NY State Senate Bill 2023-S2448

Senate Bill S2448

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Allows application to a court to compel compliance with a chemical test where a motorist is suspected to be under the influence and where the driver has refused a chemical test

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Transportation Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to transportation
Jan 20, 2023	referred to transportation

2023-S2448 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Transportation
Law Section:: Vehicle and Traffic Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §1194, V & T L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S6093
2021-2022: S769

2023-S2448 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Allows application to a court to compel compliance with a chemical test where a motorist is suspected to be under the influence and where the driver has refused a chemical test.

2023-S2448 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S2448

SPONSOR: GOUNARDES
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to compulsory
chemical tests

 
PURPOSE:

The purpose of this bill is to provide necessary tools to law enforce-
ment to test individuals who are reasonably suspected of driving under
the influence.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

The bill amends section 1194 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law to allow an
application to a court to compel compliance with a chemical test where a
motorist is reasonably suspected to be under the influence and where the
driver has refused a chemical test.

JUSTIFICATION:

Under current law, New York's implied consent law states that a person
who operates a motor vehicle in the state shall be deemed to have given
consent to a chemical test for the purpose of determining if they are
driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. However, motorists also
have the ability to refuse a chemical test. If a motorist refuses a
chemical test, their driver's licenses will be revoked. Given the choice
of a fine and period of revocation or providing substantial evidence of
one's guilt in what could be a criminal matter, it is no surprise that
many times a motorist refuses to submit to a chemical test.

Presently, the authority to apply to a court for an order to compel
submission to a chemical test exists only in situations of death or
serious injury, meaning many drivers who are clearly intoxicated are not
submitted to a blood test. This bill would address this loophole by
allowing applications to the court where a motorist refuses to submit to
a chemical test where there is reasonable cause to believe the motorist
is under the influence even though there was no death or serious injury.
This change would give real teeth to the current implied consent law in
New York and would assist law enforcement in cracking down on drunk
driving.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2021-2022: S769 - Referred to Transportation

2019-2020: S6093 - Referred to Transportation

2013: S757 - Passed Senate, died in Assembly

2011-2012: S3768-B - Passed Senate, died in Assembly

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

TBD

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediate

2023-S2448 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2448
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 20, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sen. GOUNARDES -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to compulsory
   chemical tests
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.    Paragraph  (b)  of subdivision 3 of section 1194 of the
 vehicle and traffic law, as added by chapter 47 of the laws of 1988,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   (b)  When authorized. Upon refusal by any person to submit to a chemi-
 cal test or any portion thereof as described above, the test  shall  not
 be  given  unless a police officer or a district attorney, as defined in
 subdivision thirty-two of section 1.20 of the  criminal  procedure  law,
 requests  and  obtains  a  court order to compel a person to submit to a
 chemical test to determine the alcoholic or drug content of the person's
 blood upon a finding of reasonable cause to believe that:
   (1) [such person was the operator of a motor vehicle and in the course
 of such operation a  person  other  than  the  operator  was  killed  or
 suffered  serious  physical  injury  as  defined in section 10.00 of the
 penal law; and
   (2)] a. either such person operated the vehicle in  violation  of  any
 subdivision of section eleven hundred ninety-two of this article, or
   b.  a  breath test administered by a police officer in accordance with
 paragraph (b) of subdivision one of this section indicates that  alcohol
 has been consumed by such person; and
   [(3)] (2) such person has been placed under lawful arrest; and
   [(4)]  (3) such person has refused to submit to a chemical test or any
 portion thereof, requested in accordance with the  provisions  of  para-
 graph  (a)  of  subdivision  two  of  this  section or is unable to give
 consent to such a test.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06619-01-3
 S. 2448                             2

