S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
11080
I N A S S E M B L Y
April 24, 2026
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BURROUGHS -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to owner
liability for failure of an operator to stop for a school bus
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Paragraphs 1 and 1-a of subdivision (a) of section 1174-a
of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by section 1 of part AA of
chapter 56 of the laws of 2024, are amended to read as follows:
1. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a county, city, town or
village located within a school district ("district") is hereby author-
ized and empowered to adopt and amend a local law or ordinance estab-
lishing a demonstration program imposing monetary liability on the owner
of a vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with subdivi-
sion (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this article when
meeting a school bus marked and equipped as provided in subdivisions
twenty and twenty-one-c of section three hundred seventy-five of this
chapter and operated in such county, city, town or village, in accord-
ance with the provisions of this section. Such demonstration program
shall empower such county, city, town or village to install and operate
school bus photo violation monitoring systems which may be stationary or
mobile, and which may be installed, pursuant to an agreement with a
school district within such county, city, town or village, on school
buses owned and operated by such school district or privately owned and
operated for compensation under contract with such district. Provided,
however, that (a) no stationary school bus photo violation monitoring
system shall be installed or operated by a county, city, town or village
except on roadways under the jurisdiction of such county, city, town or
village, and (b) no mobile school bus photo violation monitoring system
shall be installed or operated on any such school buses unless such
county, city, town or village and such district enter into an agreement
for such installation and operation. MOBILE SCHOOL BUS PHOTO VIOLATION
MONITORING SYSTEMS INSTALLED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION SHALL ONLY BE
OPERATED WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF A PARTICIPATING SCHOOL DISTRICT. THE
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14082-03-6
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COUNTY, CITY, TOWN OR VILLAGE SHALL MAINTAIN AND TRANSMIT A LIST OF
PARTICIPATING SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND THEIR BOUNDED LOCATIONS TO ANY THIRD-
PARTY VENDOR WHICH OPERATES A PHOTO VIOLATION MONITORING SYSTEM. A
VENDOR SHALL DISABLE THE OPERATION OF MOBILE BUS PHOTO VIOLATION MONI-
TORING SYSTEMS OUTSIDE SUCH GEOGRAPHIC BOUNDARIES. NOTHING IN THIS
PARAGRAPH SHALL BE DEEMED TO LIMIT THE AUTHORITY OF A LAW ENFORCEMENT
OFFICER TO ENFORCE THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION ELEVEN HUNDRED SEVENTY-FOUR
OF THIS ARTICLE.
1-a. Any county, city, town or village, located within a school
district, that has adopted a local law or ordinance pursuant to this
section establishing a demonstration program imposing liability on the
owner of a vehicle for failure of an operator thereof to comply with
subdivision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this article
when meeting a school bus marked and equipped as provided in subdivi-
sions twenty and twenty-one-c of section three hundred seventy-five of
this chapter and operated in such county, city, town or village may
enter into an agreement with the applicable school district for the
installation, maintenance and use of school bus photo violation monitor-
ing systems on school buses pursuant to this section and section twen-
ty-two of the chapter of the laws of two thousand nineteen which added
this section, for the proper handling and custody of photographs, micro-
photographs, videotapes, other recorded images and data produced by such
systems, and for the forwarding of such photographs, microphotographs,
videotapes, other recorded images and data to the applicable county,
city, town or village. Any agreement entered into hereunder shall be
approved by each participating county, city, town or village by a major-
ity vote of the voting strength of its governing body and by resolution
of the district pursuant to section sixteen hundred four, section seven-
teen hundred nine, section twenty-five hundred three, section twenty-
five hundred fifty-four or section twenty-five hundred ninety-h of the
education law, as applicable. THE USE OF A SCHOOL BUS PHOTO VIOLATION
MONITORING SYSTEM WITHIN A SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL REQUIRE THE PASSAGE OF
A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING SUCH USE. A COPY OF SUCH RESOLUTION SHALL BE
PROVIDED TO EACH COUNTY, CITY, TOWN AND VILLAGE WITHIN SUCH DISTRICT. NO
PHOTO MONITORING SYSTEM SHALL BE OPERATED PRIOR TO SUCH RESOLUTION OF
THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. Provided, however, that where a district has
entered an agreement as provided hereunder with a county, no cities,
towns or villages within the same county may enter into, or be a party
to, any agreement with such district pursuant to this section. Provided
further, however, that no county shall enter an agreement with any city
school district wholly contained within a city. Nothing in this section
shall be construed to prevent a county, city, town, village or district
at any time to withdraw from or terminate an agreement entered pursuant
to this section and section twenty-two of chapter one hundred forty-five
of the laws of two thousand nineteen which added this section.
