Senate Bill S4251

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S4251

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to theft of services; to
amend the public authorities law, in relation to the imposition of
penalties and administrative fees for toll evaders; and to amend the
vehicle and traffic law, in relation to the suspension of a
registration of a toll evader


 PURPOSE OF THE BILL :

This bill would: (1) add toll evasion to the theft of services crimes;
(2) create a new Title XII entitled Toll Collections; (3) increase the
monetary penalties for toll collection violations and provide that
one-half of such penal ties collected be paid to the public authority
whose toll collection violations were violated and would make the
payment of lost toll revenue to the toll facility a mandatory part of
the penalty when a toll collection violation is adjudicated in court;
(4) clarify that a public authority may impose administrative fees on
the owner of a vehicle that violated the toll collection regulations;
and (5) revise the current mandatory vehicle registration suspension
where the owner of a motor vehicle failed to appear, failed to pay any
penalty imposed, or failed to comply with the rules and regulations of
an administrative tribunal in relation to five or more toll collection
violations within an eighteen month period to apply to three or more
              

violations within an eighteen month period.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 of this bill would amend Penal Law ("PL") § 165.15(3) to
clarify that a case of intentional toll evasion may be prosecuted as a
theft of services crime.

Section 2 of the bill would designate Public Authorities Law (PAL) §
2985 as Title 12 "Toll Collections."

Section 3 of the bill would amend PAL § 2985(5) to provide that the
current fines imposed on a vehicle owner who is found liable for a
violation of toll collection regulations will be doubled to the
following: for a first violation, one hundred dollars or two times the
toll evaded, whichever is greater; for a second violation, both within
eighteen months, two hundred dollars or five times the toll evaded,
whichever is greater; for a third or subsequent violation thereof all
within eighteen months, three hundred dollars or ten times the toll
evaded, whichever is greater. One half of such monetary penalties
would be paid to the public authority whose toll collection
regulations were violated. In addition to the fines set forth in this
section, such owner would be required to make full restitution of toll
revenues lost as a result of such toll evasion.

Section 4 of the bill would amend PAL § 2985(7) to provide that the
notice of liability for a toll collection violation be mailed no later
than ninety days after the alleged violation occurred and include the
toll amount evaded.

Section 5 of the bill would amend PAL § 2985(15) to clarify that
public authorities operating toll highways, bridges or tunnels are
authorized to impose a reasonable administrative fee upon toll
evaders.

Section 6 of the bill would amend Vehicle and Traffic Law (VTL) § 510
(4-d) to apply the existing mandatory vehicle registration suspension
provision applicable where the owner of a motor vehicle failed to
appear, failed to pay any penalty imposed, or failed to comply with
the rules and regulations of an administrative tribunal in relation to
five or more violations, those instances in which an owner has three
or more violations within an eighteen month period.

Section 7 of the bill provides that the bill becomes effective 180
days after it becomes law.

 EXISTING LAW :

PL § 165.15 provides that it is a theft of service to obtain railroad,
subway, bus, air, taxi or any other public transportation service
without the payment of the lawful charge for such use; however, it
does not specifically include the act of intentionally avoiding
payment for the use of a toll road, bridge or tunnel as a theft of
service.

PAL § 2985, which is titled "owner liability for failure of operator
to comply with toll collection regulations," is in PAL Article 9,
Title 11 which is titled "Wrongful Death Actions".

PAL § 2985 has a progressive series of fines for accumulated toll
collection offenses which range from $50-$150. The fine monies
collected are not paid to a public authority whose toll collection
regulations were violated.

VTL § 510(4-d) provides that upon receipt of notification from a court
or administrative tribunal that a vehicle owner has accumulated 5 or
more toll collection violations, the Department of Motor Vehicles
(DMV) shall suspend that person's vehicle registration.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

In 2008, S.3570 and S.7380/A.10493 passed the Senate. These bills,
which contained provisions similar to this proposal, have been
modified and combined into this bill. Other versions of S.3570 have
been introduced by the Legislature in prior sessions.

 STATEMENT IN SUPPORT :

Several public authorities in New York State have implemented an
electronic toll collection system commonly referred to as E-ZPass. The
E-ZPass system has increased customer convenience while reducing
travel time, fuel consumption, and potential back-ups at toll plazas
for the Thruway Authority as well as other authorities.

While the benefits of E-ZPass are numerous, it does provide
opportunities for abuse. Those who are not E-ZPass subscribers can
evade tolls by driving through lanes designated for that purpose.
Although it is arguable that such conduct could be prosecuted under
the existing theft of services provisions, this bill would clarify
that intentionally avoiding payment for the use of a toll road, bridge
or tunnel is a theft of service. This is consistent with the current
PL provisions that provide that it is a theft of service to obtain
railroad, subway, bus, air, taxi or any other public transportation
service without the payment of the lawful charge for such use.

PAL § 2985 provides for a progressive series of fines for those
accumulating toll collection offenses. However, none of the fine
money, not even the amount of the toll evaded, goes back to the
affected public authority. Providing one half of the monetary
penalties to the affected public authority will help to make the
public authority whole and offset the costs incurred in addressing
these types of violations. By doubling the existing fines, there will
be no impact on the entities that currently receive the fine money.
In addition, there is currently no mechanism in law for a public
authority to recover the actual toll lost due to toll evasion. This

bill would allow public authorities to recover these funds by making
restitution in these cases mandatory.

Current law provides that upon notification from a court or
administrative tribunal that a vehicle owner has accumulated 5 or more
toll collection violations within an eighteen month period, the DMV
shall suspend that person's vehicle registration. Because only courts
and administrative tribunals are authorized to transmit this
information to DMV, and these entities only track violations within
their own geographic jurisdictions, the only time a multiple violator
is reported to DMV is when a violator has accumulated five or more
violations within one jurisdiction. This process leaves a gap in
tracking violators who often travel between multiple jurisdictions and
does not effectively serve as a deterrent to those who would abuse the
system at the expense of others. A vehicle registration suspension for
failure to answer a single appearance ticket or to pay a fine imposed
pursuant to the VTL (except one for parking, stopping, or standing) is
currently mandated in VTL § 510(4-a). This bill would enhance E-ZPass
enforcement by reducing the number of toll collection violations that
an individual may have from five to three within an eighteen month
period before being subject to a mandatory vehicle registration
suspension.

This legislation is also consistent with recommendations included in
two audit reports issued by the New York State Office of the
Comptroller (2008-S-6 and 2006-S-101).

 BUDGET IMPLICATIONS :

There are no anticipated State budgetary implications. There may be a
slight increase in revenues to public authorities through recovery of
lost toll revenue and the efficient enforcement of toll evasion
penalties that occur across multiple jurisdictions.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law.