Floor Calendar · Sponsor Carl Heastie
Full text
58 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
9031
IN SENATE
June 14, 2018
Introduced by Sen. PERALTA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the education law and the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to authorizing the installation and use of safety cameras on school buses for the purpose of monitoring overtaking and passing of school bus violations; to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to photo speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones in the city of New York; to amend chapter 43 of the laws of
2014, amending the vehicle and traffic law, the public officers law and the general municipal law relating to photo speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones in the city of New York, in relation to making technical corrections thereto; to amend… Show allHide
2014, amending the vehicle and traffic law, the public officers law and the general municipal law relating to photo speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones in the city of New York, in relation to making technical corrections thereto; to amend chapter 189 of the laws of 2013, amending the vehicle and traffic law and the public officers law relating to establishing in a city with a population of one million or more a demonstration program implementing speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones by means of photo devices, in relation to the effectiveness thereof; to amend the vehicle and traffic law and the public officers law, in relation to establishing in the city of Buffalo a demonstration program implementing speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones by means of photo devices; and providing for the repeal of certain provisions upon expiration thereof
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The transportation of school children to and from school is an important component of the state's obligation to ensure adequate support of a public school system for the education of all children of the State. Safely transporting students to and from school is necessary to afford all children of the State an education. School bus cameras and speed cameras in school zones contribute to students' safety and reduce unnecessary dangers students face when travelling to school. Furthermore, high population cities in New York have more students living in close proximity to the students' schools, so the use of photo enforcement to deter motorists
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16291-02-8
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from passing stopped school buses and speeding in school zones helps to ensure that students are less at risk when walking or riding to and from school. Therefore, the legislature finds and declares that it is a substantial state concern, with an impact well beyond a single municipality, to ensure safe access to schools through the use of photo enforcement as provided in this act.
§ 2. Section 1604 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdivision 43 to read as follows:
43. To pass, in the discretion of the trustees, a resolution authorizing the use of school bus cameras pursuant to section eleven hundred eighteen of the vehicle and traffic law, provided that the trustees may also enter into contracts with a third party for the installation, administration, operation, notice processing, and maintenance of such cameras, and for the sharing of revenue derived from such cameras pursuant to section eleven hundred eighteen of the vehicle and traffic law, provided that the purchase, lease, installation, operation and maintenance, or any other costs associated with such cameras shall not be considered an aidable expense pursuant to section thirty-six hundred twenty-three-a of this chapter.
§ 3. Section 1709 of the education law is amended by adding a new subdivision 43 to read as follows:
43. To pass a resolution, in the discretion of the board, authorizing the use of school bus cameras pursuant to section eleven hundred eighteen of the vehicle and traffic law, provided that the board may also enter into contracts with a third party for the installation, administration, operation, notice processing, and maintenance of such cameras, and for the sharing of revenue derived from such cameras pursuant to section eleven hundred eighteen of the vehicle and traffic law, provided that the purchase, lease, installation, operation and maintenance, or any other costs associated with such cameras shall not be considered an aidable expense pursuant to section thirty-six hundred twenty-three-a of this chapter.
§ 4. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section 1118 to read as follows:
§ 1118. Owner liability for operator illegally overtaking or passing a school bus. (a) 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each board of education or trustees of a school district is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt and amend a resolution establishing a school bus safety camera program imposing monetary liability on the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title. Such program shall empower a board of education or school district or school bus transportation contractor that has contracted with such school district to install school bus safety cameras upon school buses operated by or contracted with such district.
2. Such program shall utilize necessary technologies to ensure, to the extent practicable, that photographs produced by such school bus safety cameras shall not include images that identify the driver, the passengers, or the contents of the vehicle. Provided, however, that no notice of liability issued pursuant to this section shall be dismissed solely because a photograph or photographs allow for the identification of the contents of a vehicle, provided that such school district has made a reasonable effort to comply with the provisions of this paragraph.
(b) In any school district which has adopted a resolution pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section, the owner of a vehicle shall be liable for a penalty imposed pursuant to this section if such vehicle was used
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or operated with the permission of the owner, express or implied, in violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title, and such violation is evidenced by information obtained from a school bus safety camera; provided however that no owner of a vehicle shall be liable for a penalty imposed pursuant to this section where the operator of such vehicle has been convicted of the underlying violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title.
