S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10891
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              August 17, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Jaffee) --
   read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation
 
 AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in  relation  to  requiring
   bicycle  passengers  and operators under the age of eighteen to wear a
   helmet
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 1238 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by
 chapter 267 of the laws of 1993,  the  section  heading  as  amended  by
 section  4,  subdivision  5-c  as  added  by section 5, subdivision 6 as
 amended by section 6 and subdivision 8 as amended by section 7  of  part
 XX of chapter 58 of the laws of 2020, paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 and
 paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 5 as amended by chapter 457 of the
 laws  of 1999, subdivisions 2-a, 5-a, 9 and 10 as amended by chapter 703
 of the laws of 2004, subdivision 5 as amended by chapter 132 of the laws
 of 1994, subdivision 5-b as added by chapter 402 of the  laws  of  2001,
 and  subdivision  7  as  added  by  chapter  267 of the laws of 1993, is
 amended to read as follows:
   § 1238. Passengers on bicycles  under  one  year  of  age  prohibited;
 passengers  and operators under [fourteen] EIGHTEEN years of age to wear
 protective headgear; operators of class  three  bicycles  with  electric
 assist  to  wear  protective  headgear. 1. No person operating a bicycle
 shall allow a person who is under one year of age to ride as a passenger
 on a bicycle nor shall such person be carried in a pack fastened to  the
 operator.  A first violation of the provisions of this subdivision shall
 result in no fine. A second violation shall result in a civil  fine  not
 to exceed [fifty] ONE HUNDRED dollars.
   2.  No  person  operating  a  bicycle shall allow a person one or more
 years of age and less than five years of age to ride as a passenger on a
 bicycle unless:
   (a) such passenger is wearing a helmet meeting  standards  established
 by  the  commissioner.  For  the  purposes of this subdivision wearing a
 helmet means having a helmet of good fit fastened securely upon the head
 with the helmet straps; and
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD17045-02-0

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   (b) such passenger is placed in a separate seat attached to the  bicy-
 cle  and  such  seat  shall  have  adequate  provision for retaining the
 passenger in place and for protecting  the  passenger  from  the  moving
 parts of the bicycle.
   2-a.  The  commissioner  shall promulgate rules and regulations estab-
 lishing standards for helmets  required  to  be  worn  while  bicycling,
 in-line  skating,  or  operating  a  skate board. Such standards, to the
 extent practicable, shall reflect the standards recommended by the Snell
 Memorial  Foundation,  Safety  Equipment  Institute,  or  United  States
 Consumer Product Safety Commission.
   3.  Any  person who violates the provisions of subdivision two of this
 section shall pay a  civil  fine  not  to  exceed  [fifty]  ONE  HUNDRED
 dollars.
   4.  The court shall waive any fine for which a person who violates the
 provisions of paragraph (a) of subdivision two of this section would  be
 liable  if  such  person  supplies the court with proof that between the
 date of violation and the appearance date for such violation such person
 purchased or rented a helmet, which meets the requirements of  paragraph
 (a)  of  subdivision two of this section. Further, the court shall waive
 any fine for which a person who violates the provisions of paragraph (b)
 of subdivision two of this  section  would  be  liable  if  such  person
 supplies the court with proof that between the date of violation and the
 appearance  date  for  such  violation such person purchased or rented a
 seat which meets the requirements of paragraph (b) of subdivision two of
 this section. The court may waive  any  fine  for  which  a  person  who
 violates  the  provisions  of  subdivision  two of this section would be
 liable if the court finds that due to reasons of economic hardship  such
 person  was  unable  to  purchase  a helmet or seat. Such waiver of fine
 shall not apply to a second or subsequent conviction under paragraph (a)
 or (b) of subdivision two of this section.
   5. (a) No person operating a bicycle shall allow a person five or more
 years of age and less than [fourteen] EIGHTEEN years of age to ride as a
 passenger on a bicycle unless such passenger is wearing a helmet meeting
 standards established by the commissioner.
   (b) No person, one or more years of age and less than [fourteen] EIGH-
 TEEN years of age, shall operate a bicycle unless such person is wearing
 a helmet meeting standards established by the commissioner.
   (c) For the purposes of this subdivision wearing a helmet means having
 a helmet of good fit fastened securely upon the  head  with  the  helmet
 straps.
   5-a.  No  person,  one  or  more years of age and less than [fourteen]
 EIGHTEEN years of age, shall skate or glide on in-line skates or a skate
 board unless such person is wearing a helmet  meeting  standards  estab-
 lished  by the commissioner. For the purposes of this subdivision, wear-
 ing a helmet means having a helmet of good fit fastened securely on  the
 head of such wearer with the helmet straps securely fastened.
   5-b.  No  person less than [fourteen] EIGHTEEN years of age shall ride
 upon, propel or otherwise operate a two-wheeled vehicle commonly  called
 a  scooter  unless  such  person  is  wearing a helmet meeting standards
 established by the commissioner. As used in this subdivision, wearing  a
 helmet means having a properly fitting helmet fixed securely on the head
 of such wearer with the helmet straps securely fastened.
   5-c.  No  person  shall ride upon, propel or otherwise operate a class
 three bicycle with electric assist  unless  such  person  is  wearing  a
 helmet  meeting  standards  established  by  the  commissioner.  For the
 purposes of this subdivision, wearing a helmet means having  a  properly

