N.Y. Vehicle & Traffic Law § 236: Creation, personnel

§ 236. Creation, personnel. 1. Creation. In any city as hereinbefore

or hereafter authorized such tribunal when created shall be known as the

parking violations bureau and shall have jurisdiction of traffic

infractions which constitute a parking violation and, where authorized:

(a) to adjudicate the liability of owners for violations of subdivision

(d) of section eleven hundred eleven of this chapter imposed pursuant to

a local law or ordinance imposing monetary liability on the owner of a

vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with

traffic-control indications through the installation and operation of

traffic-control signal photo violation-monitoring systems, in accordance

with article twenty-four of this chapter, or (b) to adjudicate the

liability of owners for violations of subdivision (b), (c), (d), (f) or

(g) of section eleven hundred eighty of this chapter imposed pursuant to

a demonstration program imposing monetary liability on the owner of a

vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with such posted

maximum speed limits through the installation and operation of photo

speed violation monitoring systems, in accordance with article thirty of

this chapter, or (c) to adjudicate the liability of owners for

violations of bus lane restrictions as defined by article twenty-four of

this chapter imposed pursuant to a bus rapid transit program imposing

monetary liability on the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator

thereof to comply with such bus lane restrictions through the

installation and operation of bus lane photo devices, in accordance with

article twenty-four of this chapter, or (d) to adjudicate the liability

of owners for violations of toll collection regulations imposed by

certain public authorities pursuant to the law authorizing such public

authorities to impose monetary liability on the owner of a vehicle for

failure of an operator thereof to comply with toll collection

regulations of such public authorities through the installation and

operation of photo-monitoring systems, in accordance with the provisions

of section two thousand nine hundred eighty-five of the public

authorities law and sections sixteen-a, sixteen-b and sixteen-c of

chapter seven hundred seventy-four of the laws of nineteen hundred

fifty, or (e) to adjudicate the liability of owners for violations of

section eleven hundred seventy-four of this chapter when meeting a

school bus marked and equipped as provided in subdivisions twenty and

twenty-one-c of section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter

imposed pursuant to a local law or ordinance imposing monetary liability

on the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply

with school bus red visual signals through the installation and

operation of school bus photo violation monitoring systems, in

accordance with article twenty-nine of this chapter, or (f) to

adjudicate the liability of owners for violations of section three

hundred eighty-five of this chapter and the rules of the applicable

covered agency or covered authority as such terms are defined in article

ten of this chapter in relation to gross vehicle weight and/or axle

weight violations imposed pursuant to a weigh in motion demonstration

program imposing monetary liability on the owner of a vehicle for

failure of an operator thereof to comply with such gross vehicle weight

and/or axle weight restrictions through the installation and operation

of weigh in motion violation monitoring systems, in accordance with

article ten of this chapter, or (g) to adjudicate the liability of

owners for violations of subdivision (b), (d), (f) or (g) of section

eleven hundred eighty of this chapter imposed pursuant to a

demonstration program imposing monetary liability on the owner of a

vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with such posted

maximum speed limits within a highway construction or maintenance work

area through the installation and operation of photo speed violation

monitoring systems, in accordance with article thirty of this chapter,

or (h) to adjudicate the liability of owners for violations of bus

operation-related traffic regulations as defined by article twenty-four

of this chapter imposed pursuant to a demonstration program imposing

monetary liability on the owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator

thereof to comply with such bus operation-related traffic regulations

through the installation and operation of bus operation-related photo

devices, in accordance with article twenty-four of this chapter. Such

tribunal, except in a city with a population of one million or more,

shall also have jurisdiction of abandoned vehicle violations. For the

purposes of this article, a parking violation is the violation of any

law, rule or regulation providing for or regulating the parking,

stopping or standing of a vehicle. In addition for purposes of this

article, "commissioner" shall mean and include the commissioner of

traffic of the city or an official possessing authority as such a

commissioner.

1-a. Creation; traffic camera violations bureau. Notwithstanding the

provisions of subdivision one of this section, in any county, city,

village, or town as hereinbefore or hereafter required to establish a

tribunal pursuant to subdivision one-a of section two hundred

thirty-five of this article, such tribunal when created shall be known

as the traffic camera violations bureau and shall have jurisdiction to

adjudicate the liability of owners for violations of section eleven

hundred seventy-four of this chapter when meeting a school bus marked

and equipped as provided in subdivisions twenty and twenty-one-c of

section three hundred seventy-five of this chapter imposed pursuant to a

local law or ordinance imposing monetary liability on the owner of a

vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with school bus red

visual signals through the installation and operation of school bus

photo violation monitoring systems, in accordance with article

twenty-nine of this chapter.

