S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4094
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 1, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  RODRIGUEZ  --  read once and referred to the
   Committee on Transportation
 
 AN ACT to create a pilot  program  designed  to  assess  various  issues
   related to implementing a vehicle-miles-traveled fee
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Legislative findings.  The  legislature  hereby  finds  and
 declares  that  an  efficient  transportation system is critical for New
 York's economy and quality of  life  and  that  the  revenues  currently
 available  for  highways  and local roads are inadequate to preserve and
 maintain existing infrastructure and to provide funds  for  improvements
 that would reduce congestion and improve service.
   The  legislature further recognizes that the gas tax is an ineffective
 mechanism for meeting New York's long-term revenue needs because it will
 steadily generate less revenue as cars become more  fuel  efficient  and
 alternative  sources of fuel are identified. Additionally, bundling fees
 for roads and highways into the gas tax makes it difficult for users  to
 understand the amount they are paying for roads and highways.
   The  legislature further finds that other states have begun to explore
 the potential for a road usage charge to replace traditional gas  taxes,
 including  the  state  of  Oregon, which established the first permanent
 road user charge program in the nation. Road usage charging is a  policy
 whereby  motorists  pay  for the use of the roadway network based on the
 distance they travel. Drivers pay the same rate per mile driven, regard-
 less of what part of the roadway network they use. A road  usage  charge
 program  has  the  potential to distribute the gas tax burden across all
 vehicles regardless of fuel source and to minimize  the  impact  of  the
 current regressive gas tax structure.
   The  legislature  therefore  finds  that  experience  to date in other
 states across the nation demonstrates that mileage-based charges can  be
 implemented  in  a  way  that  ensures data security and maximum privacy
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD03091-01-1

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 protection for drivers. It is important that New York begin  to  explore
 alternate  revenue  sources that may be implemented in lieu of the anti-
 quated gas tax structure now in place. Any  exploration  or  alternative
 revenue sources shall take privacy implications into account, especially
 with  regard to location data. Travel locations or patterns shall not be
 reported, and legal and  technical  safeguards  shall  protect  personal
 information.
   §  2.  Road usage charge (RUC) advisory committee. (a) There is hereby
 created the road usage charge (RUC) advisory committee which shall guide
 the development and evaluation of a pilot program to assess  the  poten-
 tial for mileage-based revenue collection for New York's roads and high-
 ways as an alternative to the gas tax system.
   (b) The RUC advisory committee shall consist of fourteen members:
   (1)  the  commissioner  of the department of transportation, or his or
 her designee, who shall serve as chair;
   (2) a representative of the telecommunications industry who  shall  be
 appointed by the temporary president of the senate;
   (3)  a representative of highway user groups who shall be appointed by
 the governor;
   (4) a representative of the data security  and  privacy  industry  who
 shall be appointed by the senate majority leader;
   (5)  a  representative  of  privacy  rights advocacy organizations who
 shall be appointed by the governor;
   (6) a representative of regional transportation agencies who shall  be
 appointed by the speaker of the assembly;
   (7) a representative of the transportation research board who shall be
 appointed by the speaker of the assembly;
   (8)  a representative of the American association of state highway and
 transportation officials who shall be appointed by the governor;
   (9) the chair of the assembly transportation committee, or his or  her
 designee;
   (10)  the  chair of the senate transportation committee, or his or her
 designee;
   (11) a representative of the civic community who shall be appointed by
 the senate majority leader;
   (12) a representative of transit advocates who shall be  appointed  by
 the speaker of the assembly; and
   (13) two relevant stakeholders as determined by the governor.
   (c) The RUC advisory committee may request the department of transpor-
 tation to perform such work as the advisory committee deems necessary to
 carry out its duties and responsibilities.
   (d) The RUC advisory committee shall study RUC alternatives to the gas
 tax.  It  shall  gather public comment on issues and concerns related to
 the pilot program and shall make recommendations to  the  department  of
 transportation  on the design of a pilot program to test alternative RUC
 approaches. The RUC advisory committee may also make recommendations  on
 the criteria to be used to evaluate the pilot program.
   (e)  In studying alternatives to the current gas tax system and devel-
 oping recommendations on the design of a pilot program to test  alterna-
 tive  RUC  approaches,  pursuant to subdivision (d) of this section, the
 RUC advisory committee shall take all of the  following  into  consider-
 ation:
   (1) The availability, adaptability, reliability, and security of meth-
 ods that might be used in recording and reporting highway use.
   (2)  The  necessity of protecting all personally identifiable informa-
 tion used in reporting highway use.