 
   § 2. Subparagraphs 1 and 2  of  paragraph  (b)  of  subdivision  2  of
 section  1194  of the vehicle and traffic law, subparagraph 1 as amended
 by chapter 489 of the laws of 2017, clause (A)  of  subparagraph  1  and
 subparagraph 2 as amended by chapter 27 of the laws of 2018, are amended
 to read as follows:
   (1)  If: (A) such person having been placed under arrest; or (B) after
 a breath test indicates the presence of alcohol in the person's  system;
 or  (C)  with  regard to a person under the age of twenty-one, there are
 reasonable grounds to believe that such  person  has  been  operating  a
 motor  vehicle  after  having  consumed  alcohol in violation of section
 eleven hundred ninety-two-a of this article; and having thereafter  been
 requested  to submit to such chemical test and having been informed that
 the person's license or permit to drive and any  non-resident  operating
 privilege  shall  be immediately suspended and subsequently revoked, or,
 for operators under the age of twenty-one for whom there are  reasonable
 grounds to believe that such operator has been operating a motor vehicle
 after  having  consumed  alcohol  in violation of section eleven hundred
 ninety-two-a of this article, shall be revoked for refusal to submit  to
 such  chemical test or any portion thereof, whether or not the person is
 found guilty of  the  charge  for  which  such  person  is  arrested  or
 detained,  refuses to submit to such chemical test or any portion there-
 of, [unless a court order has been granted pursuant to subdivision three
 of this section, the test shall not be given and] a  written  report  of
 such refusal shall be immediately made by the police officer before whom
 such  refusal was made. Such report may be verified by having the report
 sworn to, or by affixing to such report a form notice that false  state-
 ments  made  therein are punishable as a class A misdemeanor pursuant to
 section 210.45 of the penal law and such form notice together  with  the
 subscription  of  the  deponent  shall  constitute a verification of the
 report.
   (2) The report of  the  police  officer  shall  set  forth  reasonable
 grounds  to  believe  such arrested person or such detained person under
 the age of twenty-one had been driving in violation of  any  subdivision
 of  section  eleven hundred ninety-two or eleven hundred ninety-two-a of
 this article[,] AND that said person had refused to submit to such chem-
 ical test[, and that no chemical test was administered pursuant  to  the
 requirements  of subdivision three of this section]. The report shall be
 presented to the court upon arraignment of an arrested person, provided,
 however, in the case of a person under the age of twenty-one, for whom a
 test was authorized pursuant to the provisions of  subparagraph  two  or
 three  of paragraph (a) of this subdivision, and who has not been placed
 under arrest for a violation of any of the provisions of section  eleven
 hundred  ninety-two  of  this article, such report shall be forwarded to
 the commissioner within forty-eight hours in a manner to  be  prescribed
 by  the  commissioner,  and  all  subsequent  proceedings with regard to
 refusal to submit to such chemical test by such person shall be  as  set
 forth  in  subdivision  three of section eleven hundred ninety-four-a of
 this article.
   § 3. Subparagraph 2 of paragraph (d) of subdivision 3 of section  1194
 of  the  vehicle  and traffic law, as added by chapter 47 of the laws of
 1988, is amended to read as follows:
   (2) The applicant must provide identification by name  and  title  and
 must  state the purpose of the communication. Upon being advised that an
 application for a court order to compel submission to a chemical test is
 being made, the court shall place under oath the applicant and any other
 person providing information in support of the application  as  provided
 S. 2448                             3
 
 in subparagraph three of this paragraph. After being sworn the applicant
 must state that the person from whom the chemical test was requested was
 the  operator  of a motor vehicle and [in the course of such operation a
 person,  other  than  the operator, has been killed or seriously injured
 and], based upon the totality  of  circumstances,  there  is  reasonable
 cause  to  believe  that  such  person  was operating a motor vehicle in
 violation of any subdivision of section  eleven  hundred  ninety-two  of
 this  article  and,  after  being placed under lawful arrest such person
 refused to submit to a chemical test or any portion thereof, in  accord-
 ance with the provisions of this section or is unable to give consent to
 such  a  test  or  any portion thereof. The applicant must make specific
 allegations of fact to support such statement. Any other person properly
 identified, may present sworn allegations of  fact  in  support  of  the
 applicant's statement.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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