2. Personnel. a. The head of any such bureau established pursuant to

subdivisions one and one-a of this section shall be the director, who

shall be appointed by the commissioner. The director may exercise or

delegate any of the functions, powers and duties conferred upon the

director or the bureau by the commissioner to any qualified officer or

employee of the bureau.

b. The commissioner may appoint such number of deputy directors as the

commissioner shall deem necessary, but in no event to exceed four and

may employ such officers and employees as may be required to perform the

work of the bureau, within the amounts available therefor by

appropriation.

c. The commissioner shall appoint supervising hearing examiners not to

exceed six in number and senior hearing examiners, not to exceed six in

number. Every supervising hearing examiner shall have been admitted to

the practice of law in the state for at least seven years and every

senior hearing examiner for at least six years. The duties of each

supervising hearing examiner and senior hearing examiner shall include,

but not be limited to: (1) presiding at hearings for the adjudication of

charges of parking violations and/or, as applicable, the liability of

owners as authorized pursuant to section two hundred thirty-seven and

subdivision one of section two hundred thirty-seven-a of this article;

(2) the supervision and administration of the work of the bureau; and

(3) membership on the appeals board of the bureau, as herein provided.

d. The commissioner shall appoint hearing examiners who shall preside

at hearings for the adjudication of charges of parking violations

and/or, as applicable, the liability of owners as authorized pursuant to

section two hundred thirty-seven and subdivision one of section two

hundred thirty-seven-a of this article. Hearing examiners shall be

appointed and shall serve for such number of sessions as may be

determined by the commissioner and shall receive therefor, such

remuneration as may be fixed. Such hearing examiners shall not be

considered employees of the county, city, village, or town in which the

administrative tribunal has been established. Every hearing examiner

shall have been admitted to the practice of law in this state for a

period of at least five years, except in cities having a population of

one million or more persons where they shall have been admitted to such

practice for a period of at least three years. Hearing examiners shall

be appointed from a list of eligible candidates who have satisfied the

standards established by a duly constituted committee of the bar

association of the county in which the city, village, or town is

located, or the association of the bar of that city.

2-a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in cities with a

population of one million or more, for purposes of this article a

parking violation shall include a violation of section eleven hundred

seventy-five of this chapter, provided that notice to the operator of

the vehicle is provided in like manner as any other violation under this

article.

3. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of any general, special

or local law to the contrary, the city of Rochester may provide by local

law for the administrative adjudication in the parking violations bureau

of the city of Rochester of violations of article seven of the

agriculture and markets law or of any local law or ordinance adopted

pursuant thereto relating to the licensing, identification and control

of dogs. Such violations shall be heard and determined in the same

manner as charges of parking violations and a person charged with any

such violation shall have all the rights to a hearing, administrative

adjudication and judicial review which a person charged with a parking

violation has. The parking violations bureau shall have all the

functions, powers and duties with respect to such violations as are

granted with respect to parking violations. Such violations shall be

punishable by a civil penalty which shall not exceed the amounts set out

in article seven of the agriculture and markets law. All moneys

collected shall be the property of the city of Rochester.

4. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of any general, special

or local law to the contrary, the city of Buffalo may provide by local

law for the administrative adjudication in the parking violations bureau

of the city of Buffalo of violations of the city's ordinances relating

to the maintenance and utilization of streets and sidewalks in the city

of Buffalo. Such violations shall be heard and determined in the same

manner as charges of parking violations and a person charged with any

such violation shall have all the rights to a hearing, administrative

adjudication and judicial review which a person charged with a parking

violation has. The parking violations bureau shall have all the

functions, powers and duties with respect to such violations as are

granted with respect to parking violations. Such violations shall be

punishable by a civil penalty. All moneys collected shall be the

property of the city of Buffalo.

5. Release of an illegally parked vehicle. a. A parking violations

bureau of a city with a population of one million or more persons may

impose vehicle release penalties in accordance with the provisions of

paragraph b of this subdivision, provided that the commissioner of

transportation of such city has established a procedure for the towing

and impoundment of illegally parked vehicles which permits the release,

at the site of the underlying parking violation, of an illegally parked

vehicle which has been hooked to a tow truck in preparation for towing

from such site if:

(1) the owner or other person lawfully entitled to the possession of

such vehicle appears and requests the release of such vehicle before the

tow truck is in motion,

(2) such owner or other person has a current valid driver's license,

(3) such owner or other person presents either a registration card or

title for the vehicle, and

(4) such owner or other person consents, in writing, to the imposition

of a vehicle release penalty for the underlying parking violation in

accordance with paragraph b of this subdivision.

b. Where a vehicle that is illegally parked is released from a tow

truck under the circumstances described in paragraph a of this

subdivision, a vehicle release penalty, in an amount which shall not

exceed one-half of the fee charged by the department of transportation

of such city for the towing of illegally parked vehicles shall, upon a

plea of guilty, a final determination sustaining the charges or upon

default, be added to the amount of fines and penalties imposed for the

underlying parking violation. The provisions of subdivision two of

section two hundred thirty-seven of this article that limit the amount

of monetary penalties which may be imposed for a parking violation shall

not apply to such vehicle release penalty. In no event shall a vehicle

release penalty be imposed pursuant to this subdivision if the

underlying parking violation is dismissed. The parking violations bureau

of such city may prescribe penalties for non-payment of such vehicle

release penalty which shall be consistent with section two hundred

thirty-five of this article.