S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5563
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N S E N A T E
March 8, 2023
___________
Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities 1
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in
relation to requiring the department of sanitation to remove any snow
or ice accumulation in front of fire hydrants
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 15-205 of the administrative code of the city of
New York, as amended by local law number 149 of the city of New York for
the year 2016 and paragraph 2 of subdivision b as amended by local law
number 80 of the city of New York for the year 2020, is amended to read
as follows:
§ 15-205 Obstruction of fire hydrants. a. For the purposes of this
section, the term "fire hydrant street area" means, with respect to a
fire hydrant, any space that is located:
1. In a street; and
2. Between the center of such street and a line that (i) is 20 feet in
length, (ii) has such hydrant at its center point and (iii) runs paral-
lel to the curb nearest such hydrant.
b. 1. It shall be unlawful in any manner to obstruct the use of any
fire hydrant, or to throw or pile, or allow any snow or ice or other
material or thing to be thrown or piled (i) upon a fire hydrant, (ii)
within two feet of a fire hydrant or (iii) within a fire hydrant street
area. All material or things found obstructing any fire hydrant [may be
forthwith] SHALL BE removed by the officers or employees of the depart-
ment, at the risk, cost and expense, of the [owner, lessee or tenant of
the premises fronting such hydrant] DEPARTMENT OF SANITATION.
2. No newsstand may be located within ten feet from either side of a
fire hydrant, except that this prohibition shall not apply to any news-
stand which was first licensed by the department of consumer and worker
protection before August 1, 1979, where the person who held the license
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03914-01-3
S. 5563 2
for such newsstand on August 1, 1991 continues to be the licensee for
such newsstand; provided, however, that where a newsstand which was
first licensed before August 1, 1979 is reconstructed in its entirety or
in substantial part, which reconstruction was commenced on or after
August 1, 1991, such newsstand shall be subject to such prohibition.
c. All snow and ice accumulating within a space identified in para-
graph 1 of subdivision b of this section shall be removed by the [owner,
lessee or tenant of the premises fronting such space within four hours
after the snow ceases to fall, except that (i) such owner, lessee or
tenant shall not be required to remove snow and ice from the fire
hydrant street area or from the property of such owner, lessee or tenant
and (ii) the time between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. shall not be included
in the aforementioned period of four hours] DEPARTMENT OF SANITATION.
d. Notwithstanding section 15-216, a violation or knowing violation of
this section shall be punishable in the same manner as a violation of
subdivision a of section 16-123, except that a knowing violation of
subdivision b of this section may in addition be punishable by imprison-
ment not to exceed one day.
e. In addition to the department, the department of sanitation may
enforce the provisions of this section.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.