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   (3) The ease and cost of recording and reporting highway use.
   (4)  The  ease  and  cost of administering the collection of taxes and
 fees as an alternative to the  current  system  of  taxing  highway  use
 through motor vehicle fuel taxes.
   (5) Effective methods of maintaining compliance.
   (6)  The  ease  of  reidentifying  location data, even when personally
 identifiable information has been removed from the data.
   (7) Increased privacy concerns when location data is used in  conjunc-
 tion with other technologies.
   (8)  Public  and  private agency access, including law enforcement, to
 data collected and stored for purposes of the RUC to  ensure  individual
 privacy rights are protected.
   (f)  The  RUC  advisory committee shall consult with highway users and
 transportation stakeholders, including representatives of vehicle users,
 vehicle manufacturers, and fuel  distributors  as  part  of  its  duties
 pursuant to subdivision (e) of this section.
   §  3.  Establishment  of a pilot program. (a) Based on the recommenda-
 tions of the RUC advisory  committee,  it  shall  collaborate  with  the
 department  of  transportation  to implement a pilot program to identify
 and evaluate issues related to the potential implementation  of  an  RUC
 program in New York by January 1, 2024.
   (b)  At  a  minimum,  the  pilot  program  shall accomplish all of the
 following:
   (1) Analyze alternative means of collecting road usage data, including
 at least one alternative  that  does  not  rely  on  electronic  vehicle
 location data.
   (2)  Collect  a  minimum  amount  of  personal  information  including
 location tracking information, necessary to implement the RUC program.
   (3) Ensure that processes for collecting, managing, storing, transmit-
 ting, and destroying data are in place to protect the integrity  of  the
 data and safeguard the privacy of drivers.
   (c)  The  RUC  advisory committee shall not disclose, distribute, make
 available, sell,  access  or  otherwise  provide  for  another  purpose,
 personal  information or data collected through the pilot program to any
 private entity or individual unless authorized by a court order, as part
 of a civil case, by a subpoena issued on behalf  of  a  defendant  in  a
 criminal  case,  by  a  search  warrant,  or  in aggregate form with all
 personal information removed for the purposes of academic research.
   § 4. Report. Eighteen months after the  implementation  of  the  pilot
 program,  it  shall  be  concluded, and the RUC advisory committee shall
 report its findings and recommendations to the governor and the legisla-
 ture. Such report shall also be bound and made available to the  public.
 The report shall include, but not be limited to, a discussion of all the
 following issues:
   (a) Cost of the program.
   (b) Privacy, in including recommendations regarding public and private
 access,  including  law  enforcement,  to  data collected and stored for
 purposes of the RUC program to  ensure  individual  privacy  rights  are
 protected.
   (c) Jurisdictional issues.
   (d) Feasibility.
   (e) Complexity.
   (f) Acceptance.
   (g) Use of revenues.
   (h)  Security  and compliance, including a discussion of processes and
 security measures necessary to minimize fraud and tax evasion rates.

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   (i) Data collection technology, including a discussion of  the  advan-
 tages  and  disadvantages  of various types of data collection equipment
 and the privacy implications and consideration of the equipment.
   (j) Potential for additional driver services.
   (k) Implementation issues.
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.