(c) For purposes of this section, "owner" shall have the meaning provided in article two-B of this chapter. For purposes of this section, "school bus safety camera" shall mean an automated photo monitoring device affixed to the outside of a school bus and designated to detect and store one or more images of motor vehicles that overtake or pass school buses in violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title.
(d) No school district or school bus transportation contractor that has installed cameras pursuant to this section shall access the images from such cameras but shall provide, pursuant to an agreement with the appropriate law enforcement agency or agencies, for the proper handling and custody of such images for the forwarding of such images from such cameras to a law enforcement agency having jurisdiction in the area in which the violation occurred for the purpose of imposing monetary liability on the owner of a motor vehicle for illegally overtaking or passing a school bus in violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title. After receipt of such images a police officer shall inspect such images to determine whether a violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title was committed. Upon such a finding a certificate, sworn to or affirmed by an officer of such agency, or a facsimile thereof, based upon inspection of photographs, microphotographs or other recorded images produced by a school bus safety camera, shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein. Any photographs, microphotographs or other recorded images evidencing such a violation shall be available for inspection in any proceeding to adjudicate the liability for such violation.
(e) An owner found liable pursuant to this section for a violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title shall be liable for a monetary penalty of two hundred fifty dollars.
(e-1) Payment of the monetary penalty imposed by subdivision (e) of this section shall be payable to the municipality where the violation occurred, provided however, the school district shall be entitled to a portion of the monetary penalty that equals the cost to the school district of purchasing and maintaining the cameras. Nothing herein shall prevent the municipality from entering into a memorandum of understanding with the school district to return an additional portion of such penalty received to the school district.
(f) An imposition of liability under this section shall not be deemed a conviction as an operator and shall not be made part of the operating record of the person upon whom such liability is imposed nor shall it be used for insurance purposes in the provision of motor vehicle insurance coverage.
(g) 1. A notice of liability shall be sent by the respective law enforcement agency by first class mail to each person alleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title pursuant to this section. Personal delivery on the owner shall not be required. A manual or automatic
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record of mailing prepared in the ordinary course of business shall be prima facie evidence of the facts contained therein.
2. A notice of liability shall contain the name and address of the person alleged to be liable as an owner for a violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title pursuant to this section, the registration number of the vehicle involved in such violation, the location where such violation took place, the date and time of such violation and the identification number of the camera which recorded the violation or other document locator number.
3. The notice of liability shall contain information advising the person charged of the manner and the time in which he may contest the liability alleged in the notice. Such notice of liability shall also contain a warning to advise the persons charged that failure to contest in the manner and time provided shall be deemed an admission of liability and that a default judgement may be entered thereon.
4. The notice of liability shall be prepared and mailed by the respective law enforcement agency having jurisdiction over the location where the violation occurred.
(h) Adjudication of the liability imposed upon owners by this section shall be by a traffic violations bureau established pursuant to section three hundred seventy of the general municipal law or, if there be none, by the court having jurisdiction over traffic infractions, except that any city which has established or designated an administrative tribunal to hear and determine owner liability established by this article for failure to comply with traffic-control indications shall use such tribunal to adjudicate the liability imposed by this section.
(i) If an owner receives a notice of liability pursuant to this section for any time period during which the vehicle was reported to a police department as having been stolen, it shall be a valid defense to an allegation of liability for a violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title pursuant to this section that the vehicle had been reported to the police as stolen prior to the time the violation occurred and had not been recovered by such time. For purposes of asserting the defense provided by this subdivision it shall be sufficient that a certified copy of the police report on the stolen vehicle be sent by first class mail to the traffic violations bureau, court having jurisdiction or parking violations bureau.