§ 2. Subdivision (g) of section 1174-a of the vehicle and traffic law
is amended by adding a new paragraph 5 to read as follows:
5. NO NOTICE OF LIABILITY SHALL BE MAILED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION TO
ANY OWNER FOR A VIOLATION WHICH OCCURRED WITHIN A SCHOOL DISTRICT WHICH
HAS NOT PASSED A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE USE OF SCHOOL BUS PHOTO
VIOLATION MONITORING SYSTEMS WITHIN SUCH DISTRICT, OR FOR VIOLATIONS
WHICH OCCURRED PRIOR TO THE PASSAGE OF SUCH RESOLUTION APPROVING SUCH
USE AND ENTERING INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE COUNTY, CITY, TOWN OR
VILLAGE.
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§ 3. Subdivisions (m) and (n) of section 1174-a of the vehicle and
traffic law, as added by chapter 145 of the laws of 2019, are amended to
read as follows:
(m) In any such county, city, town or village which adopts a demon-
stration program pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section, such coun-
ty, city, town or village shall submit an annual report on the results
of the use of a school bus photo violation monitoring system to the
governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the
assembly on or before June first, two thousand nineteen and on the same
date in each succeeding year in which the demonstration program is oper-
able. SUCH REPORT SHALL BE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE ON THE COUNTY, CITY, TOWN
AND VILLAGE WEBSITES. Such report shall include, but not be limited to:
1. the number of buses and a description of the routes where station-
ary and mobile school bus photo violation monitoring systems were used;
2. the aggregate number, type and severity of accidents reported at
locations where a school bus photo violation monitoring system is used
for the year preceding the installation of such system, to the extent
the information is maintained by the department of motor vehicles of
this state;
3. the aggregate number, type and severity of accidents reported at
locations where a school bus photo violation monitoring system is used,
to the extent the information is maintained by the department of motor
vehicles of this state;
4. the number of violations recorded at each location where a school
bus photo violation monitoring system is used and in the aggregate on a
daily, weekly and monthly basis;
4-a. the number of convictions for violations of subdivision (a) of
section eleven hundred seventy-four of this article recorded at each
location where a school bus photo violation monitoring system is used on
an annual basis, to the extent the information is maintained by the
department of motor vehicles of this state;
5. the total number of notices of liability issued for violations
recorded by such systems;
6. the number of fines and total amount of fines paid after the first
notice of liability issued for violations recorded by such systems;
7. the number of violations adjudicated and results of such adjudi-
cations including breakdowns of dispositions made for violations
recorded by such systems which shall be provided at least annually to
such county, city, town or village by the respective courts, bureaus and
agencies conducting such adjudications;
8. the total amount of revenue realized by such city, town or village
from such adjudications;
9. the expenses incurred by such city, town or village in connection
with the program;
10. the quality of the adjudication process and its results including
the total number of hearings scheduled, re-scheduled, and held; the
total number of persons scheduled for such hearings; the total number of
cases where fines were paid on or before the hearing date; and the total
number of default judgments entered. Such information shall be provided
at least annually to such county, city, town or village by the respec-
tive courts, bureaus and agencies conducting such adjudications; and
11. a description of public education activities conducted to warn
motorists of the dangers of overtaking and passing stopped school buses.
(n) It shall be a defense to any prosecution for a violation of subdi-
vision (a) of section eleven hundred seventy-four of this article pursu-
ant to a local law or ordinance adopted pursuant to this section that:
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(1) such school bus stop-arms were malfunctioning at the time of the
alleged violation; OR (2) THE VIOLATION OCCURRED WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES
OF A SCHOOL DISTRICT WHICH HAD NOT ADOPTED A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE
USE OF A SCHOOL BUS PHOTO VIOLATION MONITORING SYSTEM, OR DURING ANY
PERIOD OF TIME PRIOR TO THE ADOPTION OF SUCH RESOLUTION.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
the amendments to section 1174-a of the vehicle and traffic law made by
sections one, two and three of this act shall not affect the repeal of
such section and shall be deemed repealed therewith.