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 fitting helmet fixed securely on the head of such wearer with the helmet
 straps securely fastened.
   6.  (a)  Any  person  who violates the provisions of subdivision five,
 five-a, five-b or five-c of this section shall pay a civil fine  not  to
 exceed [fifty] ONE HUNDRED dollars.
   (b) The court shall waive any fine for which a person who violates the
 provisions  of  subdivision  five  or subdivision five-c of this section
 would be liable if such  person  supplies  the  court  with  proof  that
 between the date of violation and the appearance date for such violation
 such person purchased or rented a helmet.
   (c)  The  court may waive any fine for which a person who violates the
 provisions of subdivision  five,  five-a,  five-b,  or  five-c  of  this
 section  would  be  liable  if  the  court  finds that due to reasons of
 economic hardship such person was unable to purchase a helmet or due  to
 such  economic  hardship  such person was unable to obtain a helmet from
 the statewide in-line skate and bicycle helmet distribution program,  as
 established  in  section  two hundred six of the public health law, or a
 local distribution program. Such waiver of a fine shall not apply  to  a
 second or subsequent violation of subdivision five-c of this section.
   7.  The  failure  of  any person to comply with the provisions of this
 section shall not constitute contributory negligence  or  assumption  of
 risk,  and shall not in any way bar, preclude or foreclose an action for
 personal injury or wrongful death by or on behalf of such person, nor in
 any way diminish or reduce the damages recoverable in any such action.
   8. (a) A police officer shall only issue a summons for a violation  of
 subdivision  two,  five, or five-a of this section by a person less than
 [fourteen] EIGHTEEN years of age to  the  parent  or  guardian  of  such
 person  if  the  violation by such person occurs in the presence of such
 person's parent or guardian [and where such parent or guardian is  eigh-
 teen  years  of  age or more]. Such summons shall only be issued to such
 parent or guardian, and shall not be issued  to  the  person  less  than
 [fourteen] EIGHTEEN years of age.
   (b)  A  police  officer  shall only issue a summons for a violation of
 subdivision five-c of this section by a person less than  sixteen  years
 of age to the parent or guardian of such person if the violation by such
 person  occurs  in the presence of such person's parent or guardian [and
 where such parent or guardian is eighteen years of age  or  more].  Such
 summons  shall  only be issued to such parent or guardian, and shall not
 be issued to the person less than sixteen years of age.
   9. Subdivisions five, five-a, five-b, and six of  this  section  shall
 not  be applicable to any county, city, town or village that has enacted
 a local law or ordinance prior to the effective date of this subdivision
 that prohibits a person who is one or more years of age  and  less  than
 [fourteen]  EIGHTEEN years of age from operating a bicycle or skating or
 gliding on in-line skates or a skate board  without  wearing  a  bicycle
 helmet  meeting  the standards of the American National Standards Insti-
 tute (Ansi Z 90.4 bicycle helmet standards), the Snell Memorial  Founda-
 tion's  Standards  for  Protective Headgear for use in Bicycling, or the
 American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) bike helmet  standards,
 or  that  prohibits  a person operating a bicycle from allowing a person
 five or more years of age and less than [fourteen] EIGHTEEN years of age
 to ride as a passenger on a bicycle unless such passenger is  wearing  a
 bicycle  helmet  that meets such standards. The failure of any person to
 comply with any such local law or ordinance shall not constitute contri-
 butory negligence or assumption of risk, and shall not in any  way  bar,
 preclude or foreclose an action for personal injury or wrongful death by

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 or  on  behalf  of  such  person,  nor in any way diminish or reduce the
 damages recoverable in any such action. The legislative body of a  coun-
 ty,  city,  town  or  village  may  enact  a local law or ordinance that
 prohibits  a person who is [fourteen] EIGHTEEN or more years of age from
 skating or gliding on in-line skates, operating a skate board, or  oper-
 ating  or  riding  as a passenger on a bicycle without wearing a bicycle
 helmet.
   10. No person shall skate or glide on in-line skates or a skate  board
 outside during the period of time between one-half hour after sunset and
 one-half hour before sunrise unless such person is wearing readily visi-
 ble reflective clothing or material which is of a light or bright color.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.