(j) Where the adjudication of liability imposed upon owners pursuant to this section is by an administrative tribunal, traffic violations bureau, or a court having jurisdiction, an owner who is a lessor of a vehicle to which a notice of liability was issued pursuant to subdivision (g) of this section shall not be liable for the violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title, provided that he or she sends to the administrative tribunal, traffic violations bureau, or court having jurisdiction a copy of the rental, lease or other such contract document covering such vehicle on the date of the violation, with the name and address of the lessee clearly legible, within thirty-seven days after receiving notice from the bureau or court of the date and time of such violation, together with the other information contained in the original notice of liability. Failure to send such information within such thirty-seven day time period shall render the owner liable for the penalty prescribed by this section. Where the lessor complies with the provisions of this paragraph, the lessee of such vehicle on the date of such violation shall be deemed to be the owner of such vehicle for purposes of this section, shall be subject to liability for the violation of subdivision (a) of section
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eleven hundred seventy-four of this title pursuant to this section and shall be sent a notice of liability pursuant to subdivision (g) of this section.
(k) 1. If the owner liable for a violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title pursuant to this section was not the operator of the vehicle at the time of the violation, the owner may maintain an action for indemnification against the operator.
2. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, no owner of a vehicle shall be subject to a monetary fine imposed pursuant to this section if the operator of such vehicle was operating such vehicle without the consent of the owner at the time such operator was found to have been overtaking or passing a school bus. For purposes of this subdivision there shall be a presumption that the operator of such vehicle was operating such vehicle with the consent of the owner at the time such operator was found to have been overtaking or passing a school bus.
(l) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the liability of an operator of a vehicle for any violation of subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this title.
(m) In any school district which adopts a school bus safety camera program pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section, such school district shall submit an annual report on the results of the use of its school bus safety cameras to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly on or before June first, two thousand nineteen and on the same date in each succeeding year in which the demonstration program is operable. Such report shall include, but not be limited to:
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the education law and the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to authorizing the installation and use of safety cameras on school buses for the purpose of monitoring overtaking and passing of school bus violations; to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to photo speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones in the city of New York; to amend chapter 43 of the laws of 2014, amending the vehicle and traffic law, the public officers law and the general municipal law relating to photo speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones in the city of New York, in relation to making technical corrections thereto; to amend chapter 189 of the laws of 2013, amending the vehicle and traffic law and the public officers law relating to establishing in a city with a population of one million or more a demonstration program implementing speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones by means of photo devices, in relation to the effectiveness thereof; to amend the vehicle and traffic law and the public officers law, in relation to establishing in the city of Buffalo a demonstration program implementing speed violation monitoring systems in school speed zones by means of photo devices; and providing for the repeal of certain provisions upon expiration thereof
Purpose or general idea of bill
To enhance the safety of schoolchildren when travelling to and from school.
Summary of specific provisions
Section one provides the legislative intent.
Read the full memo (1,600 words)
Sections two through four authorize school districts to impose monetary liability on owners of motor vehicles which pass stopped school buses in violation of Section 1174 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law through the use of school bus safety cameras installed on school buses, in accordance with statutory provisions and subject to a four-year sunset.
Sections five through eleven increase the cap on the number of school zone speed cameras authorized to be used in the City of New York from 140 to 290, require a phase-in of the installation by 50 camera systems for each of the first three years, and require the City to prioritize placement of the cameras based on speed data or crash history of the school speed zone. These sections also prohibit the installation or operation of speed cameras on a controlled-highway access ramp or within 300 feet along a highway that continues off the end of such ramp, modify the physical area within which speed cameras can be installed, by chang- ing the current linear distance of a quarter mile on streets abutting schools to a quarter mile radius surrounding schools, require the City to install signs giving approaching motorists notice that a speed camera system is in use, require an updated anneal program report and expand the report to include information on the effectiveness and adequacy of speed camera hours of operation to determine the impact on speeding violations and crash prevention, and extend the sunset by four years to July 1, 2022.
Sections twelve through twenty-four authorize the City of Buffalo to establish a pilot program to establish a demonstration program imposing monetary liability on owners of vehicles for failure of the driver to comply with posted maximum speed limits in up to twenty school speed zones, in accordance with statutory provisions and subject to a four- year sunset.
