Senate Bill S318

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S318

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in
relation to requiring all city agencies issuing summonses to document
violations by photographic evidence when possible and practicable

 PURPOSE :

Requires all agencies of the city of New York which issue summons to
document violations with photographic evidence when feasible

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 amends Title 7 of the Administrative Code of New York City
by adding a new chapter 10 entitled "Evidence for Agency Summons"

Section 2 sets forth the effective date of this legislation.

 JUSTIFICATION :

With the rapidly growing ability of all New Yorkers to document
everyday occurrences through the use of mobile phones and other
electronic devices, so too have enforcement officials been provided
with an ability to document violations of the law.
              

In the interest of promoting transparency and justice, this
legislation seeks to provide both New York City residents and New York
City enforcement agencies with the necessary tools to document
administrative violations as they occur. All agencies issuing
summonses that are review by the New York City Office of
Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) would be required to undergo
an analysis of violations that could be proven through the use of
photographic evidence. Agencies would then develop a list of
violations that could be proven in this manner, and require
enforcement officers to document the substance of a summons through
use of photographic evidence. In circumstances where the capturing of
photographic evidence for these violations is impracticable,
enforcement officers would be required to indicate the reason why on
the face of an issued summons. Furthermore, OATH would be required to
include collected photographic evidence relating to a summons on their
existing website, giving respondents the ability to quickly ascertain
the nature of the evidence against them. This process would allow
respondents the ability to wage a more effective appeal against a
faulty summons, while also safeguarding the City's interests when a
valid summons has been issued for a violation.

In 2016 alone, 58.1% of summonses reaching OATH's Environmental
Control Board on an appeal were dismissed. Summonses falling into this
category included those issued by the New York City Departments of
Sanitation, Buildings, Transportation, Health, Environmental
Protection, and Parks, as well as other public safety violations
issued by the New York City Police and Fire Departments. With such a
high dismissal rate, it is plausible to assume both that much more can
be done to preserve the integrity of summonses issued by City
agencies, and that a great number of summonses issued by the City are
currently lacking sufficient evidence. By implementing the mandatory
use of photographic evidence on summonses for which it is feasible to
do so, the cost and burden associated with addressing violations based
upon insufficient evidence will be lessened for both respondents and
the City.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

New bill.
 FISCAL IMPACT :

To be determined.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.