Effects of present law which this bill would alter
Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1174 prohibits drivers of motor vehicles from passing marked school buses which are stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging passengers when the school buses display red visual signals. Chapter 189 of the Laws of 2013 authorized the City of New York to establish a demonstration program imposing monetary liabil- ity on the owners of motor vehicles failing to comply with posted speed limits in 20 school zones, which authorization expires August 30, 2018, and Chapter 43 of the Laws of 2014 increased the cap to a total of 140 school zones, which expires July 25, 2018. Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1180 prohibits drivers of motor vehicles from driving in excess of established speed limits
Justification
The transportation of school children to and from school is an important component of the state's obligation to ensure adequate support of a public school system for the education of all children of the State. Safely transporting students to and from school is necessary to afford all children of the State an education. School bus cameras and speed cameras in school zones contribute to students' safety and reduce unnec- essary dangers students face when travelling to school. Furthermore, high population cities in New York have more students living in close proximity to the students' schools, so the use of photo enforcement to deter motorists from passing stopped school buses and speeding in school zones helps to ensure that students are less at risk when walking or riding to and from school. It is a substantial state concern, with an impact well beyond a single municipality, to ensure safe access to schools through the use of photo enforcement as provided in this act.
Each day, it is reported that school buses nationally transport over 26 million students to school and other activities. In New York alone, 50,000 school buses transport 1.875 million students. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), school buses are the safest means to transport children to and from school and school-re- lated activities. In a 2017 report to Congress, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that in an analysis of data for the years 2000 through 2014, 115 fatal crashes involved a school bus on average each year, which is 0.3 percent of the 34,835 total fatal motor vehicle crashes annually. But while school buses have a strong safety record, the death or injury of any school child is tragic and unacceptable.
The National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services conducts an annual survey on illegal passing. Participating school bus drivers have observed more than 74,000 instances of illegal passing on a single day, for each of the five years this data was collected. Data gathered in New York through Operation Safe Stop, a targeted enforcement day involving pupil transportation providers and law enforcement, showed that the number of violations for passing stopped school buses in 2017 had increased over the prior year. Speed- ing motorists continue to put schoolchildren in unnecessary danger.
It has been found that the risk of pedestrian death from being struck by a speeding vehicle increases depending upon the speed of the vehicle, growing from 5% at a speed of 20 miles per hour to 45% at a speed of 30 miles per hour. Speeding vehicles are especially an issue in school zones, where children and families are vulnerable. According to Safe Kids Worldwide, in the United States there has been a 13% increase in the pedestrian death rate for 12-19 year olds since 2013. And the Centers for Disease Control reports that, in 2015, one in every five children under the age of 15 who were killed in traffic crashes were pedestrians.
Technology presently exists by which speed enforcement cameras photo- graphically capture vehicles exceeding the maximum speed limit without the presence of a police officer. This technology combines speed sensing technology that determines the speed of a vehicle and records that data, allowing for the production of an image of a motor vehicle when it exceeds the speed limit This, in turn, allows for the imposition of monetary liability on the owners of these motor vehicles.
Data has shown that there has been a 60% drop in speeding infractions in locations where speed safety cameras have been installed in the State, and over one million infractions were issued to motorists speeding near schools. This bill expands this program so that more schools, and the students who attend them, can benefit from the enhanced safety that is associated with having speed cameras nearby. Placing the lives, health and safety of vulnerable school children at risk by motorists who speed or illegally pass stopped school buses cannot be tolerated, and this bill will authorize the use of additional enforcement tools to deter this type of aggressive, unacceptable driving.
Prior legislative history
New legislation.
Fiscal implications for state and local governments
Undetermined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately; provided that sections one through four of this act shall expire and be deemed repealed 4 years after such effective date when upon such date the provisions of sections one through four of this act shall be deemed repealed; and provided further that the amendments to section 1180-b of the vehicle and traffic law made by sections five, six, seven and eight of this act shall not affect the repeal of such section and shall be deemed repealed there- with; and provided further that the amendments to paragraph 2 of subdi- vision (a) of section 1180-b of the vehicle and traffic law made by section six of this act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after this act shall have become a law; and provided further that sections twelve through twenty-four of this act shall take effect on the thirti- eth day after it shall have become a law and shall expire 4 years after such effective date when upon such date the provisions of sections twelve through twenty-four of this act shall be deemed repealed; and provided further that any rules necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date shall be promulgated on or before such effec- tive date,
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